WELCOME

Big cities were definitely not the first places that Sam and Dean stopped. Too many cops, too many people. Besides, the evil things they hunted seemed to like the low profile places, too. As a fugitive, a supposedly dead one, Sam knew that small towns were easier to stay hidden in. It seemed weird, with as well as everyone always knew everyone else.

But it was easier to cover your tracks, and definitely easier to win people's trust.

Four years in Palo Alto at Stanford escaped Sam as he stood in Central Park now. There were thousands of people everywhere, and Sam felt so... alone.

Anyway, it was how he knew something big really was going down. Demons were invading larger cities now, drawing every hunter they could out of the woodwork, and you went where the job called.

He found a bench and sat down, just keeping his eyes peeled. All he could do for now was observe.

Karma hated cities. True, coyotes could live in cities just fine as long as there was some sort of vegetated area, but she had always been a country girl. Her past had taught her great respect for nature and cities shattered that respect. Not to mention the fact that there were way too many humans. She shrugged, shivering slightly. Koda would be here shortly.

She smiled a bit at the thought of her husband. He was such a softy and she was a little sad that he could no longer live the life he had, but she was glad to have him. No other man had really been able to deal with her sometimes bipolar personality. He was supposed to grab some food so they could eat before going on a run. They'd been here about a week and it had become a routine.

True to his nature, Koda had been nervous about even shifting in a city, let alone allowing his mate to walk around in one, alone, at night. He was so nervous all the time. She knew he had a good reason though.

When she rounded the bend, she saw some guy sitting on the bench they usually met at. Her first thought was a grumble about how tall he was. Yeah, Koda always held that over her. Her second was on how their little night as a bit interrupted at this point. So she stood there, watching the guy a bit with sly eyes. She didn't know him so she wasn't about to plop down beside him. She was cocky, but not completely stupid.

It was a moment or two before Sam realized someone else was there, and she wasn't even hiding that well. That worried Sam... what if there was a demon or something that close and he wasn't paying attention? What a glamorous way for a Hunter to die... being caught not paying attention. If this life was going to kill him, he was going down swinging, and that was that.

He met eyes with the girl and smiled slightly, trying to assess if she was a threat. He decided she was not, but he wasn't quite sure why she was watching him the way she was.

He turned his eyes back in front of him, but made sure he was aware of her and her movements, just in case.

Karma smiled back, trying to figure out a way to get rid of him without telling him to get lost because she and her husband were about to use this space. She gave a slight laugh to herself when she realized that such a phrase might actually work to hurry him off, but for different reasons than she'd originally meant. In the end, she decided she might as well make use of the company until Koda arrived.

"Haven't seen you around here before," she said, leaning against a tree. Karm wondered how long it would take Koda to actually get there and if this stranger could stand her annoying behaviors long enough for that moment to come to pass.

Sam's eyebrows creased slightly, but then his expression returned to normal, and he even almost smiled.

"Is that a line?" He was joking, of course, but what else was he supposed to say? He was just passing through? That bring up questions that he lied about thousands of times before: Oh, where are you from, where are you headed, etc etc, and he just didn't have the energy to make up new answers right now.

Karma actually laughed. "Oh no honey, I'm married." Yeah, well you're sort of married anyway. She smiled pretty widely, giggling again. "I'm actually waiting here for him right now, but you're here pretty randomly." She was quite confident with her statement. Of course, she knew that nothing was random, but then she liked to sound confident. He didn't seem like he was waiting for anyone either. She really hadn't seen him around.

Karm leaned against a tree, grinning. "You ought to make good enough conversation until he gets here." She was grinning like a Cheshire cat, or more appropriately, a coyote. No, she really wasn't flirting with him for real, but since he'd mentioned it, the idea had dawned on her as a fun game. Koda knew her well enough to know she wasn't serious about this guy when he showed up...if he did. God where was he...she was starving.

When Sam heard that she was married, he got an odd little look on his face, and them smiled. "Yeah? Good for you." He hoped it lasted. He always saw marriages as kind of sacred, and he'd never seen divorce. Every married couple he knew truly love each other... and one of them always died. Bobby's wife, his mom, the hunters they met in the bar... even he and Jess, although they never got the chance to marry.

"I'm sort of waiting on someone, too," he admitted. Eventually, he imagined, Dean would find him. They were both just patrolling today. For demons. Man, their lives were weird.

He raised an eyebrow when she deemed him decent conversation until her husband showed, and almost made a sarcastic remark. Almost.

"I'll try not to disappoint you," he said. "I'm Sam."

She laughed a bit at his comment about not disappointing her. His aura was on fire with energy, but still pleasant. Her training in magic did come in handy sometimes.

"Karma," she offered in return for his name. Few could fool her when it came to lying and only her husband could out fox her, which was ironic, considering.

"So what brings you around these parts?" she asked, leaning against a tree. "Since you're obviously as much a local here as I am." His body language spelled out a lot.

"Karma," Sam repeated. Hippie parents, maybe? "It's a pleasure."

He was slightly thrown off when she guessed that he wasn't from around the area, but he didn't show it.

"My sister's getting married," he said, offering up the first well practiced lie he could think of. "Brought the whole family into town. I just thought I'd walk around and explore the place. Where are you from?" He asked. She admitted to being a stranger as well, so he felt the question was fair.

Karma noted that he was lying, yet again, but she'd expected that. It made her a bit nervous, but knew that she really didn't have enough to jump to the conclusion of hunter just yet. Still, it might be a good idea if she and her hot little vixen...um okay maybe that was the wrong word...didn't go for a night walk at this particular time. She doubted they had attracted any hunters, but one could never be too careful.

"Really," she answered in a rather bemused fashion. She leaned against a lamp post and raised an eyebrow at him. "Well good for her." A slight chuckle escaped her and she hid it while facing the ground. Humans were always so much fun to observe. Actually, really anyone was. Koda usually tackled her when he caught her observing him and no one else ever paid attention. still, she certainly could amuse herself.

Kindle entered the park as a wolf. Smelling the hair feeling some people near by. She heard two people conversatating. She quickly changed into her human self and thank goodness she wore clothes before turning into a wolf. She looekd to the 6'2 man and smiled to herself, "Wow," she thought to herself. Then seeing a female near him. She didn't know what to do. Should she run or stay. She walked up slowly to them. "Hello," she said in shaky voice.

"Yeah, I guess," Sam said, nodding. He didn't know what else to say that wouldn't sound like he was just BSing a lot or anything. She was a stranger... what would she even care about his non existant sister getting married?

Before he had much time to worry about this, however, another girl showed up. Blonde, young, pretty. And rather bold, Sam thought, to just say hello like that. Wasn't it usually Dean's job to be the chick magnet?

He looked quickly at the first girl, to see if they knew each other. His brows creased, and he immidiately wondered if this was a potential job. Sirens? Succubi? He wasn't discounting anything just yet.

"Hey..." he said back, slowly.

Karma's eyes perked up at the newcomer. She had heard someone coming who didn't have Koda's step, but she'd realized the steps were female and let it mostly slide. Perhaps this guy was meeting a date here?

The way this shewolf said hello told Karma that no one here knew each other. She cocked her head to the side, nostrils taking in the obvious scent of wolf. Well this was an interesting turn of events, for sure. Two female shifters in one place at one time, who didn't know each other...both talking to some human male they didn't know. The poor guy looked so confused too, so awkwardly trapped.

Karma bit back a laugh. Koda better hurry up now, before this boy ran away. The situation was definitely getting interesting though.

As if on cue, Koda's footsteps sounded in the park. He'd be there quite soon. Maybe it would relieve the other guy of some pressure. His reaction was so deliciously hilarious though.