Winchester Boys

The ghost disappears down the dark hallway and I chase after it. I have a flashlight in my left hand and my gun in my right. I turn the corner, heart racing in my chest. There's nothing to see though. The ghost has completely vanished.

Before I can plan my next move, the sudden sound of footsteps makes me turn around. I aim my gun and stand my ground, preparing myself for whatever monster is coming around the corner.

It's two human men, both holding guns and flashlights of their own. No monsters. It takes me a moment but then realization hits me. "Dean and Sam Winchester?"

They seem confused as well but it doesn't take them too long to come to the same conclusion that I have. "Libby Singer?" Sam asks.

"Yeah, you guessed it," I say, lowering my gun.

They both lower their guns as well.

"What are you doing here?" Dean demands.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" I reply. "Hunting a ghost. Same as you."

"Son of a bitch... " Dean mutters. "Does Bobby know you're here? Did he send you?"

"He didn't send me," I tell him.

"Let's get out of here," Sam suggests. There's the distant sound of police sirens and I wonder if one of us might have tripped an alarm or something. I didn't think the abandoned hospital had any alarm systems inside.

"Alright," I agree, nodding.

We make our way back outside and Sam suggests we go to the diner down the street. "It's open twenty four hours and I hear they have great pie." That last part is directed at Dean, convincing him to go along. It seems to work because soon enough we are all gathered in a booth near the window.

Dean has pie on his plate, Sam has cake, and I simply ordered coffee. It's late, nearly midnight so there's almost no one around at the diner except for a tired looking trucker.

"I thought you were working at-" Sam starts.

"I was," I cut him off, taking a sip of my coffee. "But I quit. My dad doesn't know."

"You didn't tell him?"

I shake my head. "I don't need to. I don't need his permission. I can make my own decisions. In case you didn't notice, I'm all grown up now."

We haven't seen each other in person since we were kids. I'm the same age as Sam though and we're all grown up now. It's crazy running into them like this and seeing them now.

"Oh, I noticed," Dean comments.

I catch his gaze staring down my shirt and kick him under the table. "Dick."

"Hey!" he protests.

"Dean!" Sam scolds him.

I button another button on my red and black button down plaid shirt. It effectively hides my cleavage but leaves a glimpse of the anti-possession charm on my necklace.

"How long have you been hunting?" Sam asks me, becoming serious again.

"About six months."

"Six months and Bobby still thinks you're an engineer?" Dean questions.

I nod. "Yes."

I went to college and got a degree in automotive engineering and as far as my dad knows I'm still working with cars. It's probably one of those things I got from him, a love of cars. It was nearly impossible not to when I grew up like I did. I get a lot of traits from him that I'm quite proud of. My father is a good man. My mother left me with him when I was a newborn and she never looked back. He kept me and raised me and he's not perfect but I think he did a pretty good job.

My dad had a wife once that he loved and he never loved again. My mother was in his life for a very short time and I was not planned. But even though he never loved her, he loves me more than anything.

He says I look like my mother. I'm a little shorter than my father, standing at 5' 6". I have long brown hair and olive green eyes. My mother's eyes exactly. I'm thin but toned. I work out a lot and have been trained in hand-to-hand combat before I even left for college.

My father didn't just teach me about cars. He taught me everything he knows about the supernatural. He told me that he wanted me to be safe and to be able to protect myself but that I should pursue a safe 'normal' life. He said I'm smarter than him. I don't know if that's true because here I am now sitting with the Winchester boys after a ghost hunt.

"Why haven't you told him yet?" Sam asks. "Why lie to him?"

"I don't want to lie to him," I say, looking down at the coffee cup in my hands. "I just don't want him to be disappointed either. He told me that he didn't want this kind of life for me. He wanted me to be safe. Said I was smarter than that."

"So why have you? Chosen to hunt, I mean?"

"My father is Bobby Singer. I've grown up around hunters and the supernatural my whole life. It's in my blood. And I'm good at it."

I was a good mechanic but this is what I want more. This is the life for me. It feels right. It feels good hunting and helping people. Someone has to do it and it's no job for amateurs. I'm good at it so isn't it my responsibility to do something about it? I can save people. No one's going to stop me. My mind is made up no matter what.

"Are you sure this is what you want?"

I meet his gaze, leaving no room for doubt. "Yes."

Dean shakes his head. "You can't be serious."

"Is it really that surprising that Bobby Singer's daughter would go into hunting?" I demand. "Is this because I'm a chick or what?"

"No, it's because you'd have to be crazy to want to do this job."

"Well, I guess we're both crazy then, aren't we?"

He doesn't seem to have a good comeback for this. After a moment he says "Bobby's gonna' find out. I'm surprised you've been able to hide it this long."

"I know," I sigh.

"Tell him," Dean says. "Call him and tell him right now."

I roll my eyes. "He's probably sleeping."

"Call him."

"Fine, but only because I really want you to shut up."

He makes a face at me.

I pull my cell phone out of my pocket and call my father.

"Elizabeth?" he asks, voice sounding sleepy. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, Dad, I'm fine. You'll never believe who I'm sitting at a diner with right now."

"What?" he sounds confused. I'm sorry to have to wake him up like this. "Who?"

"The Winchester boys."

"Dean and Sam?"

"Those would be the boys," I confirm.

"What are you doing with them? I thought they were on a case."

"They are. And so am I."

"What?"

"I have been working for six months now as a hunter. I just ran into them by chance on this case."

"No, Elizabeth this isn't funny."

"It's the truth."

"Six months? Six months and you never told me!"

"I didn't want you to be disappointed."

He sighs. "Let me talk to them."

"What?"

"Put Sam on the phone."

I frown. Now I'm the one who's confused. But I hand the phone to Sam. "He wants to talk to you."

"Me?" He holds the phone to his ear. "Hey Bobby."

I watch, unable to hear what my father is saying to him. Sam seems to be listening silently for ages before he finally responds.

"I know," he says. "Of course. I've got it. Yeah. I will. Bye."

He hangs up and passes my phone back.

"What did he say?" Dean asks.

"He's not exactly happy."

"Yeah..." I'm not surprised.

"He said he loves you but he's worried. And he made me promise to keep you safe."

"I don't need you to keep me safe," I insist. "I can take care of myself just fine."

"He wants you stick with us."

"That's insane!" Dean exclaims.

"I'm not doing that," I protest.

"Dean, you're the one who made her call him," Sam reminds him. "And I'm not going to tell Bobby no. After all he's done for us..."

"Son of a bitch..." Dean mutters, shaking his head.

"I'll talk to him tomorrow," I decide. "I'll take care of this."
---

Tomorrow comes, the ghost is taken care of, and I speak to my father. Unfortunately nothing I say gets through his stubborn head. We're both stubborn actually. And now I'm stuck with the Winchester boys at least until he changes his mind.