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Dawn sighed as she stuffed a few pieces of clothing into her bag aggressively. They had just finished their last case and they were already getting ready to jump back into the Impala once again. The blood from their wounds hadn't even finished drying yet. She was more than drained from the last few weeks and although this was her job, she had too many other things filling her thoughts. It felt like she was neglectfully ignoring all of the problems in her life, and having little time to rest was not going to help that situation at all.
Dawn looked up to see Sam towering above her as she knelt down on the floor. He quickly sat on the edge of the bed, maybe so she didn't have to crick her neck to talk to him. He had a slightly concerned look on his features and his brow was creased into a hard line. Dawn just remained where she was, waiting for him to speak.
"Dean went to get us some coffee from the hotel lobby." Sam spoke as he ran his large fingers through his shaggy brown hair.
"And?" She asked, getting quickly to the point. She wasn't much for beating around the bush, especially with Sam or Dean. They knew each other well enough that they didn't need to hassle with small talk.
"What makes you think there is an 'and'?" Sam narrowed his eyes, half smiling at her. She always had an amusing way of reading the expressions on their faces.
"Come on, Sam," she tilted her head to one side.
"Alright," he chuckled. "I just wanted to ask, how you are doing?"
"I'm fine," Dawn assured him. "Great actually!" She quickly followed her words with an exaggerated grin. "Why do you ask?"
"Well things have been hectic lately, and with what's happened with you and Dean..." Sam hesitated. "What is going on between you and Dean exactly?"
"What you know, is about as much as I know," she sighed. "We haven't really talked about it."
"Oh," he answered slightly surprised. "Are you alright with that?"
"For now," she shrugged. "And don't blame Dean. It is just as much my fault, maybe more so, that we haven't talked about it." She quickly shot him a look that told him not to pester Dean about this and to simply leave it be. Sam had a tendency to blame his brother whenever Dawn and him got into an argument, and she expected it was only going to get worse. This time she wasn't about to let him take the blame when it was more her fault than it was his, she was perfectly aware of that fact.
"Alright then," He smirked. "So, a case about cats huh?" He asked, quickly changing the subject.
"Kinda weird, right?" Dawn wrinkled her forehead. She zipped up her bag and rose to her feet.
"Yeah, but that is nothing new." Sam made a sarcastic groaning noise. He had witnessed some pretty strange things in his lifetime as a hunter. Although the cases seemed to grow weirder over time, he was no longer surprised by much of anything.
"I guess you're right," she agreed. Dawn stretched her arms up in the air and let out a loud yawn.
It had been an exhausting few weeks and all Dawn wanted was a break. She just kept telling herself that if she pushed through this case maybe she could get some time to herself, and maybe she could deal with her unresolved issues. She couldn't complain too much though, they had endured little rest but at least these cases weren't tied to an impending apocalypse. As far as they knew at the moment, none of them were.
She pushed her silky brown hair off of her forehead. Taking in a deep thoughtful breath, she tried to steady herself. She could deal with this -all of it- and whatever the world wanted to throw her way. She was plenty capable of dealing with a laundry list of problems and this was absolutely no different. Although this was filled with more emotional issues than she was welcomed to, she could handle it.
Dawn was caught off guard by the sound of the hotel door swinging open. Dean stood in the doorway with one too many coffee containers in his hands, and all Dawn could foresee was an unfortunate accident about to take place. She rushed to his side as he fumbled with the coffee's and the door. She reached for the coffee just before Dean began to lose balance. Thankfully she was in time to rescue him from falling and of course more importantly to rescue the coffee. She opened the top to the coffee container in her hand and gave it a quick sniff.
"This one is yours Sammie." She reached out to hand Sam the coffee that clearly smelled of vanilla and cream.
"Thanks." Sam grabbed the coffee from the brunettes long fingers.
"And this one is..." Dawn opened another coffee container and proceeded to smell the contents. "Definitely Deans." She scowled and handed the black coffee back to Dean and he handed her the coffee in his hands, which by default had to be hers. She guzzled down the contents without much concern to how hot it was. Just the smell of the fresh coffee gave her a jolt of energy. Coffee was like a hunters drug, along with any kind of energy supplement you could find that might replace much needed sleep. Although nothing measured up to the effects of a full nights rest, for more than one night in a row.
"So where is this place where heading again?" Dean asked and then took a loud gulp from his black coffee.
"Hertford, North Carolina," she replied dryly. "It's about eighteen hours, give or take." Dawn hated the thought of another long drive, but at least it meant she could get some rest in the car. She had gotten used to sleeping in uncomfortable places and although it was not ideal she was certainly not complaining. At this point she would make a bed on cement if it meant she could sleep.
"Damn, another long road trip," Dean grumbled.
"Yeah, and your such a joy to be with on long car rides." Sam rolled his eyes at the thought of another fun filled road trip with his older sibling.
"Alright you two," she miffed. "If I have to, I will resort to violence to get you both to shut up!" Dawn lifted a weapons case from the floor and handed it to Dean. "Now start packing the car so we can get out of here."
"Yes, mam." Dean gave her a sharp nod and a wry smirk. "I suppose that means you're going to explain the details of this cat case later than?" He mused at his own use of alliteration.
"Fine," she rolled her eyes, trying to hold back her grin.
They went through the usual routine of packing up the car with their clothing and more importantly their weapons. It seemed since Dawn had joined the team she had brought with her more weapons than they were used to. Maybe it came from living with the slayer and the always full weapons chest that was in the house. She felt naked without a dagger sheathed at her thigh or some kind of weapon to protect herself. It used to be a stake that held a feeling of safety, but as of lately they faced less of vampires and more of everything else.
The three hunters were hoping to drive through the eighteen hour drive without having to make a stop for rest. They only wanted to stop for food and bathroom breaks but they were prepared to stop if it was necessary. Dean had the ability to push through just about anything and so most likely he would force himself to finish the drive and get this case over and done with as soon as possible. He wanted the opportunity to have the long awaited talk that Dawn and him needed. There was also the hopes of getting his hands on her without his brother graciously interrupting.
After about eight hours had passed, they were a little less than halfway through their journey. Dean was at the wheel and Dawn was in the passenger seat giving Sam his chance to rest more comfortably. They had stopped to fill the car with much needed snacks for the ride and were still hoping to finish the drive without stopping at a hotel. There was an obvious thickness in the air as Dean worked through his thoughts. He gripped the steering wheel and looked over at Dawn from the corner of his eyes. She had her long legs up on the dashboard, which would warrant most people a swift smack to the skull, but not her. She was studying the map intently, while she sipped from a small container of orange juice. He could tell, that although she continued to do her job as usual, she was growing weary from the ongoing cases. It probably didn't help that she had nearly died recently and had to continue on like nothing had happened. Super healing or not, it was still draining to go through all she had and still not get a break. Dean was strongly considering declining any cases for some time after this one. He knew she needed a break and there was no way she was going to tell them that, so he had to make the decision for her. She was so much like him, she would push herself further than she was capable of going. They were just the kind of people who would allow themselves to bend until they could bend no more. The bad thing was, they never seemed to reach a breaking point.
"So what exactly is in Hertford, and what does it have to do with cats?" Dean kept his eyes focused on the road as he spoke. Intent on leading the conversation in a very specific direction, but finding it hard to do so. He had never been so comfortable with anyone, like the way he was with Dawn, but for once it was actually hard to find the right words.
"The only thing I know right now is that some really unusual stuff has been going on with the cats in the town." She folded the map that was in her lap neatly and placed it next to her. "Some cases they have been attacking people and running away from their homes. Apparently they have also been grouping together and just all around creeping the hell out of everyone in Hertford."
"Creepy cats. Yeah, that sounds like the kind of case we would get." He chuckled to himself and shook his head.
"We'll figure it out, like we always do." Dawn yawned and leaned back in her seat more comfortably.
"Hopefully when were done, you and I can have some actual time to ourselves." Dean was instantly pleased with his smooth diversion of the conversation.
"If wishes were horses," she mumbled under her breath.
"Huh?" Dean raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"Oh...I just mean that would be nice," she responded with an amused giggle.
"Just try and stay out of trouble during this case and maybe we can relax for a bit." His tone was playful, since they both knew that he got into just as much trouble as she did.
"You mean, not take a case for a while?" Dawn wrinkled her forehead and looked over at Dean who was intently focused on the road. His eyes were drooping a bit and she could tell that he was tired.
"Not too long, just enough time to get rested." It sounded like a great idea, accept he was not planning on spending the entire time resting.
"I suppose we could," she shrugged. She narrowed her eyes, mulling over the idea. "I mean nothing has been apocalypsy lately. As long as nothing serious comes up, some down time might be nice." A smile rose across her face as she quickly began warming up to the idea.
"Good," Dean yawned.
"Want me to take over behind the wheel?" Dawn asked her voice suddenly raising an octave or two. Just the thought of some time off, and some time alone with Dean was instantly making her feel better. Maybe this exhaustion was more emotional than anything else.
"No. No, I'm good," he ran his hand down his face and slapped his cheek a couple times.
"No, you're not," she uttered. "Pull over before I take my dagger to the dashboard."
"Fine," Dean forced back a smile. He knew it was an idle threat but it was enough to make him pull over. When Dawn demanded something people around her had a way of reacting quickly. It may have had something to do with her being an age old mystical energy force, that caused an innate sense of power. Or maybe it was something else all-together different.
Dean pulled the Impala over, the headlights clearing the way through the edge of the dirt road. He ran around the front of the car, while Dawn decided to crawl across the center console with ease. The rest of the drive seemed to go by much faster as they continued to take turns with the seating arrangements.

***

When they first pulled up to Hertford, it instantly held no menace in the site. It seemed like a perfectly pleasant quiet town, but looks had a tendency to mislead. The downtown area seemed much quieter than it should be for the time of day they had arrived. There were a row of stores and offices, as they took their time driving down the street and taking in their surroundings. In an instant the easy view changed to something suspicious. They saw a middle-aged woman, with light brown hair walking across the street a little ways in front of them. The woman instantly had a look of fear on her face as she stared, wide-eyed, a few feet in front of where she had stopped dead in her tracks. When Dawn looked towards the direction of the woman's stare, she saw a small black cat standing in the road. The woman spun around and ran in the opposite direction with unbelievable speed.
"Wait! Stop the car!" Dawn demanded to Dean who was now in the drivers seat. He complied with her demands and put on the breaks as fast as he could. They had learned not to hesitate when one of them gave an order like that.
Dawn quickly jumped out of the car and walked towards the edge of the sidewalk. She kept her distance from the cat since she had no idea what it might do, or how it might react to her presence. She looked down at the cat who now had its eyes on her intently. Dawn remained very still, when she looked down at the small animal, she saw no threat in it's eyes.
"Hi, Kitty," she beckoned softly. The black cat which had been sitting down was now rising to its feet and was starting to walk towards her.
"Here kitty, kitty" Dean called to the animal as he stepped out of the car. In reaction the cat started running around the sidewalk in fear. It ran right past Dean who quickly jumped backwards over the hood of his car, and let out an embarrassing squeal.
"Nice job!" Dawn snarled tossing her arms into the air. "I almost had it!"
"Oh, what are you the cat whisperer now?" He spat sarcastically, his mouth twisting.
"Dean what the hell was that?" Sam half-chuckled as he opened the car door. He was slightly irritated that his brothers rash actions had possibly lost them a lead on their case. It wasn't the first time that a potential lead was less than human and it certainly would not be the last.
"It was a black cat!" He hollered. "It was about to cross my path. I don't need anymore bad luck."
"Let's just see if we can find anyone to talk to around here." Sam suggested as he shut the car door behind him.
"I guess I'll park the car," Dean said with a loud huff. His mood was instantly declining since they arrived in Hertford. He was obviously not in a social mood and Sam thought it best that he was not around people for the time being. He had already screwed up one potential lead and the last thing they needed was another mistake.
"Alright, Sam and I can start looking around," she nodded.
Sam and Dawn headed for the first place that seemed to have a few people inside. There was one store that was called "Greg's 5-10-25¢ Store". The view of the outside gave a very historical feel to it and it was clear this town had a past. It seemed promising so they entered the store in hopes of finding a few people to give them the answers they needed. Inside there were plenty of antiques and gifts and even a few people shopping.
It was a nice store, one that reminded her of Sunnydale in some strange way. The thought of where she grew up brought an instant flurry of memories and unwanted emotions. It had been a while since she had seen Buffy, she truly did miss her. She wondered how she was doing? Had she changed her hair? Did she have any new developments in the romance department? Dawn realized that at some point she needed to talk to her sister, and all of the other Scoobies. She let out a noticeable huff and tried to snap herself out of her distractions and back into focus.
They caught site of a young girl working at the counter and both went straight for her without hesitation. The girl instantly gave a broad and indiscreet smile to Sam, when she saw Dawn she instantly ducked her head to hide red cheeks.
"Hello mam, were with animal control and were just here to ask you a few questions if you have the time?" Dawn tried to stay on task while still sounding professional. Even though she was good with compassion, she much preferred the slicing and dicing to this professional act they had to put on.
"Um, sure." The attractive girl with platinum blond hair nodded in hesitant reply.
"We are here about the recent cat complaints," Sam cringed at the way the alliteration sounded. This was becoming an issue, first it was Dean, now him. So far Dawn seemed unfazed by the recent word sickness.
"Oh, yeah," the girl suddenly perked up. "I heard about all that but I haven't really been involved in anything, and I don't go out much." She bit her bottom lip and recoiled a bit at her own announcement.
"Excuse me," a woman announced her presence from a few feet away.
Both Dawn and Sam turned their heads to see who it was. It was an older woman with slightly graying hair. The woman was short and chubby with a warm welcoming face. She was walking towards them and they were calmly awaiting her next move. There was something seemingly kind about the woman, but they knew that meant absolutely nothing. More often than not they had been deceived by appearances and it had made them a bit more weary towards overly innocent looking strangers.
"Did you say you are here about what has been going on with the cats lately?" The woman's voice was filled with honey as she stood in front of the two hunters.
"Yes mam, were from animal control," Dawn nodded calmly. "Is there anything you can tell us?"
"Oh, yes, yes!" She singsonged. "My neighbor told me her cat has been really scaring her. Rufus- that is her cat- has been sitting on the edge of her bed staring her down until she becomes so uncomfortable she has to leave the room. Many of our friends and neighbors have been attacked and said the cats seemed to enjoy tasting their blood." He voice grew a few octaves higher as she reached the high points of her story. "My own kitties have been acting mighty strange as well. Just the other day Tootsy snarled at me when I tried to feed her, her dinner. Then she jumped on the dinner table and started eating my dinner. The rest of the kitties haven't been acting as strange as her but they all seem to be grouping together and being very indifferent towards me. Normally they are all over me looking for cuddles." She shook her head clearly upset.
"Is there anyway we could possibly stop by later and get a look at your cats?" Sam asked.
"Oh, of course!" The woman replied with a gentle smile. "I am Gracie Carlton, I can give you my number and address." She reached into her tan leather purse and pulled out a notebook and a pen. She scribbled down some information and tore the page from her book quickly handing it to Sam. Dawn also wrote down their cell number for the woman just in case of an emergency.
"Thank you so much Mrs. Carlton," Dawn smiled reaching out her hand to the woman.
"No, please, call me Gracie," she offered shaking Dawn's hand gently.
"Thank you Gracie," she nodded. "I'm Dawn. We will get in contact with you soon."
The two of them turned around to leave the store with the information in hopes of using it towards research. The woman was charming and extremely helpful. They had been lucky this time, usually a case without a good lead was hard to piece together. When they opened the exit door Dean was standing in front of them his eyes wide.
"What happened?" Dawn furrowed her brow in reaction to his confusing expression. He seemed unscathed but he was certainly not acting as if all was fine.
"I don't wanna talk about it right now," he snapped. "Did you find anything out?"
"Should be enough information to do research," Sam replied with a nod.
"Good, let's go somewhere to do research so we can get out of this butt-hole town." Dean was clearly not in the best of moods so neither Dawn nor Sam were willing to test his limits at the moment.
"I think I saw a cheap motel down the street, if you guys wanna avoid paying I am sure we could break in for a few hours at least." The seemingly innocent brunette shrugged, and it was obvious she was nothing of the sort.
"A woman after my own heart," Dean clutched his chest and his lips nearly touched the edges of a smile. What seemed like an impossibly bad mood began to fade with his cheerful realization.
"Come one," she chuckled and began walking down the street.
***

The three occasional criminals subtly broke into a motel room that was obviously vacant. They had little time to argue over wasting money and this seemed like the best plan. It was clear Dean was not making instant friends with this town and they were hoping to solve the case quickly. There was also the thought placed firmly in the back of both Dean and Dawn's minds that there was a lovely prize awaiting them at the end of this case. It was giving Dawn a sense of ease, while at the same time making Dean extremely antsy.
Dawn leaned back in her chair and took a slow, deep breath from the air conditioned room. She tipped her neck back feeling a gust from the AC's cool air waft across her body. She was leaning dangerously back in her chair when suddenly she heard an excited Sam holler with joy and it nearly caused her to fall out of her seat. Thankfully she stabilized the flimsy chair legs and set them back onto the floor.
"What yah got?" She asked flipping her hair back over her shoulder.
"I found something that talks about Perquimans county- which is this county- and how there was an accusation of a witch back during the witch trials." Sam's hazel eyes moved back and forth across the computer screen in front of him.
"Are you thinking of familiars?" Dawn asked and tilted her head in a questioning manner.
"It seems plausible," he replied.
"But why so many cats? And why aren't more witch-y things happening." She added, while her face twisted into a thoughtful look of confusion.
"Maybe they are trying to hide and do everything through their familiars." Dean suggested over the sounds of Sam clicking vigorously at his keyboard trying to put the pieces together.
Both Dawn and Sam continued clicking away at their computer keyboards, while Dean pretended to look through his fathers journal. When Dawn finally came across something interesting her eyes grew wide and she continued to read.
"So listen, I found something that says some people believed that a familiar would drink the blood of their witch." She used her finger to follow the words, sliding it across the computer screen in front of her.
"That old woman mentioned that a neighbor was attacked by her cat, and it almost seemed like the cat enjoyed the taste of her blood." Sam seemed instantly excited about this conclusion. It was interesting how he was when in research mode. Both him and Dawn often worked together bouncing ideas back and forth. Dean was great at putting things together, when he was not in one of these terrible moods. It was clear this town was getting on his nerves, or possibly it was other things making him so on edge.
"Exactly," she replied nodding with enthusiasm. "It also talks about how some familiars will stare at someone until they are so uncomfortable they have to leave the room."
"Well if we are dealing with familiars, how do we get rid of them?" Dean interjected.
"It depends," she answered. "It says either they are familiar spirits, who are supposed to guide a new witch through her craft. Or they could be something altogether different." She took in a deep breath before continuing. "They could be possessed, basically familiars spirits who are demons and have powers and probably want human blood to feed on."
"I think we need to pay Gracie Carlton a visit," Sam suggested. He quickly shut his computer and rose to his feet to prepare.
"I'll call her before we head over," she reached for the hotel phone that was next to her on the table. Dawn grabbed the piece of note paper that the woman had scribbled her information on. Before she could begin dialing the numbers into the phone that was clutched in her hand, they heard a cell phone ringing loudly. She hesitated and watched as Sam pulled the cell phone from his pocket.
"It's her," Sam peered down at Dawn with a curious look. He quickly handed her the phone.
"Hello Gracie, is everything okay?" She was slightly concerned since the woman had planned on awaiting their call.
"Please, Dawn, please help me," Gracie's voice was shaky and clearly petrified. "My cats have gone crazy! I don't know what to do."
"We'll be right there, just try and lock yourself somewhere away from them." Dawn ordered the woman, while still keeping her voice calm and in control.
"I'm in my closet. Just please hurry!" She cried.
"We'll be right there!" Dawn replied. She hung up the phone and tossed it to Sam. "Her cats have gone totally crazy, we have to hurry."
The three of them were down the street and following Dean to the Impala in seconds. They had no idea what they were walking into but that didn't effect them much, it came with the job. They were used to walking blindly into danger and even the occasional trap. They were always prepared for anything, without allowing themselves to depend on expectations.

***

They followed the address and arrived at Gracie's home. It was a one story home but was not small by any means, and seemed slightly under-kept. It was easy to assume that she had been married and had either lost or divorced her husband. The home was clearly meant for two people, but the fact that she was alone now and in need of their help suggested that no man was in the house.
Dawn felt a sudden uneasy air to her surrounding and instantly it was telling her to turn back. The last thing she was going to do was listen to that feeling, she knew it came from something real, but this was her job. They were hunters and when things got harry they didn't run away, they charged towards the destruction.
Saying very little, the three of them headed towards the front door of the home. This was an obvious emergency and they had no idea just how many cats where inside this house ready to pounce. This woman could be in serious danger, especially if these cats were possessed familiars. Dean was first to open the front door his hand on his gun as he clutched the door handle. Surprisingly the door was unlocked, apparently people here were more trusting than most. He opened the door slowly, his eyes searching the the house as he entered, followed by Sam and Dawn.
"She said she was in her closet," Dawn whispered.
"Alright, let's check the house and try and make our way to her bedroom," Dean demanded. His usual in control attitude was taking over once again. Dawn and Sam were both far too used to it, to let it bother them at this point.
They continued creeping through the house in search of the potential danger, which happened to be a few insane cats. Once they got further into the house, they could hear some noises which sounded like scratching and possibly some whimpering sounds. Without saying a word they followed the sounds which to no surprise led to the woman's bedroom. The door was cracked open and Dean led the way into the room. Once they were inside they caught site of exactly what they were looking for. There were three cats scratching ravenously at the closet door, while they could hear Gracie crying inside. Once the cats heard them enter the room they spun around to face them. A large white cat made a loud growling sound and instantly a few more cats crawled out from their hiding places inside the bedroom.
"Oh crap," Dean groaned as he held up his weapon.
"Is that you?" Gracie yelled from inside the closet. Her voice showed just how traumatized she was from this experience.
"Just stay inside Gracie, everything is going to be okay," Dawn answered, clutching onto a crossbow in her hands.
"Please, don't hurt my babies," the woman replied. The three hunters fell instantly silent at the woman's reaction. She was requesting that they try and avoid harming the creatures that were actually trying to kill her.
The herd of cats all lined up in a row now and were hissing at the intruders. Before the three hunters could respond the cats were running towards an open window and were leaping outside together.
"We should follow them," Sam suggested. He walked towards the window and tried to watch the direction of the cats.
"I'll go with you," Dean followed Sam who was now crawling out the small window. The sight was slightly amusing to Dawn even in the current circumstances. Just watching the six foot four, rather large man crawling out of a narrow window after a fiendish herd of cats, was laughter inducing.
"I'll get Gracie and catch up with you guys," Dawn rolled her eyes in irritation. This would be the second time she was left with rescue duty, but she intended on catching up quickly.
While the brothers climbed out the window she ran towards the closet and opened the door. Gracie was sitting on the floor shaking, bloody scratches across her face and arms. Dawn quickly helped her to her bed and sat her down. It was obvious her wounds were minor and she was mostly shaken up.
"Do you think you can call 911 yourself?" She asked looking her in the eyes. She wanted to make sure the woman was okay, but she also realized the gravity of the situation Sam and Dean might be in.
"I'll be fine deary, just go after your friends," she nodded with a sniffle.
Dawn nodded and spun around quickly, only to find a small black cat standing in front of her. Her heart quickly started flopping around in her chest as she drew her crossbow. When she looked closer at the cat she realized it had been the very same one from the sidewalk. This was the cat that Dean had scared away, and it seemed somehow different than the others.
"Is this cat yours?" She asked over her shoulder to Gracie, who was reaching for her phone.
"No!" Gracie shook her head, her voice growing uneasy once again at the sight before her. "I've never seen it before in my life."
The cat let out a quiet mewing sound and started walking towards the window. It turned its head towards Dawn, as if it were beckoning her to follow. She responded and slowly made her way towards it. This was enough for the cat to continue out the window, Dawn following it every step of the way. Although it made her uneasy, this seemed like the right thing to do. She continued after the feline, down the street where she caught sight of the brothers who were looking extremely irritated.
"Hey guys," she yelled after them. They instantly turned around and rose their weapons at the site of what they thought to be a potential familiar striding towards them. "No! Don't shoot!" She hollered. They gave her a surprised look and complied. They got closer to them and the cat stopped, sitting down and waiting.
"What the hell is this?" Dean asked waving his arm.
"I have no idea," she replied. "It seems to be leading me somewhere."
"What?" Sam tilted his head.
"I know, I am just as shocked as you. What happened with the herd?" She kept looking back at the strange cat, which seemed to be listening to their conversation.
"They got away!" Dean had an irritated scowl on his face.
"Well as strange as it sounds, let's follow this little guy." She shrugged looking down at her new friend.
The cat quickly rose to his feet and started stomping down the street, leading them through an alley way. Just the sheer thought of following a strange cat through an alley way towards what seemed to be a herd of dangerous and possibly possessed cats, was insane. They had seen some pretty unusual things in their time but this was certainly one of the strangest. This cat seemed abnormally intelligent and far too in-tuned to what they were saying for it to be an ordinary feline.
Finally, they came to the edge of a second alley way and their "leader" started to slow down. There was an opening that led behind a row of a desolate buildings. Keeping hands on their weapons they tried to pay attention to what was in front of them. When they came around the corner they spotted exactly what they were looking for, accept now the herd of familiars was even larger. There were over ten cats mostly huddled together around...something.
Suddenly Dawn realized just what they were crouched around. Her eyes caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a mans hand sticking out between two of the cats. They seemed to be munching on the body of this man, there were blood stains all around him. She shook her mind free of the thought quickly and looked towards the brothers. She knew that they were prepared for what they had to do, she just hoped she could hold off the animals before they were finished. The last thing she wanted was to harm one of the innocent cats, if this truly was a possession issue.
"It's a feline frenzy," Dawn stared wide-eyed.
"Oh no, not you too." Dean shook his head at the shameful overuse of the figure of speech. This was becoming pathetic and it seemed none of them were immune.
Sam began reciting the words in Latin which both him and Dean had memorized by now. They had spoken the ritual many times, and were hoping that it worked this time. They were running this idea purely off of a hunch, and they may be completely wrong about what these creatures were. Usually their intuition led them in the right direction, but on occasion the truth was harder to find. Dawn clutched her crossbow and reached for a gun holstered at her thigh. It was a tranquilizer gun, and she had only a few shots left in it, she had to make them count.
"We exorcise you, every impure spirit..." Sam began speaking the words and Dawn could hear and understand them perfectly.
As he spoke the cats instantly reacted to the sound of the exorcism. The group one by one started turning around to face the intruders that threatened them. There was a familiar large white cat that stood out front and it was clearly the leader of the felines. In a shocking reaction it opened its mouth wide and the creatures eyes turned completely black. This was not the site of a normal cats eyes growing wide, it was that of a possessed beast. The snow white leader lunged forward, his eyes intently focused on Sam, who was the clear and present threat. Dawn lifted the tranquilizer gun and pulled the trigger sending the dart whizzing towards the animal and luckily striking it on the shoulder. The animal began stumbling slightly as it continued towards Sam. They realized now that their assumptions were correct. No ordinary animal could withstand a tranquilizer dart, this was clearly more than just an animal.
"The God of Israel Himself will have thrust excellence and strength to His Own people. Blessed be God. Glory be to the Father. " Sam finished the words in Latin as quickly as possible. As he continued to recite Dawn and Dean both stood in front of him, standing their ground as the gang of cats continued for them. When Sam said the finale words the cats all tips their heads back and black smoke rose up from their mouths and flew away. The shells of the cats fell to the ground once the smoke was finished exiting their bodies.
"Did we seriously just exorcize a group of possessed cats?" Dean held his gun in his hand staring at the scene before them.
"Yup," Dawn replied.
"We should probably go check on that woman and tell her she can come pick up her pets." Sam looked at the group of passed out cats on the ground. Mostly likely they would survive, since they weren't human and it was an entirely different kind of possession.

***

When they finally got to the woman's house the ambulance and police cars had arrived. They spotted her sitting in the back of an ambulance with a blanket wrapped around her and bandages covering her scratches. She seemed much better, accept the obvious look of worry written all over her face.
"How are you feeling?" Dawn asked standing in front of Gracie.
"Fine, how did everything go?" She asked, her eyes almost filling up with nervous tears.
"Okay," she said in replied. "All your kitties should be fine, they had to be tranquilized and we gave them some medicine, it was a really strange infection making them act so..."
"You don't have to lie honey," the woman interrupted.
"What do you mean?" Dean questioned, his tone stern.
"When Tootsy- which is the white cat you saw- when she scratched me I had a strange vision. Somehow she showed me what was happening to my kitties. I know this may seem strange, but they were all possessed." Gracie nodded her eyes wide as she told the story. "They were possessed by some witches assistants, who use cats as their hosts to serve the witches. Accept this specific group no longer wanted to serve their witches, not when they discovered what drinking human blood could do to them. It gave them powers that they were going to use to take over the town, and then who knows what else. You may not believe me but I know my kitties wouldn't hurt me, and I know it wasn't their fault."
"You know Gracie- as strange as it does sound- I think I do believe you." Dawn's eyes held a smile at the inside joke.
After they finished talking with Gracie they told her where she could find her cats and then headed for the Impala. There was an instant anticipation in the air, they were finally going to get a break, a rest, almost like a mini-vacation. While they were all excitedly about to pile into the car together, they noticed a barely audible mewing noise. Dawn looked down to find the small black kitty pawing at her leg. She couldn't help but grin at just how adorable it was.
"Can we keep him?" She batted her long eyelashes at the brothers, who just stared at her with their mouths completely agape.

Description
Dawn sighed as she stuffed a few pieces of clothing into her bag aggressively. They had just finished their last case and they were already getting ready to jump back into the Impala once again. The blood from their wounds hadn't even finished drying yet. She was more than drained from the last few weeks and although this was her job, she had too many other things filling her thoughts. It felt like she was neglectfully ignoring all of the problems in her life, and having little time to rest was not going to help that situation at all.
Dawn looked up to see Sam towering above her as she knelt down on the floor. He quickly sat on the edge of the bed, maybe so she didn't have to crick her neck to talk to him. He had a slightly concerned look on his features and his brow was creased into a hard line. Dawn just remained where she was, waiting for him to speak.
"Dean went to get us some coffee from the hotel lobby." Sam spoke as he ran his large fingers through his shaggy brown hair.
"And?" She asked, getting quickly to the point. She wasn't much for beating around the bush, especially with Sam or Dean. They knew each other well enough that they didn't need to hassle with small talk.
"What makes you think there is an 'and'?" Sam narrowed his eyes, half smiling at her. She always had an amusing way of reading the expressions on their faces.
"Come on, Sam," she tilted her head to one side.
"Alright," he chuckled. "I just wanted to ask, how you are doing?"
"I'm fine," Dawn assured him. "Great actually!" She quickly followed her words with an exaggerated grin. "Why do you ask?"
"Well things have been hectic lately, and with what's happened with you and Dean..." Sam hesitated. "What is going on between you and Dean exactly?"
"What you know, is about as much as I know," she sighed. "We haven't really talked about it."
"Oh," he answered slightly surprised. "Are you alright with that?"
"For now," she shrugged. "And don't blame Dean. It is just as much my fault, maybe more so, that we haven't talked about it." She quickly shot him a look that told him not to pester Dean about this and to simply leave it be. Sam had a tendency to blame his brother whenever Dawn and him got into an argument, and she expected it was only going to get worse. This time she wasn't about to let him take the blame when it was more her fault than it was his, she was perfectly aware of that fact.
"Alright then," He smirked. "So, a case about cats huh?" He asked, quickly changing the subject.
"Kinda weird, right?" Dawn wrinkled her forehead. She zipped up her bag and rose to her feet.
"Yeah, but that is nothing new." Sam made a sarcastic groaning noise. He had witnessed some pretty strange things in his lifetime as a hunter. Although the cases seemed to grow weirder over time, he was no longer surprised by much of anything.
"I guess you're right," she agreed. Dawn stretched her arms up in the air and let out a loud yawn.
It had been an exhausting few weeks and all Dawn wanted was a break. She just kept telling herself that if she pushed through this case maybe she could get some time to herself, and maybe she could deal with her unresolved issues. She couldn't complain too much though, they had endured little rest but at least these cases weren't tied to an impending apocalypse. As far as they knew at the moment, none of them were.
She pushed her silky brown hair off of her forehead. Taking in a deep thoughtful breath, she tried to steady herself. She could deal with this -all of it- and whatever the world wanted to throw her way. She was plenty capable of dealing with a laundry list of problems and this was absolutely no different. Although this was filled with more emotional issues than she was welcomed to, she could handle it.
Dawn was caught off guard by the sound of the hotel door swinging open. Dean stood in the doorway with one too many coffee containers in his hands, and all Dawn could foresee was an unfortunate accident about to take place. She rushed to his side as he fumbled with the coffee's and the door. She reached for the coffee just before Dean began to lose balance. Thankfully she was in time to rescue him from falling and of course more importantly to rescue the coffee. She opened the top to the coffee container in her hand and gave it a quick sniff.
"This one is yours Sammie." She reached out to hand Sam the coffee that clearly smelled of vanilla and cream.
"Thanks." Sam grabbed the coffee from the brunettes long fingers.
"And this one is..." Dawn opened another coffee container and proceeded to smell the contents. "Definitely Deans." She scowled and handed the black coffee back to Dean and he handed her the coffee in his hands, which by default had to be hers. She guzzled down the contents without much concern to how hot it was. Just the smell of the fresh coffee gave her a jolt of energy. Coffee was like a hunters drug, along with any kind of energy supplement you could find that might replace much needed sleep. Although nothing measured up to the effects of a full nights rest, for more than one night in a row.
"So where is this place where heading again?" Dean asked and then took a loud gulp from his black coffee.
"Hertford, North Carolina," she replied dryly. "It's about eighteen hours, give or take." Dawn hated the thought of another long drive, but at least it meant she could get some rest in the car. She had gotten used to sleeping in uncomfortable places and although it was not ideal she was certainly not complaining. At this point she would make a bed on cement if it meant she could sleep.
"Damn, another long road trip," Dean grumbled.
"Yeah, and your such a joy to be with on long car rides." Sam rolled his eyes at the thought of another fun filled road trip with his older sibling.
"Alright you two," she miffed. "If I have to, I will resort to violence to get you both to shut up!" Dawn lifted a weapons case from the floor and handed it to Dean. "Now start packing the car so we can get out of here."
"Yes, mam." Dean gave her a sharp nod and a wry smirk. "I suppose that means you're going to explain the details of this cat case later than?" He mused at his own use of alliteration.
"Fine," she rolled her eyes, trying to hold back her grin.
They went through the usual routine of packing up the car with their clothing and more importantly their weapons. It seemed since Dawn had joined the team she had brought with her more weapons than they were used to. Maybe it came from living with the slayer and the always full weapons chest that was in the house. She felt naked without a dagger sheathed at her thigh or some kind of weapon to protect herself. It used to be a stake that held a feeling of safety, but as of lately they faced less of vampires and more of everything else.
The three hunters were hoping to drive through the eighteen hour drive without having to make a stop for rest. They only wanted to stop for food and bathroom breaks but they were prepared to stop if it was necessary. Dean had the ability to push through just about anything and so most likely he would force himself to finish the drive and get this case over and done with as soon as possible. He wanted the opportunity to have the long awaited talk that Dawn and him needed. There was also the hopes of getting his hands on her without his brother graciously interrupting.
After about eight hours had passed, they were a little less than halfway through their journey. Dean was at the wheel and Dawn was in the passenger seat giving Sam his chance to rest more comfortably. They had stopped to fill the car with much needed snacks for the ride and were still hoping to finish the drive without stopping at a hotel. There was an obvious thickness in the air as Dean worked through his thoughts. He gripped the steering wheel and looked over at Dawn from the corner of his eyes. She had her long legs up on the dashboard, which would warrant most people a swift smack to the skull, but not her. She was studying the map intently, while she sipped from a small container of orange juice. He could tell, that although she continued to do her job as usual, she was growing weary from the ongoing cases. It probably didn't help that she had nearly died recently and had to continue on like nothing had happened. Super healing or not, it was still draining to go through all she had and still not get a break. Dean was strongly considering declining any cases for some time after this one. He knew she needed a break and there was no way she was going to tell them that, so he had to make the decision for her. She was so much like him, she would push herself further than she was capable of going. They were just the kind of people who would allow themselves to bend until they could bend no more. The bad thing was, they never seemed to reach a breaking point.
"So what exactly is in Hertford, and what does it have to do with cats?" Dean kept his eyes focused on the road as he spoke. Intent on leading the conversation in a very specific direction, but finding it hard to do so. He had never been so comfortable with anyone, like the way he was with Dawn, but for once it was actually hard to find the right words.
"The only thing I know right now is that some really unusual stuff has been going on with the cats in the town." She folded the map that was in her lap neatly and placed it next to her. "Some cases they have been attacking people and running away from their homes. Apparently they have also been grouping together and just all around creeping the hell out of everyone in Hertford."
"Creepy cats. Yeah, that sounds like the kind of case we would get." He chuckled to himself and shook his head.
"We'll figure it out, like we always do." Dawn yawned and leaned back in her seat more comfortably.
"Hopefully when were done, you and I can have some actual time to ourselves." Dean was instantly pleased with his smooth diversion of the conversation.
"If wishes were horses," she mumbled under her breath.
"Huh?" Dean raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"Oh...I just mean that would be nice," she responded with an amused giggle.
"Just try and stay out of trouble during this case and maybe we can relax for a bit." His tone was playful, since they both knew that he got into just as much trouble as she did.
"You mean, not take a case for a while?" Dawn wrinkled her forehead and looked over at Dean who was intently focused on the road. His eyes were drooping a bit and she could tell that he was tired.
"Not too long, just enough time to get rested." It sounded like a great idea, accept he was not planning on spending the entire time resting.
"I suppose we could," she shrugged. She narrowed her eyes, mulling over the idea. "I mean nothing has been apocalypsy lately. As long as nothing serious comes up, some down time might be nice." A smile rose across her face as she quickly began warming up to the idea.
"Good," Dean yawned.
"Want me to take over behind the wheel?" Dawn asked her voice suddenly raising an octave or two. Just the thought of some time off, and some time alone with Dean was instantly making her feel better. Maybe this exhaustion was more emotional than anything else.
"No. No, I'm good," he ran his hand down his face and slapped his cheek a couple times.
"No, you're not," she uttered. "Pull over before I take my dagger to the dashboard."
"Fine," Dean forced back a smile. He knew it was an idle threat but it was enough to make him pull over. When Dawn demanded something people around her had a way of reacting quickly. It may have had something to do with her being an age old mystical energy force, that caused an innate sense of power. Or maybe it was something else all-together different.
Dean pulled the Impala over, the headlights clearing the way through the edge of the dirt road. He ran around the front of the car, while Dawn decided to crawl across the center console with ease. The rest of the drive seemed to go by much faster as they continued to take turns with the seating arrangements.

***

When they first pulled up to Hertford, it instantly held no menace in the site. It seemed like a perfectly pleasant quiet town, but looks had a tendency to mislead. The downtown area seemed much quieter than it should be for the time of day they had arrived. There were a row of stores and offices, as they took their time driving down the street and taking in their surroundings. In an instant the easy view changed to something suspicious. They saw a middle-aged woman, with light brown hair walking across the street a little ways in front of them. The woman instantly had a look of fear on her face as she stared, wide-eyed, a few feet in front of where she had stopped dead in her tracks. When Dawn looked towards the direction of the woman's stare, she saw a small black cat standing in the road. The woman spun around and ran in the opposite direction with unbelievable speed.
"Wait! Stop the car!" Dawn demanded to Dean who was now in the drivers seat. He complied with her demands and put on the breaks as fast as he could. They had learned not to hesitate when one of them gave an order like that.
Dawn quickly jumped out of the car and walked towards the edge of the sidewalk. She kept her distance from the cat since she had no idea what it might do, or how it might react to her presence. She looked down at the cat who now had its eyes on her intently. Dawn remained very still, when she looked down at the small animal, she saw no threat in it's eyes.
"Hi, Kitty," she beckoned softly. The black cat which had been sitting down was now rising to its feet and was starting to walk towards her.
"Here kitty, kitty" Dean called to the animal as he stepped out of the car. In reaction the cat started running around the sidewalk in fear. It ran right past Dean who quickly jumped backwards over the hood of his car, and let out an embarrassing squeal.
"Nice job!" Dawn snarled tossing her arms into the air. "I almost had it!"
"Oh, what are you the cat whisperer now?" He spat sarcastically, his mouth twisting.
"Dean what the hell was that?" Sam half-chuckled as he opened the car door. He was slightly irritated that his brothers rash actions had possibly lost them a lead on their case. It wasn't the first time that a potential lead was less than human and it certainly would not be the last.
"It was a black cat!" He hollered. "It was about to cross my path. I don't need anymore bad luck."
"Let's just see if we can find anyone to talk to around here." Sam suggested as he shut the car door behind him.
"I guess I'll park the car," Dean said with a loud huff. His mood was instantly declining since they arrived in Hertford. He was obviously not in a social mood and Sam thought it best that he was not around people for the time being. He had already screwed up one potential lead and the last thing they needed was another mistake.
"Alright, Sam and I can start looking around," she nodded.
Sam and Dawn headed for the first place that seemed to have a few people inside. There was one store that was called "Greg's 5-10-25¢ Store". The view of the outside gave a very historical feel to it and it was clear this town had a past. It seemed promising so they entered the store in hopes of finding a few people to give them the answers they needed. Inside there were plenty of antiques and gifts and even a few people shopping.
It was a nice store, one that reminded her of Sunnydale in some strange way. The thought of where she grew up brought an instant flurry of memories and unwanted emotions. It had been a while since she had seen Buffy, she truly did miss her. She wondered how she was doing? Had she changed her hair? Did she have any new developments in the romance department? Dawn realized that at some point she needed to talk to her sister, and all of the other Scoobies. She let out a noticeable huff and tried to snap herself out of her distractions and back into focus.
They caught site of a young girl working at the counter and both went straight for her without hesitation. The girl instantly gave a broad and indiscreet smile to Sam, when she saw Dawn she instantly ducked her head to hide red cheeks.
"Hello mam, were with animal control and were just here to ask you a few questions if you have the time?" Dawn tried to stay on task while still sounding professional. Even though she was good with compassion, she much preferred the slicing and dicing to this professional act they had to put on.
"Um, sure." The attractive girl with platinum blond hair nodded in hesitant reply.
"We are here about the recent cat complaints," Sam cringed at the way the alliteration sounded. This was becoming an issue, first it was Dean, now him. So far Dawn seemed unfazed by the recent word sickness.
"Oh, yeah," the girl suddenly perked up. "I heard about all that but I haven't really been involved in anything, and I don't go out much." She bit her bottom lip and recoiled a bit at her own announcement.
"Excuse me," a woman announced her presence from a few feet away.
Both Dawn and Sam turned their heads to see who it was. It was an older woman with slightly graying hair. The woman was short and chubby with a warm welcoming face. She was walking towards them and they were calmly awaiting her next move. There was something seemingly kind about the woman, but they knew that meant absolutely nothing. More often than not they had been deceived by appearances and it had made them a bit more weary towards overly innocent looking strangers.
"Did you say you are here about what has been going on with the cats lately?" The woman's voice was filled with honey as she stood in front of the two hunters.
"Yes mam, were from animal control," Dawn nodded calmly. "Is there anything you can tell us?"
"Oh, yes, yes!" She singsonged. "My neighbor told me her cat has been really scaring her. Rufus- that is her cat- has been sitting on the edge of her bed staring her down until she becomes so uncomfortable she has to leave the room. Many of our friends and neighbors have been attacked and said the cats seemed to enjoy tasting their blood." He voice grew a few octaves higher as she reached the high points of her story. "My own kitties have been acting mighty strange as well. Just the other day Tootsy snarled at me when I tried to feed her, her dinner. Then she jumped on the dinner table and started eating my dinner. The rest of the kitties haven't been acting as strange as her but they all seem to be grouping together and being very indifferent towards me. Normally they are all over me looking for cuddles." She shook her head clearly upset.
"Is there anyway we could possibly stop by later and get a look at your cats?" Sam asked.
"Oh, of course!" The woman replied with a gentle smile. "I am Gracie Carlton, I can give you my number and address." She reached into her tan leather purse and pulled out a notebook and a pen. She scribbled down some information and tore the page from her book quickly handing it to Sam. Dawn also wrote down their cell number for the woman just in case of an emergency.
"Thank you so much Mrs. Carlton," Dawn smiled reaching out her hand to the woman.
"No, please, call me Gracie," she offered shaking Dawn's hand gently.
"Thank you Gracie," she nodded. "I'm Dawn. We will get in contact with you soon."
The two of them turned around to leave the store with the information in hopes of using it towards research. The woman was charming and extremely helpful. They had been lucky this time, usually a case without a good lead was hard to piece together. When they opened the exit door Dean was standing in front of them his eyes wide.
"What happened?" Dawn furrowed her brow in reaction to his confusing expression. He seemed unscathed but he was certainly not acting as if all was fine.
"I don't wanna talk about it right now," he snapped. "Did you find anything out?"
"Should be enough information to do research," Sam replied with a nod.
"Good, let's go somewhere to do research so we can get out of this butt-hole town." Dean was clearly not in the best of moods so neither Dawn nor Sam were willing to test his limits at the moment.
"I think I saw a cheap motel down the street, if you guys wanna avoid paying I am sure we could break in for a few hours at least." The seemingly innocent brunette shrugged, and it was obvious she was nothing of the sort.
"A woman after my own heart," Dean clutched his chest and his lips nearly touched the edges of a smile. What seemed like an impossibly bad mood began to fade with his cheerful realization.
"Come one," she chuckled and began walking down the street.
***

The three occasional criminals subtly broke into a motel room that was obviously vacant. They had little time to argue over wasting money and this seemed like the best plan. It was clear Dean was not making instant friends with this town and they were hoping to solve the case quickly. There was also the thought placed firmly in the back of both Dean and Dawn's minds that there was a lovely prize awaiting them at the end of this case. It was giving Dawn a sense of ease, while at the same time making Dean extremely antsy.
Dawn leaned back in her chair and took a slow, deep breath from the air conditioned room. She tipped her neck back feeling a gust from the AC's cool air waft across her body. She was leaning dangerously back in her chair when suddenly she heard an excited Sam holler with joy and it nearly caused her to fall out of her seat. Thankfully she stabilized the flimsy chair legs and set them back onto the floor.
"What yah got?" She asked flipping her hair back over her shoulder.
"I found something that talks about Perquimans county- which is this county- and how there was an accusation of a witch back during the witch trials." Sam's hazel eyes moved back and forth across the computer screen in front of him.
"Are you thinking of familiars?" Dawn asked and tilted her head in a questioning manner.
"It seems plausible," he replied.
"But why so many cats? And why aren't more witch-y things happening." She added, while her face twisted into a thoughtful look of confusion.
"Maybe they are trying to hide and do everything through their familiars." Dean suggested over the sounds of Sam clicking vigorously at his keyboard trying to put the pieces together.
Both Dawn and Sam continued clicking away at their computer keyboards, while Dean pretended to look through his fathers journal. When Dawn finally came across something interesting her eyes grew wide and she continued to read.
"So listen, I found something that says some people believed that a familiar would drink the blood of their witch." She used her finger to follow the words, sliding it across the computer screen in front of her.
"That old woman mentioned that a neighbor was attacked by her cat, and it almost seemed like the cat enjoyed the taste of her blood." Sam seemed instantly excited about this conclusion. It was interesting how he was when in research mode. Both him and Dawn often worked together bouncing ideas back and forth. Dean was great at putting things together, when he was not in one of these terrible moods. It was clear this town was getting on his nerves, or possibly it was other things making him so on edge.
"Exactly," she replied nodding with enthusiasm. "It also talks about how some familiars will stare at someone until they are so uncomfortable they have to leave the room."
"Well if we are dealing with familiars, how do we get rid of them?" Dean interjected.
"It depends," she answered. "It says either they are familiar spirits, who are supposed to guide a new witch through her craft. Or they could be something altogether different." She took in a deep breath before continuing. "They could be possessed, basically familiars spirits who are demons and have powers and probably want human blood to feed on."
"I think we need to pay Gracie Carlton a visit," Sam suggested. He quickly shut his computer and rose to his feet to prepare.
"I'll call her before we head over," she reached for the hotel phone that was next to her on the table. Dawn grabbed the piece of note paper that the woman had scribbled her information on. Before she could begin dialing the numbers into the phone that was clutched in her hand, they heard a cell phone ringing loudly. She hesitated and watched as Sam pulled the cell phone from his pocket.
"It's her," Sam peered down at Dawn with a curious look. He quickly handed her the phone.
"Hello Gracie, is everything okay?" She was slightly concerned since the woman had planned on awaiting their call.
"Please, Dawn, please help me," Gracie's voice was shaky and clearly petrified. "My cats have gone crazy! I don't know what to do."
"We'll be right there, just try and lock yourself somewhere away from them." Dawn ordered the woman, while still keeping her voice calm and in control.
"I'm in my closet. Just please hurry!" She cried.
"We'll be right there!" Dawn replied. She hung up the phone and tossed it to Sam. "Her cats have gone totally crazy, we have to hurry."
The three of them were down the street and following Dean to the Impala in seconds. They had no idea what they were walking into but that didn't effect them much, it came with the job. They were used to walking blindly into danger and even the occasional trap. They were always prepared for anything, without allowing themselves to depend on expectations.

***

They followed the address and arrived at Gracie's home. It was a one story home but was not small by any means, and seemed slightly under-kept. It was easy to assume that she had been married and had either lost or divorced her husband. The home was clearly meant for two people, but the fact that she was alone now and in need of their help suggested that no man was in the house.
Dawn felt a sudden uneasy air to her surrounding and instantly it was telling her to turn back. The last thing she was going to do was listen to that feeling, she knew it came from something real, but this was her job. They were hunters and when things got harry they didn't run away, they charged towards the destruction.
Saying very little, the three of them headed towards the front door of the home. This was an obvious emergency and they had no idea just how many cats where inside this house ready to pounce. This woman could be in serious danger, especially if these cats were possessed familiars. Dean was first to open the front door his hand on his gun as he clutched the door handle. Surprisingly the door was unlocked, apparently people here were more trusting than most. He opened the door slowly, his eyes searching the the house as he entered, followed by Sam and Dawn.
"She said she was in her closet," Dawn whispered.
"Alright, let's check the house and try and make our way to her bedroom," Dean demanded. His usual in control attitude was taking over once again. Dawn and Sam were both far too used to it, to let it bother them at this point.
They continued creeping through the house in search of the potential danger, which happened to be a few insane cats. Once they got further into the house, they could hear some noises which sounded like scratching and possibly some whimpering sounds. Without saying a word they followed the sounds which to no surprise led to the woman's bedroom. The door was cracked open and Dean led the way into the room. Once they were inside they caught site of exactly what they were looking for. There were three cats scratching ravenously at the closet door, while they could hear Gracie crying inside. Once the cats heard them enter the room they spun around to face them. A large white cat made a loud growling sound and instantly a few more cats crawled out from their hiding places inside the bedroom.
"Oh crap," Dean groaned as he held up his weapon.
"Is that you?" Gracie yelled from inside the closet. Her voice showed just how traumatized she was from this experience.
"Just stay inside Gracie, everything is going to be okay," Dawn answered, clutching onto a crossbow in her hands.
"Please, don't hurt my babies," the woman replied. The three hunters fell instantly silent at the woman's reaction. She was requesting that they try and avoid harming the creatures that were actually trying to kill her.
The herd of cats all lined up in a row now and were hissing at the intruders. Before the three hunters could respond the cats were running towards an open window and were leaping outside together.
"We should follow them," Sam suggested. He walked towards the window and tried to watch the direction of the cats.
"I'll go with you," Dean followed Sam who was now crawling out the small window. The sight was slightly amusing to Dawn even in the current circumstances. Just watching the six foot four, rather large man crawling out of a narrow window after a fiendish herd of cats, was laughter inducing.
"I'll get Gracie and catch up with you guys," Dawn rolled her eyes in irritation. This would be the second time she was left with rescue duty, but she intended on catching up quickly.
While the brothers climbed out the window she ran towards the closet and opened the door. Gracie was sitting on the floor shaking, bloody scratches across her face and arms. Dawn quickly helped her to her bed and sat her down. It was obvious her wounds were minor and she was mostly shaken up.
"Do you think you can call 911 yourself?" She asked looking her in the eyes. She wanted to make sure the woman was okay, but she also realized the gravity of the situation Sam and Dean might be in.
"I'll be fine deary, just go after your friends," she nodded with a sniffle.
Dawn nodded and spun around quickly, only to find a small black cat standing in front of her. Her heart quickly started flopping around in her chest as she drew her crossbow. When she looked closer at the cat she realized it had been the very same one from the sidewalk. This was the cat that Dean had scared away, and it seemed somehow different than the others.
"Is this cat yours?" She asked over her shoulder to Gracie, who was reaching for her phone.
"No!" Gracie shook her head, her voice growing uneasy once again at the sight before her. "I've never seen it before in my life."
The cat let out a quiet mewing sound and started walking towards the window. It turned its head towards Dawn, as if it were beckoning her to follow. She responded and slowly made her way towards it. This was enough for the cat to continue out the window, Dawn following it every step of the way. Although it made her uneasy, this seemed like the right thing to do. She continued after the feline, down the street where she caught sight of the brothers who were looking extremely irritated.
"Hey guys," she yelled after them. They instantly turned around and rose their weapons at the site of what they thought to be a potential familiar striding towards them. "No! Don't shoot!" She hollered. They gave her a surprised look and complied. They got closer to them and the cat stopped, sitting down and waiting.
"What the hell is this?" Dean asked waving his arm.
"I have no idea," she replied. "It seems to be leading me somewhere."
"What?" Sam tilted his head.
"I know, I am just as shocked as you. What happened with the herd?" She kept looking back at the strange cat, which seemed to be listening to their conversation.
"They got away!" Dean had an irritated scowl on his face.
"Well as strange as it sounds, let's follow this little guy." She shrugged looking down at her new friend.
The cat quickly rose to his feet and started stomping down the street, leading them through an alley way. Just the sheer thought of following a strange cat through an alley way towards what seemed to be a herd of dangerous and possibly possessed cats, was insane. They had seen some pretty unusual things in their time but this was certainly one of the strangest. This cat seemed abnormally intelligent and far too in-tuned to what they were saying for it to be an ordinary feline.
Finally, they came to the edge of a second alley way and their "leader" started to slow down. There was an opening that led behind a row of a desolate buildings. Keeping hands on their weapons they tried to pay attention to what was in front of them. When they came around the corner they spotted exactly what they were looking for, accept now the herd of familiars was even larger. There were over ten cats mostly huddled together around...something.
Suddenly Dawn realized just what they were crouched around. Her eyes caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a mans hand sticking out between two of the cats. They seemed to be munching on the body of this man, there were blood stains all around him. She shook her mind free of the thought quickly and looked towards the brothers. She knew that they were prepared for what they had to do, she just hoped she could hold off the animals before they were finished. The last thing she wanted was to harm one of the innocent cats, if this truly was a possession issue.
"It's a feline frenzy," Dawn stared wide-eyed.
"Oh no, not you too." Dean shook his head at the shameful overuse of the figure of speech. This was becoming pathetic and it seemed none of them were immune.
Sam began reciting the words in Latin which both him and Dean had memorized by now. They had spoken the ritual many times, and were hoping that it worked this time. They were running this idea purely off of a hunch, and they may be completely wrong about what these creatures were. Usually their intuition led them in the right direction, but on occasion the truth was harder to find. Dawn clutched her crossbow and reached for a gun holstered at her thigh. It was a tranquilizer gun, and she had only a few shots left in it, she had to make them count.
"We exorcise you, every impure spirit..." Sam began speaking the words and Dawn could hear and understand them perfectly.
As he spoke the cats instantly reacted to the sound of the exorcism. The group one by one started turning around to face the intruders that threatened them. There was a familiar large white cat that stood out front and it was clearly the leader of the felines. In a shocking reaction it opened its mouth wide and the creatures eyes turned completely black. This was not the site of a normal cats eyes growing wide, it was that of a possessed beast. The snow white leader lunged forward, his eyes intently focused on Sam, who was the clear and present threat. Dawn lifted the tranquilizer gun and pulled the trigger sending the dart whizzing towards the animal and luckily striking it on the shoulder. The animal began stumbling slightly as it continued towards Sam. They realized now that their assumptions were correct. No ordinary animal could withstand a tranquilizer dart, this was clearly more than just an animal.
"The God of Israel Himself will have thrust excellence and strength to His Own people. Blessed be God. Glory be to the Father. " Sam finished the words in Latin as quickly as possible. As he continued to recite Dawn and Dean both stood in front of him, standing their ground as the gang of cats continued for them. When Sam said the finale words the cats all tips their heads back and black smoke rose up from their mouths and flew away. The shells of the cats fell to the ground once the smoke was finished exiting their bodies.
"Did we seriously just exorcize a group of possessed cats?" Dean held his gun in his hand staring at the scene before them.
"Yup," Dawn replied.
"We should probably go check on that woman and tell her she can come pick up her pets." Sam looked at the group of passed out cats on the ground. Mostly likely they would survive, since they weren't human and it was an entirely different kind of possession.

***

When they finally got to the woman's house the ambulance and police cars had arrived. They spotted her sitting in the back of an ambulance with a blanket wrapped around her and bandages covering her scratches. She seemed much better, accept the obvious look of worry written all over her face.
"How are you feeling?" Dawn asked standing in front of Gracie.
"Fine, how did everything go?" She asked, her eyes almost filling up with nervous tears.
"Okay," she said in replied. "All your kitties should be fine, they had to be tranquilized and we gave them some medicine, it was a really strange infection making them act so..."
"You don't have to lie honey," the woman interrupted.
"What do you mean?" Dean questioned, his tone stern.
"When Tootsy- which is the white cat you saw- when she scratched me I had a strange vision. Somehow she showed me what was happening to my kitties. I know this may seem strange, but they were all possessed." Gracie nodded her eyes wide as she told the story. "They were possessed by some witches assistants, who use cats as their hosts to serve the witches. Accept this specific group no longer wanted to serve their witches, not when they discovered what drinking human blood could do to them. It gave them powers that they were going to use to take over the town, and then who knows what else. You may not believe me but I know my kitties wouldn't hurt me, and I know it wasn't their fault."
"You know Gracie- as strange as it does sound- I think I do believe you." Dawn's eyes held a smile at the inside joke.
After they finished talking with Gracie they told her where she could find her cats and then headed for the Impala. There was an instant anticipation in the air, they were finally going to get a break, a rest, almost like a mini-vacation. While they were all excitedly about to pile into the car together, they noticed a barely audible mewing noise. Dawn looked down to find the small black kitty pawing at her leg. She couldn't help but grin at just how adorable it was.
"Can we keep him?" She batted her long eyelashes at the brothers, who just stared at her with their mouths completely agape.