Leila ate more at the diner they'd gone to than Dean had seen her eat the entire time she'd been with them before Saint Dymphna took her over. While she ate crisp French fries, Castiel filled in the blanks from Leila's story so the Winchesters were caught up. While they weren't happy that Gabriel and Castiel (and some angel they'd never met named Elijah) had kept it a secret from them, they did eventually come to their senses and understand why they did what they did.

It seemed weird having her there again. After months of grieving, especially. Dean still had her necklace around his neck—tucked under his shirt, of course. He didn't need her bugging him about missing her. (Or slapping him like she said she'd do if he mourned.) Hell, he was still too worried that she'd disappear like dust in the wind.

Leila was different this time. It was clear Dymphna had taken her mind and played with it. Made it so that Leila probably couldn't tell the differences between nightmares and dreams, dreams and wakefulness. Dean wanted to tell her he knew how she felt. Hell, Sam did too. Between hosting Lucifer and taking multiple trips to Hell, if anyone had even the slightest idea of how Leila felt, it was the Winchesters. But since Castiel had filled in the blanks, Leila wouldn't talk. They knew she was leaving out specifics—maybe sparing them the torment of hearing what Dymphna had done—but if she didn't let it out soon, both Sam and Dean knew she was going to combust.

Leila drowned a fry in a thick bath of ketchup. "So—" she threw the fry in her mouth, chewing loudly. It was the first time she'd spoke since Castiel had told the Winchesters and Charlie what had happened. "—what's the plan, duderinos?"

Dean frowned; pursed lips and a scrunched forehead. He'd been about to take a sip of beer before pausing just before the mug reached his lips. "Finish eating before you talk, see-food."

"Dean," Sam said, giving his brother a look. They exchanged looks of 'what?' and 'you know what.' Dean rolled his eyes.

"Just saying," Dean said as he leaned back in his chair and tilted his hand towards Sam, who shot him another look before taking a sip of his own beer.

Leila opened her mouth before swallowing her fry to show Dean everything she'd been in the process of chewing. After swallowing, Leila narrowed her eyes. "Bite me, Winchester."

"Dymphna changed you, kid," Dean said, shaking his head. He picked up his burger with both hands, taking a bite—eyes nearly rolling into the back of his head with how good it tasted.

"No shit," Leila said, not bothering to look up as she dipped another fry into ketchup.

"Do you want some fries with that ketchup?" Dean asked, having shoved the bite of burger to the side of his mouth so he could talk.

"Who's eating see-food now?" Leila replied as she waved a fry in Dean's general direction. She ate it angrily, crossing her arms as she chewed.

"With all due disrespect," Charlie said, looking between the two of them, before looking to Sam and Castiel. "Don't we have worse things to worry about?"

Castiel nodded. "In her new host, she is close to reaching full power again. The results of that would be—"

"Apocalyptic? Yeah, what else is freakin' new?" Dean asked, rolling his eyes as he wiped his hands on his napkin.

Leila looked up from her plate of ketchup-drowned fries and drew in a breath so sharply that she choked on the fry she'd been eating. Pounding the middle of her chest with her fist, Leila coughed until the blockage was clear. Her face was beet red.

"That's why you chew your food," Dean muttered under his breath.

Charlie slapped his shoulder and Dean made an exclamation of pain. The redhead rolled her eyes. "Are you alright, Leila?"

"You look like you've seen a ghost," Sam commented. His eyebrows knit together with worry and he looked over his shoulder quickly before looking back to Leila. "... Did you?"

"There aren't any spirits in here," Castiel replied.

Dean threw his hand up in the air at Castiel's comment. For everything that angel knew, he didn't know much. Leila gave herself one last blow to the chest and coughed a couple times for good measure. Probably stalling so she didn't have to answer Sam's ghost question.

"Pretty damn close to a ghost," Leila mumbled, her eyes wide as she stared at the plate of fries she no longer wanted to eat. She pushed the plate forward slightly.

"Are you gonna fill us in, kid?" Dean asked as he raised his eyebrows expectantly.

Leila tilted her head slightly to her left and forwards. The table stared at her curiously. More obvious the second time, Leila nodded her head to her left.

"You got a tick or something?" Dean asked. He gave her a questioning look.

"Oh for the love of—" Leila sighed. "Do I have to yell it? Look over your right shoulder, Dean."

Naturally the other four at the table looked in the direction Leila had pointed simultaneously. Leila smacked herself in the forehead and sunk lower in her seat, hand still over her face. Was there a way to be absorbed into the floor and never seen again? Even if the diner was dimly lit, if the girl had been looking, it wouldn't have been the best to have four people staring at her at the same time.

"How have you guys gone so long without being arrested?" Leila asked, her hand jutting out in front of her. "You're subtle as guns for God's sake."

"Dean has," Sam replied as he looked back at the young girl and received a glare from his brother. "Just... Just so you know."

"You have too, you bitch," Dean replied. "What's so special about some chick eating soup by herself?"

"That's not just some—" Leila caught herself as her voice went shrill.

Dean lifted his beer bottle to his lips as he raised his eyebrows at the outburst. "Gay," he muttered under his breath before taking a sip. Charlie smacked Dean's shoulder, causing him to yelp and nearly spill his beer on himself.

Leila cheeks reddened and she slumped slightly lower in her chair. "I meant—um," Leila stumbled over her words and pulled her hair out from behind her ear so it fell in front of her blushing face. "We, um, we met at the hospital."

"The hospital?" Sam asked. "Like..." He cleared his throat. "That hospital?"

"Yes, the hospital that Dean left me at," Leila said, not bothering to pretend she wasn't still angry about it. Bitter words for bitter memories that would never leave her. "I mean, before the solitary confinement of being knocked out by those shitty doctors." She rubbed her shoulder slightly through the flannel shirt Dean had let her borrow, knowing the scars from scratching the syringe scabs were still there.

"What does this have to do with this girl?" Sam asked, bringing the conversation back to where it needed to be.

Leila was blushing again. "She's just over there, and—and I don't know, could that help us? Maybe she prays to Saint—"

"Don't say her name," Castiel said. "She could be listening."

"For God's sake, she's not Voldemort," Leila muttered, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms. "I'm just saying that a lot of people at the hospital believed in... her and prayed for help and, like, salvation and things like that. Tera could be a good lead."

"Tera?" Dean asked.

"The girl," Leila said.

"Well, why don't you go talk to her, Nancy Drew?" Dean asked, sipping his coffee.

Leila narrowed her eyes. "Isn't that what you two do? With your fake ID badges and cheesy cover names?"

"Don't insult Detective Bonham like that," Charlie replied, chuckling softly. "Depending on his mood, he'll play you a drum solo or shoot you."

Leila snorted. "He's no Roger Taylor."

Dean made a movement across the table towards Leila but was held back by Charlie and Castiel. Leila pressed her lips together to not laugh at his expense again.

"Sorry, Detective, it won't happen again," Leila replied, shaking her hands at the side of her head to show her feigned fear.

"Should we talk to her?" Sam asked, to the table. Again, trying to steer the conversation back to relevance to the problem at hand. "I mean, if she knows something..."

"I'll talk to her," Leila said, quickly. She swallowed hard. "I'm not sure you'd be the best person to do so."

"You just said—" Dean began to protest, his hands out in front of him.

"And now I'm saying I'll do it," Leila said, standing up in her chair. "So stay here, stay quiet, and I will be back soon."

Dean's eyes widened, his lips pressing together. He held his hand up in surrender, leaning back in his chair. "Alright, Buffalo Bill, put the lotion in the basket."

Charlie gave Leila a small thumbs up before she walked away from the table. Although there was a direct path to Tera, Leila walked around various tables and made it so she was walking towards Tera. Despite the scenic route, Tera still jumped slightly when Leila walked up to her table.

Leila made a fist and made a circle in front of her chest—sorry. Tera tucked a few strands of her raven-coloured hair behind her ear. Leila looked up for a second, Tera's attention on her. She raised her hands in the air, fingers in fists that faced Tera, and swung them down ninety degrees—can. Leila pointed to herself—I. Then, she held two fingers out on one hand, taking two fingers on the other and bending them over the first two fingers—sit. She then drew a question mark in the air. Tera nodded and Leila smiled, taking the seat across from Tera.

"What in the hell—?" Dean began

"Shhh," Charlie chided. "They're having a moment!"

"A moment's not going to solve this Saint Douchebag problem," Dean mumbled under his breath.

"Let her have it, she deserves it," Charlie replied, turning away from the two girls and looking at Dean. "Have you not been listening to what she's been through these past few months? Just give it to her."

Dean swallowed hard. But turned back to his food and ate quietly. Charlie smiled softly, Sam did, too. They ate quietly. Each of them stole glances at Tera and Leila when they thought the others weren't watching. They were, but they were all guilty of doing it so no one called the other one out for it.

From what they could see, Leila was mainly signing back and forth with Tera, who looked more relaxed as the conversation unfolded. Leila did talk to Tera at some points, but Tera seemed most comfortable signing to Leila—which the young girl didn't seem to mind in the slightest. Both Tera and Leila laughed occasionally, and Charlie was just relieved that Leila finally smiled during the time she'd been back with the Winchesters.

Leila returned to the table not long after, her hair tucked behind her ears and her ears bright red. She slid back into her chair, all eyes on her. Which, ultimately, just made her ears go darker. She poked at her fries with her fingers before shyly looking up to see everyone still staring at her expectantly.

"Take a picture, it'll last longer," Leila said, causing everyone to look away for only the smallest of seconds.

"Did she say anything?" Dean asked.

"Was that ASL?" Sam asked.

"Did you get her number?" Charlie asked, at the same time Sam and Dean had spoken.

Dean shot Charlie a look before he looked back to Leila, who shrugged slightly. "Tera's selective mute, it was a long shot that I was going to get her to say... sign something more than standard conversation. I just... I thought I'd try, Alisabeth helped me learn it." Sam and Dean exchanged looks. Leila shook her head slightly. "We mostly just sat at the same cafeteria table so the doctors didn't think we were being too antisocial at the hospital," Leila said, staring at her plate of fries. "Eat or be eaten type thing... you know."

Castiel's eyes narrowed slightly. "She seems to be hiding something... curious," he said, tilting his head. "Something more than she's telling you."

"Don't pry her on it," Leila said, looking up from her plate to Castiel. "She doesn't—oh my god."

Her eyes were past Castiel now, looking at the TV mounted to the wall. Her hand clamped itself over her mouth in apparent shock.

Dean frowned as he looked at the TV as well. "The Nicks score isn't that surprising, kid," he said, taking a sip of his beer. "Their odds of winning are, like—"

"No," Leila said, her voice low. Like it didn't want to be used. "The news report." Leila got up and walked closer to the TV, her knees feeling like they may collapse. Her head spun. Her stomach was lodged in her throat, bile building up. "No, no, no." Tears stung her eyes, threatening to fall. Her body felt numb—or at least, she figured it would if she could feel anything. This was all her fault.

Sam's eyebrows knit together as his gaze shifted from mediocre traffic updates and sports scores that didn't mean the slightest to him. A house was engulfed in flames, THREE DEAD IN HOUSE FIRE IN FAIRFAX, INDIANA, in big, bold letters at the bottom. The roof of the house collapsed in on itself as the reporter was talking, causing her to jump and look at the scene.

The closed captioning confirmed what Leila had already known—what she had feared for the last months of her life. The family of missing teen, Leila Connors, a case over two years old now, lost their lives during a fire this afternoon. At this point, police have not ruled out foul play.

Leila felt a hand on her shoulder that she quicklyshoved off. She turned back towards the table. "She got them," she whispered,her lip quivering. "Oh my god, she got them."

*****

[ A.N. ] I mean,,, at least I updated, yeah?

Hope you enjoyed! And I would like to formally introduce Miss Tera Brantley, lydilinski's contest winner! You can bet we'll be seeing more of her as the book carries on. If you enjoyed, please comment, vote, and fan! Hopefully another update will come soon.

Stay safe, hunters and warriors,
Thalia