Ever since my dad found out about me and Jasper's shenanigans, I've been kept away from the sanctuary. My dad made it a point to tell me that I'm an embarrassment, and that I should be ashamed, because no daughter of his would slack off on such an important responsibility.

I mull the words over in my head before putting my thoughts to rest. Dad's hurtful words have little relevancy to me anymore, because any time I get into the slightest bit of trouble, it's the same thing over and over.

In fact, I've gotten used to a general coldness from him. Our relationship has never been the true father/daughter relationship that you might see, but it's not the worst thing ever. It's more of a boss/employee relationship, which is quite fitting.

So what am I doing since I was demoted? I don't really do anything. My father still won't let me do normal reaper work, so I sometimes direct fellow reapers to wherever they need to go, or I'll just disappear off to a corner of the veil and sit for a while.

I haven't seen much of Jasper since we got into trouble. I think he's worried that either of us could get a more severe consequence if we're running around together. I'm not as concerned as he is, but he's not as used to my father's reprimands as I am.

Nonetheless, not seeing Jasper has left me bored. Many times I've thought about sneaking around to go find him, but I have yet to act on my thoughts.

Instead of tracking down Jasper, I decide to go find the reapers that we're talking about the Winchesters' break in plans. They're easy to locate — I find them lazily sitting in an empty hall, neglecting their responsibilities.

I enter the hall, and am rudely greeted before I can say anything.

"Do you need something? Or were you looking for more souls to abuse?" A woman asks. She's a striking figure. Blonde. Bright blue eyes. Pale skin. Intimidating to anyone except me.

Her partner laughs. He's an average looking guy, and nothing special to me.

"I have some questions," I deflect her cynicism and get to the point.

"No, we don't know when the best time to sneak into the sanctuary is," the male snickers. "Ask your father."

Now I'm annoyed. I cross my arms and straighten my stance. "Maybe I'll ask my father exactly what you two are supposed to be doing rather than laying around in a fucking hallway. I'm sure he'd be interested to know that you're not at your posts or doing your jobs."

Their faces fall slightly. The jokes are aside now; I have their attention.

"What do you want then?" The female asks.

"I heard you two discussing the Winchester brothers. I hear they're going to try and infiltrate the sanctuary to steal back a soul that one of them is missing. I want the details."

"Why should we tell you?"

"I'm the guard of the sanctuary, I should be able to know these things for the safety of the veil itself. My father won't release information. So I'm here. I want to be prepared."

"Some guard you are," the male pops off again. This time, the female slaps his arm and hisses a stern "knock it off" at him.

"You know what? Maybe I won't waste my time," I shrug, turning away. "I'll find out somewhere else after I have a chat with my father."

"Stop," the female bargains. I turn an interested eye her way. "From what we know, the brothers and their angel are planning for an attack in seven days. Someone's helping them, but we don't know who. There's no other way they'd get into the veil."

"Why isn't this being shared? The other guards should know so that they don't get in."

"It doesn't matter. They won't just walk through the front door. Whoever's helping them probably knows some spells. Plus, if Death himself if keeping it hush hush, then we should too. Wouldn't want to cause a panic."

I frown. "How do you know someone's helping them?"

"How else would the word be spreading? And how else would they get in?" She banters.

I shrug in response. I'm damned if I trust her and damned if I don't.

"Do you know anything else?" I ask.

"Just that they'll probably kill anyone that tries to stop them," she responds, a shiver in her voice. "I'm staying the hell out of their way. None of those souls are worth being slaughtered by a Winchester."

"Thanks," I roll my eyes. "And, get back to doing whatever you're supposed to be doing. This is why the veil is a mess."

They regard me coldly as I leave. I need to go find Jasper.

I snoop around to try and find him. He's not at his usual post and I know he isn't reaping today. It's Tuesday, and Jasper never reaps on Tuesdays. Maybe he's in the sanctuary since I'm not there to guard it.

Acting on my suspicions, I make my way to the sanctuary, but I'm stopped by a barricade of reapers. One of them speaks.

"You're not supposed to be here," he says.

"Excuse me? This is my post, you'll move now or regret it soon," I threaten.

"Boss man's orders. You're not allowed near the sanctuary anymore."

I open my mouth to protest, but I see Jasper standing at the steps beyond the blockade and decide to call to him.

"Jasper! Can you tell them to move please? I need to talk to you."

His eyes follow my voice, but I don't get a response. I know he heard me.

"Jasper!" I yell.

Before I can try anything else, I'm being dragged away by two particularly bulky goons. They take me back to my quarters and order me to stay. Only because I have no way to get to Jasper, I stay in my room, until a knock sounds at my door later that night.

"Come in," I drone.

"Mallory," Jasper greets me formally. He's standing straight as an arrow and his features are like stone.

"Hey," I sigh. "How was working my job?"

"It's not your job. It's mine now."

"Very funny," I laugh with sarcasm. "Are you feeling okay? You're definitely talking like my dad."

"Do you not understand the consequence of your decisions?" Jasper snaps at me. I sit up, shocked at his words. "You made a senseless decision on a whim that could've costed so much more than it did. You're lucky your dad intervened."

"So what, you're some big deal now? You were doing the exact same thing as me. We've done this countless times. You're just as guilty as I am. The only difference is that you ran off so you didn't get caught. Get off your high horse." I fumble with the duvet of my bed that I never really use.

"One of us had to snap out of our childish games and be the adult that your father needs by his side, and you clearly aren't it," Jasper states.

"What the hell? Why are you even here?" I ask. "If you think you're any better than me, you're wrong."

"Stay away from the sanctuary, Mallory. You have no place there."

With that, Jasper leaves. A coldness settles in my quarters, but an angry heat sparks in my body.

For a moment, I think about going after him, and maybe teaching him some kind of lesson, but then I retire back to my horizontal position and let my mind drift about the Winchesters.

Maybe if I could apprehend them and kill them, I could earn my spot back as guard. I would earn my respect back. The two men wouldn't be so much of a problem, but the angel...that's where it could get messy. However, I'm determined. That's what will get me back to where I was. That's what I'll do.