Requiem for Snow
Title: Requiem For Snow
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Michael!Dean, Sam, Castiel, Melpomene, Gabriel, Mnemosyne, Heather Nate, Bobby, Morpheus
Notes: This story follows canon up to Changing Channels - sort of - and borrows chunks of the rest of Season Five completely at random. This story has no beta. I also apologize for taking over a year to update this story. Life and other plot bunnies attacked.
Trailer 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8LXZM9nRC4
Trailer 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wijPDaRc9iA
Trailer 3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eR1JNDxstk
Warnings:Mild violence, language, complete disregard for Greek Mythological Canon
Summary: The January before he went to Hell, Dean and his brother Sam faced the Last Calusa in Key West, Florida. Following the defeat of this ancient curse, the brothers left, barreling straight into their destiny and the inevitable showdown against Lilith and her minions. But what they assumed was just another hunt was actually a key part in the plans of the Apocalypse. A plan not laid by the powers below, but by the ones up above.
Noah carefully packed his carry-on bag, glad that he'd decided to take the train up to Bethel, rather than fly. He would only be gone the weekend, hopefully he'd be back Sunday morning in time for brunch. He still didn't know what exactly he was going to be doing in New York, he just hoped it didn't involve hurting anyone. He stuffed his toiletry kit into the bag and zipped it up. At least the weather was promising for the next few days, both here and in New England. No snow, no ice, no rain - actual decent weather for late March. Granted, it had snowed two feet in Bethel this past week, but there was no more forthcoming, and hopefully, it was the last snowstorm until November.
“Dad?” Wes knocked on the door of his room. “You want me to make you a lunch for the train since I'm putting mine together?”
Noah turned to his son, giving him a lopsided grin. “What's on the menu?”
“Peanut butter and jelly or cheese sandwich, a serving of chips, baby carrots and your choice of fruit from the bowl.” He rubbed his nose. “Since it's Lent, dessert is not available.”
He laughed. “I'll take the cheese sandwich and one of the Fuji apples.” He smiled. “and a bottle of water.”
“You got it.” Wes paused. “Swiss cheese okay?”
“Swiss is fine.” Noah replied and he watched Wes leave. He knew his son was looking forward to having a weekend with his grandparents. They had come into town yesterday evening and were currently sleeping off their jet lag. He had told his parents he was going to Bethel 'on business' and left it at that. He picked up his bag, double checked to make sure he had turned everything off and headed downstairs.
“How goes lunch prep?” He asked as he came into the kitchen, setting his bag near the door.
“Almost done.” Wes replied, drying off two apples and setting one in each lunch box. “How long are you going to be in New York?”
“Just for a few days. I should be back late Sunday morning.” Noah filled his travel mug with coffee. “I can trust that you and granddad aren't going to throw any wild parties while I'm gone, right?”
“Daaad.” He rolled his eyes. “Wait, you didn't say that grandma couldn't...”
“Can you picture your grandma throwing a wild party? Ever?” Noah chuckled. “You know what I mean.”
“I know, Dad.” Wes shut the boxes. “You going to be okay on the train?”
Now it was Noah's turn to shake his head. “It's flying I have issues with, Wesley.”
“I just..” He rubbed the back of his head, “you know...”
“Yeah. I know.” He set his mug down and got his coat. “You have everything?”
“Think so.” Wes pulled on his coat and then grabbed his pack and two lunches. “Did you remember to get the bottled water out of the trunk?”
Noah laughed. “Yes. Although I don't think it's going to get get cold enough between now and Sunday for anything to freeze in the car again.” He took the lunch his son handed him.
“That was such a mess.” He replied as they went into the garage. “I still think your car smells like Dr. Pepper.”
“Well, better soda than something else.” He put his bag into the trunk. “I had a friend in college whose car always reeked of cigarette smoke.”
“That's nasty.” Wes stated as he got into the car.
Noah shut the trunk, opened the garage door and got into the car. “It was sort of amusing when he finally realized how bad it was. He used an entire can of Lysol to try and get rid of the stench before he sold it.”
“What happened then?” He asked as they buckled up and backed out of the driveway.
“Well, he didn't look at the can too closely - he used one that contained bleach.” Noah shook his head as they headed down the street. “And this was on black interior.”
His son grimaced. “We used bleach to make reverse tie-dye at Scouts. Did he manage to sell the car?”
“I have no idea.” Noah sighed. “It was pretty old to begin with, so he may have just sold it as scrap metal.” He glanced out the window to his right. “The Coulters are moving.”
“They're the deaf couple, right?” Wes rubbed his nose. “They're nice.”
“Yeah. They're probably off to retire in some place where there's no winter.” He grinned absently. “Their home is almost as old as ours.”
“Ours is older, right?” He started to check his bag for something.
“I think so.” Noah replied as he turned the corner, heading for Wes's school.
*
Noah slid his bag under his seat, set his lunch next to him and opened his rather battered copy of The Killer Angels. He had lost track of how many times he'd read this book. Even though he usually only read it when he flew, it was providing a welcoming distraction to what was going to take place in a dozen or so hours. He'd have gone to Bethel yesterday, but his parents couldn't get into town until then and he wasn't going to leave Wes with a baby-sitter on a school night. His trigonometry students, however, were probably thankful for the fact that he'd canceled their class yesterday. After the rather brutal midterm he'd given them, they deserved an afternoon off.
*
Sam kept his face passive as he drove across the state border of Pennsylvania into New York. He'd spent the night in Ohio and had taken off before dawn. It was sort of strange, to be making a trip halfway across the country in the Impala without Dean. He'd not done it since... since before his brother came back from Hell. Oh, there had been the brief time shortly after Lucifer walked free that they had gone their separate ways, but this was different. Odds were, if Dean wasn't currently Michael's meat suit, they wouldn't have stopped at all and just driven all the way to Bethel straight through, stopping only when they had to. He gave an odd smile down at the I-Pod jack currently residing on the dash board. Dean would have a fit if he'd known. Heather had taken one look at it and stated 'oh thank goodness one of you knows what century it is' and then stated that when Dean got back, perhaps they could convince him to come around to liking the device by getting him his own I-Pod loaded with the complete works of 'mullet rock' from AC/DC to Zeppelin.
Bobby had remained behind in South Dakota with a pile of books that might be helpful stacked on his desk along with a fully charged cell-phone. As much as the hunter had thought he should go, Sam pointed out that if both of them left, anything keeping tabs on the salvage yard would know something was up - and while the house and grounds were heavily warded, they needed to act as if nothing was going on. There was also the fact that what few hunters might be able to come and hold down the fort with Heather, the only one Bobby trusted not gank her for being 'half supernatural' was a man named Garth who was tracking some ghouls in Miami.
Heather was under orders to act as if 'nothing weird was going on' to which the girl had replied 'oh, so it's situation normal?' in a tone that reminded Sam of his brother. She was still recovering from her own angelic possession, and the six inches of height she gained was starting to look like the least of the side effects. She'd told him that her greatest problem seemed to be how slow walking was - and that she was looking forward to the snow melting so she could run. The thing where she knew someone was lying? Sam still didn't know how to explain that. He certainly wasn't expecting it to last. Just like Heather would get used to traveling normally again.
“Where are we?” Castiel's voice was groggy from the backseat. The angel had appeared in the parking lot in Ohio, looking slightly disheveled and confused.
“About five hours from Bethel.” He replied, glancing in the rear-view mirror at the angel. “I do apologize again about my appearance.”
“It's okay.” Sam stretched his neck from side to side. He never slept well in motel beds that tended to be too short for his long frame. “I thought you were done with sleeping.”
“As did I.” He frowned and sat up, running his fingers through his hair. “As much as my grace is returning, I'm starting to feel as if I've neglected my vessel.”
“That's weird, didn't you say that you didn't require things like food and sleep in the beginning?” He hit a button on the I-Pod so it skipped the 'Amazing Grace' that had somehow shown up on it.
“That is true. This may sound odd, but I'm becoming more aware of Jimmy and his needs.” He leaned back against the seat. “Would it be possible to get something to eat soon?”
“Sure.” Sam checked his watch. “I could use some lunch myself.” He paused. “The food thing - is that why Heather was eating everything in sight the first few days she was back?”
“Yes. Because of her youth, her hunger was a lot stronger than the first time I vacated Jimmy's body. It is one of the reasons that children are... not exactly the ideal vessel for an angel. The only time they are usually possessed is in extreme emergencies.” He cricked his neck. “Which is exactly what happened to Heather.”
“You're not pissed at her anymore, are you?” He said, rather surprised.
“No.” Castiel frowned. “And yet, you are.”
“Well, think about it, Cas...” Sam stopped short at the look on the angel's face.
“It was being possessed by Michael or freezing to death by that train track, Samuel. By right, she shouldn't have been there. She should be in Jasper, with her parents and blissfully unaware of what is going on.” His shoulders fell. “I do not mean to be so cruel about it, Sam. But the fact remains that we all must claim part of the situation that led her to do what she did.”
Sam nodded. “Well, on the plus side of things, she and Michael did uh... take care of a few problems.” He could feel the smile tugging at the corner of his mouth and saw that the angel was slowly smiling as well.
“I do imagine that the Whore was quite disturbed to meet Heaven's greatest warrior in the body of a girl barely out of childhood.” He cleared his throat. “If Heather remains aware of what all the two of them did, however, I do not know.”
“Well, when we all get back to South Dakota, you and Dean can ask to see her mason jar of bullets.” He knew he was grinning as he eased the Impala off of the highway. “Pancakes okay with you? I could use some serious breakfast food right now.”
“Pancakes would be fine, Sam.” Castiel replied, settling back into the seat.
*
Mnemosyne and Gabriel walked side by side along the trail next to Lake Placid. For her part, Mnemosyne was trying not to let her nerves get the better of her. What they were going to attempt was extremely risky; they had all known that from the very start. But it was this or let the planet burn. She understood orders very clearly. She and her brothers had been told to love humanity. This plan was humanity's best shot at lasting another few centuries. She kept her hands in the pockets of her coat, fingering Pestilence's and Death's rings as she did so. Morpheus had already told her what the price for Death's ring was - and she understood that as well. She also wasn't going to mention or warn anyone about it. Maybe, if anything, the action her grandson would have to take in June would let this planet get back in shape, so to speak.
“You're quiet.” Gabriel kept his gaze down at the ground, kicking absently at a ball of slush that had worked its way free from one of the many piles of plowed snow lining the street. “You still think this is going to work?”
“Unless you can come up with a better plan by sundown, yes.” She sighed. “I've had a long time to think about it.”
“Well, it's not that bad of a plan, I will admit.” He chuckled. “A little better thought out than my plan was when I stole Loki's identity.” He paused. “Well, more like borrowed.”
She scoffed at that. “Borrowing it would mean you intended to give it back one of these days. Given that it's been over ten centuries, I don't think you will.”
He held his hands out, grinning. “You have me there. But even if I did, what good would it do? The Norse Pantheon is completely gone.”
“That's not true. You know as well as I do that Thor is only classified as missing.” She shrugged. “And for that matter, isn't Sigyn only classified as that also?” She smirked at him. “Unless you know something about that as well.”
“I'll never tell.” Gabriel grinned. “Since you know so much, do you know where the hammer wielding blond barbarian is?”
“Please.” She rolled her eyes. “I haven't seen him since Ulysses Grant was president. Most likely he's changed his appearance and runs around chasing storms these days.”
The archangel laughed outright at that. “I can see him having a YouTube account and a string of videos that go in depth on tornadoes. Which everyone thinks are faked, because of how close he can get and not die.”
She chuckled. “Something like that, yes.” She sighed, “are you going to go home after this?”
“Just for a little while. Much as I'd love to continue to hang out with you, I think I may have worn out my welcome on Olympus.”
“I'm more than happy to let you stay.” She dodged a mailbox. “I don't mind.”
“I think it's better if I went back to Heaven - just for a few years, at least. Maybe see if I can teach some fledglings to have a sense of humor, because this deadpan thing most of the angels have going on? It's not a good thing in my book.” Gabriel let out a breath. “How much time do we have?”
Mnemosyne checked her watch. “A few hours. What, you want to have lunch?” She frowned. “Seems awfully - wrong, in a manner of speaking.”
“True.” He shrugged. “But just in case we're not making it out of here alive, we should have one last meal.”
“Now who's the morbid one?” She laughed. “Fine, we'll have something to eat.”
*
Lucifer rose from his seat in the middle of the warehouse. In a circle around him, were ten camp beds, all with a sleeping woman in them. He would be leaving them here until he returned with Persephone's soul. If her soul wasn't in Elysium, he'd have to search Purgatory and then the Oblivion - but really, were else would the goddess be? The girl's father, if Zeus could be called that, was even more clueless than the average pagan. The only thing that creature had points on was having the common sense not to show up to that hotel in Indiana several months ago. Of course, that was before Arael showed up and revealed herself to him.
When this was all over, he and his sister going to have a nice, quiet talk. Granted, he wasn't ready to admit out loud that she'd been in the right all those years ago when he was trying to get into Eden, she'd only been trying to help. His silly sister thinking she could get him and his brothers to get along by trying to find a way for them all to come to a mutual agreement. Admirable? Maybe. Stupid? Definitely.
Perhaps he'd just kill Apollo and Zeus, get back on her good side and then things could start to get back to how they should be. Persephone would get him into the stronghold of Olympus, of that he had no doubt. It'd make a much better home than Hell, that was certain. Arael's wards on the place would be subverted easily once he was there. She'd been keeping angels and demons alike out of the place - the only way one could come in was if they were brought in by a resident. Well, he and his sister would just have to discuss how things would be run from now on. She'd give him the names of all the remaining pagans - and he'd deal with them soon enough as well.
Pagans were nothing more than toxic waste.
*
Claire Novak kept a firm grip on the dog leash as she mounted the stairs of the Arlington Police Station. The notion that by tomorrow, she'd at least be with her family again gave her courage and she glanced down at the greyhound who was trotting faithfully next to her. “It's going to be just fine, Knightly.” She pulled open the heavy door and stepped inside.
The place smelled of strong coffee and Lysol. It wasn't like police stations she'd seen on TV. All chaos and people screaming. She swallowed and walked up to the desk, where a very harried looking man was signing papers and handing them off to another officer. No one had even noticed her come in. Claire had been certain someone would have told her to take the dog outside by now. Maybe they thought he was a service animal.
She didn't know what exactly she was going to say to the man at the desk. She decided she'd do what she'd always been told to do if she ever got separated from her parents and needed help. She cleared her throat. “Excuse me.”
The man glanced at her, back at his papers and then his head shot back up, the documents ignored. “Can I help you, sweetie?” His voice was thick with an accent, and Claire honestly didn't mind the term of endearment. The guy probably had kids of his own.
“Hi. My name's Claire Novak. I'm lost.” She smiled awkwardly. “I could use some help.”
The man set down his pen, smiling. “Where are you supposed to be, Claire?”
“Illinois.” She bit her lip. “I um...”
“Wait a second...” He turned to his computer, typed something quickly and then glanced back at her. “Claire Novak of Pontiac, Illinois?”
She nodded. “I um...”
The man's expression turned serious. “Why don't you and...” He finally noticed the dog. “Your friend go have a seat over there?” He pointed to an empty bench to her left. “I'm going to get my supervisor to help you, all right?”
“Thank you.” She smiled halfheartedly and went over to the bench. Just the act of sitting calmed her and she rubbed Knightly's head as the dog rested it on her leg. “That was the hard part.”
*
Heather shut the chain link gate at the entrance to the salvage yard and locked it. At least she didn't have to walk the half-mile from the main road anymore. It turned out that the former bus driver had been letting off a lot of kids where he wasn't supposed to - forcing her and at least ten other students to walk distances in the arctic weather. Now there was a new driver and he let her off where he was supposed to: right at the drive of the salvage yard. She wagered it was a good thing that the school didn't know about her being hit by the neighbor's car, or the former driver would be in at least twice as much trouble as he currently was.
The gravel crunched under her boots as she made her way to the house, not looking forward to this weekend at all. She certainly hadn't wanted to go to Bethel, and even if she did, what was she supposed to do there? She kicked the excess snow and rock salt off of her boots and let herself inside. “Hello?” She called out, not really expecting a reply.
“Hey, kid.” Bobby's voice was muffled. “How was school?”
“Fine. I got a hundred on my math test, can I put it on the fridge?” She was being sarcastic - who the hell cared what she got on her tests around here anyway?
“Hell yes!” A door slammed and Bobby came into the kitchen as she was unlacing her boots. “Did you get your report card as well?”
Heather stared at him in utter disbelief. “Who are you and what have you done with Bobby Singer?” Her hand fumbled for the bottle of holy water she knew was on the counter.
“Calm down, kid.” He took the bottle, poured her a shot glass full of water and handed it to her. “I checked that sheet of dates the school sent, I figured I would at least ask.”
She downed the shot, grinning when she was done. “See, another day and no demonic possession. Though I'm starting to wonder if the other girls I go to school with are.” She removed her coat and hung it up on a hook next to the door before going over to the table and opening her backpack.
“What makes you say that?” Bobby asked, incredulously.
“Because they're all starting to become obsessed with this singer called Justin. I listened to him for maybe thirty seconds before I knew he was crap.” She rolled her eyes. “Then again, they also think Twilight is good reading.” She pulled out her report card and handed it to him. “Afraid it's not straight As, but I think I can pull that off for the last quarter.”
He took the report card and scanned it quickly. He raised one eyebrow and smirked. “The lowest grade on here is a B and that's in physical education.”
She folded her arms. “Well, I was unaware that South Dakota has a mercy rule in basketball.”
He snorted. “Yeah kid, not many states do, but this is one of them.”
“Right. Now watch, I keep playing that sport the way I do and if I'm still here for my sophomore year of high school, the coaches will be begging me to play.” She ran a hand through her hair and gave him a bemused look. “You know I'm right.”
He shook his head and handed the card back to her. “They show you Indiana kids Hoosiers in the maternity ward or something?”
“I wouldn't know. I do know that they start showing us that movie in school about once a year starting in first grade.” She chuckled at the look on Bobby's face. “Hey, odds are they started doing the same with Miracle up in Minnesota after it was released on DVD.”
“Not seen that one.” He replied, folding his arms. “You lock the gate up?”
“Of course.” She replied, taking out her math test and affixing it to the fridge with a magnet. “Although that could be considered a fire hazard.” She leaned against the counter, her arms folded. “Why?”
“Because I'm too worried to bother about cooking dinner and honestly, we need something more substantial than peanut butter and jelly.” He held up a hand before she could protest that she was more than willing to make dinner. “We'll order some delivery and pretend like the world's not in danger of ending tomorrow.” He opened a kitchen drawer and began to rummage through it. “You still not eating meat on Fridays?”
“It's only for one more week.” She paused. “Uh, Mrs. Turabian offered to pick me up and take me to church on Sunday, is that okay?”
Bobby outright laughed at that. “Heather, you really are too much sometimes, you know that?”
Heather picked up her backpack. “I know. But someone has to keep the faith around here. Might as well be me, since I probably can't hunt worth a damn.” She walked out of the kitchen.
“Far as I'm concerned, you don't ever have to hunt!” He called after her.
*
Noah set his bag down on the hotel bed and checked the time. He was actually surprised he arrived here before dinner. He rubbed the back of his neck, an uneasy feeling settling over him. He slowly turned and swallowed hard. The angel was back. The body he was in looked terrible. The skin was blotchy, half pink and peeled, the other dead white and scabby. His clothes were stained with - something, he wasn't sure what. He took a step back. “I'm not...I...”
The angel held up his hand. It looked just as bad as his face. “It's all right Noah, you're doing wonderful.” He got an odd look on his face. “You've talked to my brother.”
“Brother?” He thought for a moment. “You mean the angel in the kid?” He frowned. “But that was over a month ago, how?”
“I always know.” The angel smiled, a cold, frightening smile. “The girl's name is Heather. I have a feeling we'll be seeing the two of them very shortly.”
“I'm, not late, am I?” He swallowed. “I was...”
The angel held up his hand again. “Noah, it's fine. Nothing is wrong, you're doing everything right.” He set a slip of paper on the dresser. “Meet me at this location in six hours.”
Noah nodded. “Yes.”
“Come alone.” He smirked. “Then again, you came here alone. Lying to your parents about what you were doing. So... so unlike you, Noah.”
“I don't think I need to tell my parents what I'm doing, not at my age.” He felt like a kid again, caught doing something naughty and trying to find a way out of trouble.
“Oh, I'm not angry, Noah.” He stepped forward and touched his cheek. His hand was ice cold and Noah had to fight the urge to step back. “Enjoy your dinner. I don't care if you eat meat tonight or not.”
And with that, the angel was gone.
Noah fell to a sit on the bed, breathing hard. He set a hand on his face, touching the spot where the angel had touched him. He winced in pain and when he drew his hand away, there was blood on his fingers.
*
“Here they are.” Sam dropped two rings into Mnemosyne's palm. “You really think this is going to work?”
“If it doesn't, Gabriel will get you out of New York and back to South Dakota. You understand why we can't take you with us to the field, don't you?” She gave him a solemn look.
“Yeah. Don't need Lucifer knowing his true vessel is walking around town.” He gave her a very weak grin. “Truth be told, even with the wards on my ribs, I'm still terrified he'll find me.”
“You'd need to drink some demon blood for that to work.” She glanced at Gabriel. “You two be careful at that warehouse. It's probably crawling with denizens of Hell and you can't go ice them all at once or the gig is going to be up.”
“Oh, I get to play around with them first?” The archangel laughed and went to stand next to Sam. “Come on, Chucklehead, let's go have some fun.” He pushed Castiel towards Mnemosyne. “You two be careful.”
“We will.” She took a breath. “Be careful.”
“Don't worry.” Sam leaned over and hugged Castiel. “It's going to be fine, Cas. We'll all be back in South Dakota by Monday.”
Castiel returned the hug awkwardly. “I wish I shared your optimism, Sam.” He paused. “And.. just in case... tell Heather I wish I shared her faith.” He shook his head. “Crazy girl.” He looked over at Mnemosyne. “She must get that from you.”
Gabriel led Sam away. “Come on, Jolly Green Giant, there's damsels to be rescued!” A moment later, they vanished.
Mnemosyne turned to Castiel. “Those two will be fine, don't worry.”
“It is hard not to worry.” He frowned. “How is Claire?”
“Claire is already in Arlington, Virginia. Odds are, her grandparents, well - aunt and uncle really, but grandparents none the less are already on their way to see her.” She smiled. “Come on, there's no need to stand around here.”
*
Michael stepped into the snowfield, trying to imagine how this place must have looked in the summer of nineteen sixty-nine. The Woodstock Festival was a popular memory in Heaven. He'd heard about it, of course. The rain, the mud, the music and the general human insanity. Perhaps it was something that required emotions to understand. What he remembered about that weekend in August was that while this was the site of a celebration of music and youth (and to some extent, drug use), far south of here, a nightmare of a hurricane named Camille swept up from the Gulf Coast, killing hundreds. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, leaning absently against a tree.
"Are we hidden?" Dean's voice sounded half-awake.
"Yes. For now." Michael sighed. I was hoping for less snow.
"I'll take snow over mud." Dean chuckled.
"Point." The archangel lifted his chin as he had the vague sense of something approaching. He didn't lean away from where he was standing, but a flicker of movement revealed a shadow skirting along the edges of the field, only to settle and in a wisp of snow, fifty feet away from him. He instinctively knew that it was Mnemosyne and Castiel. He tucked Dean back into the corner of his own mind and settled down to wait for the arrival of his brother and Noah Levin.
*
“I don't suppose you have a plan for this.” Sam glanced at Gabriel, uncertainly. They were on the roof of a building opposite the large warehouse where the missing women were. He peered over the edge of the roof, looking down and then curling back up out of view. “Because honestly, I didn't think we'd get this far.”
Gabriel snorted and took a look for himself. “Three demons and a pack of hell hounds.” He crouched back down next to the hunter. “Which means there's fifteen of them.”
He swallowed hard. “Explains why there's only three demons. That many hell hounds...” He shuddered. “I don't suppose there's an angelic equivalent to those animals, is there?”
“I think you would know about them if there were.” He frowned. “The trick is not letting Lucifer know we're here.” He checked his watch. “And getting out of here when he finds out Persephone isn't where he thinks she is.”
“Well, if all goes well with the other team, Lucifer isn't coming back.” Sam shrugged, then sensing movement behind him, pulled the gun from inside his jacket and whipped around, only to find himself facing Morpheus. “The hell?”
“What, you think I was going to skip out on you two?” The pagan nestled down by the wall as well. “Sorry I'm late, I needed to eat something before I came.”
Gabriel smirked. “How was Newfoundland?”
“Cold, like it always is this time of the year. But full of hockey worries.” He gave Sam a bemused look and peered over the wall. “That's a lot of dogs.”
“No shit.” Gabriel sighed, and then a wicked grin spread across his face. “I've got an idea.”
*
The demon walking in front of the warehouse door wasn't exactly in the best of moods. He'd managed to get a decent host, for a change. But apparently being the demon who showed up in the parka meant he was stuck outside with the dogs. They weren't exactly in the best of moods either, and he could tell they were longing for prey. Well, as soon as this was over, they could feast on whichever girls ended up sacrificed. Of course, that would be nine human females for fifteen dogs - he didn't want to be around when the fight broke out for certain body parts. Suddenly, all of the hounds stopped and growled, focusing on a narrow gap between two other warehouses. “Stupid human...” He stepped forward, squinting. “Who's there?”
A man stepped out, appearing to be in his late thirties or early forties, it was hard to tell. He smirked at him, and then glanced to his sides, as if he could see the hounds growling and lying in wait. “Here, doggies!” The man waved something over his head - and the demon caught the scent of beef. He hurled the steak towards them and then let out a sharp whistle and took off.
Two of the dogs dove for the steak and the remaining thirteen took off after the man.
“Come back here!” The demon yelled, not surprised when the animals failed to listen.
One of the remaining hounds bit into the neck of the other, winning the fight over the scrap of meat. The steak was all but forgotten as the hell beast started turning his former pack mate into dinner. The stench of blood and death hung in the air, just as howls of the hunt reached him, followed by a high pitched scream.
“That human is dinner.” The demon chuckled, knowing the dogs would return on their own and then whipped around as he heard someone else approaching. “What the?” He watched as a pagan, he wasn't sure who, walked boldly towards him, half-dragging, half-pushing a much taller human, a knife at the man's throat. “What is this?”
The pagan grinned. “Heard you demons had a price on this guy's head. What, wasn't it slaughter immunity to the being who brought you Sam Winchester?”
The hounds were completely forgotten and the demon grinned. “That it was.” He shot a bolt at the pagan, knocking him flat on the ground, just a few feet from the still feasting hell hound. “But don't expect payment.” He picked up Sam by the hair only to feel pain radiate through him.
“Sorry, I'm not for sale.” The hunter growled and tossed the body to the ground. “Morpheus?”
The god kicked something aside, or so he assumed, judging from the sound. “I'm good. Let's go save some damsels who don't know they're in distress.” He picked up the knife he'd dropped. “You okay? Sorry about the hair pulling there.”
Sam nodded turned towards the direction Gabriel had gone and they could still hear the hell hounds, only now their cries were of distress, rather than anger. “Hopefully, he won't waste time playing with them.”
“I don't think so, he knows the kind of schedule we're on.” The two of them went to the door of the warehouse. “Let's not do anything too fancy.” He pushed the door open, warily. “Oh for Zeus's sake...” They slid into the building, closing the door silently behind them. The single room was lit by a series of rings of candles that bathed the sleeping women in an ethereal glow. “Seriously?” Morpheus whispered.
“AAAHH!” One of the two remaining demons charged out of the shadows, slamming into Sam.
“Not this shit again.” The two of them rolled, each struggling to be the person on top until they crashed into several pillars of candles, knocking them over, which set off a domino effect with the rest of them. Thinking quickly, he shoved the demon into the spreading flames. The monster howled as Sam stood up, glancing at the beds to find that three of them were now empty. “Fuck.” He saw something move in the shadows and another one of the girls vanished.
“Move your ass, Carrots!” Morpheus's voice was lost in the sound of flames.
Sam lunged for the nearest occupied bed, throwing back the covers and picked up the girl - in the flickering flames, he could see that it was Jo. Not even pausing, he tossed her over his shoulder and ran in the direction of the door. The fire already out of control and he had no idea how much longer it would be before the whole place went up. He set his friend down on the sidewalk and ran back inside, in the direction he thought where the beds had been. “Morpheus?” He coughed. “Gabe?” His foot hit something and he almost fell. He reached out, feeling the object next to him and he heard a whimper. “Found you.” He picked up someone - he didn't know who it was, only that she was tiny and probably weighed less than Heather did. He raced back towards the door, his lungs screaming for clean air. He hoped that Morpheus had gotten all of the other girls out, or that the archangel had showed up to help because he definitely wouldn't survive coming back in here a third time.
He burst outside into the cold March air and collapsed next to Jo's body. He dropped the woman on the ground, gulping in the fresh air. He rested his head on the pavement, relishing in the cold concrete. “You're safe now.” He touched each of the girls on the shoulder and then rolled over onto his back, closing his eyes and waited for his breathing to return to normal.
*
The snow crunched under Noah's boots, his feet leaving deep indentations, while the angel left no tracks. The task was apparently quite simple, now that he was here. He wasn't even sure why he had to be here, of all places. There were fields aplenty in Virginia, or even in Maryland. Then again, there were enough military bases surrounding the capitol that something might be observed and after the incident with his flight from Chicago back in December, he was eager to avoid that sort of involvement.
“We are here, Noah Daniel, because this is where you began.” The angel answered him, giving him a wicked smile. “Or are you still so young that the idea of your conception bothers you?”
He blinked in response. “I will admit, it's not something I ever thought about. I just know that it was at sometime in late in the of summer of nineteen sixty nine, and nine months later, I was left in a hospital in New York City.” He shrugged.
“What a strange human you are, Noah Levin. You are far more practical than your half-siblings.” The angel smirked. “But that's a story for another day.”
“Right.” He swallowed as they came to a stop. “What do I need to do, exactly?”
The angel turned a lazy circle. “What do your instincts...” He stopped suddenly. “Well, well, if this hasn't turned into a family reunion.”
“I don't under...” Noah started to say and fell silent as the angel he'd seen in his kitchen a few weeks ago emerged from the shadows. He wasn't in the body of the girl anymore - he was in that agent from the Middleton Institute. “Wait a minute, I...”
“Hello, Noah.” The angel glanced at him and then at other. “Lucifer.”
“Well, look at you, Michael, in your proper vessel and everything.” He stepped forward.
Noah honestly hoped that he wasn't standing with his mouth hanging open. Lucifer? Michael? What the hell was going on? It was hard to process as another feeling was overtaking him. It was an odd, warm feeling that started at his ankles and was spreading its way upwards, filling him with a heat that while it was unnatural, was not at all uncomfortable.
“It should not end this way, brother.” Michael said, his voice sounding strange to Noah after hearing it in the girl's voice.
“Always the good little soldier, come to kill me, have you?” Lucifer taunted. “Or would you rather just fire a warning shot and wait until I have my proper vessel as well?”
Noah caught movement to his left and saw two more figures emerge from the shadows. One was the angel he'd seen at Christmas in Sioux Falls,the other was - well, he couldn't tell what she was, as her body and her shadow didn't match. Or perhaps that was the trick of the light. He shook his head to clear it, not entirely aware of what the two angels were discussing - or arguing about.
The third angel took a step towards him just as Noah raised his arms, his hands tingling and swept them through the air. For a great pair of doors had suddenly loomed in front of him and all he knew was that he had to open. He threw them back with the ease of parting curtains and the whole valley became filled with an intense, radiant light.
“At last! Elysium!” A voice cried - Noah thought it was Lucifer, but it was hard to tell. The light was so bright, it seemed to make a sound all on its own. “Persephone!”
Noah saw a shadow of movement and then, another portal opened up - this one on the ground. If hadn't known better, he would have thought he was looking down into an tornado. Something told him that this gaping maw went directly to Hell. Unlike the first portal, this one was making noise; a horrible, roaring sound that made him cower against the ground.“What have I done? What have I done?” He screamed, his voice lost in the din. He registered the word 'Elysium' - was that where the portal he opened up led?
“Arael, is it time?” Someone cried, Noah wasn't certain who. He didn't even know who that was. “Has the hour come?”
“No.” A woman's voice, it must belong to the being who'd been standing next to the third angel. “It is not.”
What happened next happened so fast, that no one present was entirely sure what happened. The light diminished just enough that Noah could see without squinting. The two portals touched, and energy crackled, releasing lightning into the sky. The ground shook and Lucifer lost his footing, his hand fumbling outwards, trying to catch something that wasn't there - and then the earth itself seemed to buck and tossed him off and into the Hell Pit with the same nonchalance a horse would bat away a fly with its tail. The Elysium Portal shuddered, cracked and then expanded outwards as the hole that swallowed Lucifer closed.
A scream filled the air, a sound filled with terror, uncertainty and confusion. There was a great groan as several trees uprooted themselves and fell back with muffled crashes.
“What's happening?” Noah's voice was barely audible above the din.
Another noise, similar to a sonic boom, echoed across the valley and then, it was still and dark.
Michael looked around, swallowing. Lucifer was gone. Only Mnemosyne was still standing, and she was bleeding from a cut along the side of her face. The others were lying sprawled in the snow, alive, but unconscious. He bent down in the snow and picked up the four rings. He stepped towards his sister. “I will see that these get back to their proper places.”
She nodded. “Thank you.”
He tucked the rings into his pocket. “You best get back home to Olympus before you're missed. Odds are, what happened here won't go unnoticed.” With that, he was gone.
Mnemosyne glared at the place where her brother had been a moment ago. “See you in twenty-five years, Mikey.” She stepped back and headed to her home.
*
“I don't know if the lack of a phone call is good news or bad news.” Bobby pushed his plate aside, frowning. “You've been quiet ever since you sank into that box of curried shrimp.”
“Sorry.” Heather brushed her bottom lip with a napkin. “I've been trying not to think about what's going on in New York, actually.”
“Any luck with that?” He took a sip from his beer.
“Not really.” She set her bowl on the table next to the couch, and then curled up in her chair. “At least you haven't told me to go to bed.”
“The way you've been sleeping, I figured there was little point.” He shrugged. “How's the room looking?”
Heather shrugged. “I've got most of the stuff scrubbed off the walls. Guess it was a good thing I used pencil, huh?”
“Yeah.” He sighed and set the bottle down. “And I can't be too angry with you. Only one you had to talk to in this house was me, and well, I'm not exactly the easiest person to talk to.” He chuckled weakly.
She picked up a crab rangoon from the package next to her bowl, pulling it apart and setting half of it in her bowl. “I haven't been my usual sunny self either.” She took a bite of the fried concoction and frowned before speaking again. “Then again, I don't think I've been sunny since the morning after Thanksgiving.”
Bobby picked up his bowl and chopsticks. “Reminds me, have any of your teachers suggested you talk to the counselor at school?”
She finished her crab rangoon and shook her head. Heather had thought about it a time or two, but she couldn't imagine what good it would do. If she walked in there and told them the truth, she'd probably be branded as a pathological liar. Child Services would probably be called, and she'd be taken from the salvage yard and who knew what would happen to her after that. “No, they haven't. I don't think any of them know about what happened to my mom and dad.” She picked up her own bowl of food. “And it's not like talking about will change anything.”
“Once things are...” He cleared his throat. “Heather, sometimes you act like Dean so much that it's scary.”
*
The warehouse was completely engulfed. It was an inferno unlike any the younger Winchester had ever seen. Acrid black smoke blotted out the stars and the air was pungent with the Sam stared blankly at the flames, resting his chin on the top of Jo's head, one arm around her, and the other around the small dark haired woman - Olga, he thought. They were the only two he'd managed to get free. He coughed, reality slowly coming back to him as he heard the sound of sirens.
“What?” Jo's voice was groggy and she hacked once. “Where am I?” She sat up, rubbing her eyes.
“It's okay, Jo. It's over.” Sam almost didn't recognize his own voice. “It's done.”
She stared at him and then her gaze went towards the fire. She shot a glance at the other woman before speaking again. “Where are the others?”
“Someone else got them.” Was his reply. “I don't know how many of them, but at least five of them got out.”
She shook her head. “I don't.... where the hell are we, Sam?” She frowned. “Where's Dean? Where's my mom?”
“One thing at a time, Jo. We're in New York - close to Woodstock.” He grimaced as the sirens drew nearer. “You okay?”
Jo rubbed her face with her hands, still looking confused. “I've been out of it for... what is today?”
Sam checked his watch. It was one in the morning. “It's the twenty-seventh of March.” He looked down at the still sleeping brown haired girl. “This is... Olga, right?”
“Yeah.” She rubbed her arms. “I have a feeling there's one hell of a story behind all of this.”
He nodded. “It can wait until we head back to South Dakota. It's a long drive.”
She snorted. “Yeah.”
*
Noah sat up, more confused than anything. The first thing that he registered was the cold from the snow and he blinked once or twice, struggling to put things together. He could remember a roar, a scream, and then an explosion. He didn't think he was hurt, or if he was, he was in shock. All three of the angels were gone. He heard a groan nearby and turned in that direction. “Hello?” His voice echoed in the cold March morning.
“Claire.” The voice cracked halfway through the name, and then there was a fit of coughing. “Claire.” The voice said again.
Noah staggered to his feet, stumbling towards the man lying a few feet away. “Just stay put, we'll uh... we'll find Claire.”
The man let out a groan that turned into a whine. “Castiel?”
Noah's legs collapsed under him and he had to drag himself the rest of the way. He assumed his theory about being in shock was correct, because a horrific pain in his left leg was making itself known, as was an even worse pain in his shoulder. “I'm coming.” He finally reached his companion, blinking once or twice. It was the man whom Castiel had been possessing. “Don't move, okay?”
The man spluttered, it was almost a laugh, punctuated by gurgles. “Just a few more minutes, I'll be fine.”
He sat down in the snow next to the man, smiling wanly. “Sure you will, kid.” The moonlight revealed the several cuts on the other man's face - and he had a feeling he had some of his own. “I don't know about you, but I sure as hell am not walking back to town.”
That brought a more certain smile to the man's face. “I feel... so dizzy.” He brought his hand up to rub his face. “And hungry.” He shifted his gaze to Noah. “I'm Jimmy.”
Noah dug his cellphone out of his coat pocket, relieved it had survived whatever the hell just happened. “Nice you meet you Jimmy, I'm Noah.”
“Do you build boats?” Jimmy's gaze shifted to the sky. “I hate boats. Always have.”
“Boats I'm okay with, it's flying I hate.” He breathed a sigh of relief when the phone showed he had a signal. “When they ask, we don't remember what happened.” He stated flatly before dialing nine one one.
Chapter Twenty Seven
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Michael!Dean, Sam, Castiel, Melpomene, Gabriel, Mnemosyne, Heather Nate, Bobby, Morpheus
Notes: This story follows canon up to Changing Channels - sort of - and borrows chunks of the rest of Season Five completely at random. This story has no beta. I also apologize for taking over a year to update this story. Life and other plot bunnies attacked.
Trailer 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8LXZM9nRC4
Trailer 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wijPDaRc9iA
Trailer 3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eR1JNDxstk
Warnings:Mild violence, language, complete disregard for Greek Mythological Canon
Summary: The January before he went to Hell, Dean and his brother Sam faced the Last Calusa in Key West, Florida. Following the defeat of this ancient curse, the brothers left, barreling straight into their destiny and the inevitable showdown against Lilith and her minions. But what they assumed was just another hunt was actually a key part in the plans of the Apocalypse. A plan not laid by the powers below, but by the ones up above.
Noah carefully packed his carry-on bag, glad that he'd decided to take the train up to Bethel, rather than fly. He would only be gone the weekend, hopefully he'd be back Sunday morning in time for brunch. He still didn't know what exactly he was going to be doing in New York, he just hoped it didn't involve hurting anyone. He stuffed his toiletry kit into the bag and zipped it up. At least the weather was promising for the next few days, both here and in New England. No snow, no ice, no rain - actual decent weather for late March. Granted, it had snowed two feet in Bethel this past week, but there was no more forthcoming, and hopefully, it was the last snowstorm until November.
“Dad?” Wes knocked on the door of his room. “You want me to make you a lunch for the train since I'm putting mine together?”
Noah turned to his son, giving him a lopsided grin. “What's on the menu?”
“Peanut butter and jelly or cheese sandwich, a serving of chips, baby carrots and your choice of fruit from the bowl.” He rubbed his nose. “Since it's Lent, dessert is not available.”
He laughed. “I'll take the cheese sandwich and one of the Fuji apples.” He smiled. “and a bottle of water.”
“You got it.” Wes paused. “Swiss cheese okay?”
“Swiss is fine.” Noah replied and he watched Wes leave. He knew his son was looking forward to having a weekend with his grandparents. They had come into town yesterday evening and were currently sleeping off their jet lag. He had told his parents he was going to Bethel 'on business' and left it at that. He picked up his bag, double checked to make sure he had turned everything off and headed downstairs.
“How goes lunch prep?” He asked as he came into the kitchen, setting his bag near the door.
“Almost done.” Wes replied, drying off two apples and setting one in each lunch box. “How long are you going to be in New York?”
“Just for a few days. I should be back late Sunday morning.” Noah filled his travel mug with coffee. “I can trust that you and granddad aren't going to throw any wild parties while I'm gone, right?”
“Daaad.” He rolled his eyes. “Wait, you didn't say that grandma couldn't...”
“Can you picture your grandma throwing a wild party? Ever?” Noah chuckled. “You know what I mean.”
“I know, Dad.” Wes shut the boxes. “You going to be okay on the train?”
Now it was Noah's turn to shake his head. “It's flying I have issues with, Wesley.”
“I just..” He rubbed the back of his head, “you know...”
“Yeah. I know.” He set his mug down and got his coat. “You have everything?”
“Think so.” Wes pulled on his coat and then grabbed his pack and two lunches. “Did you remember to get the bottled water out of the trunk?”
Noah laughed. “Yes. Although I don't think it's going to get get cold enough between now and Sunday for anything to freeze in the car again.” He took the lunch his son handed him.
“That was such a mess.” He replied as they went into the garage. “I still think your car smells like Dr. Pepper.”
“Well, better soda than something else.” He put his bag into the trunk. “I had a friend in college whose car always reeked of cigarette smoke.”
“That's nasty.” Wes stated as he got into the car.
Noah shut the trunk, opened the garage door and got into the car. “It was sort of amusing when he finally realized how bad it was. He used an entire can of Lysol to try and get rid of the stench before he sold it.”
“What happened then?” He asked as they buckled up and backed out of the driveway.
“Well, he didn't look at the can too closely - he used one that contained bleach.” Noah shook his head as they headed down the street. “And this was on black interior.”
His son grimaced. “We used bleach to make reverse tie-dye at Scouts. Did he manage to sell the car?”
“I have no idea.” Noah sighed. “It was pretty old to begin with, so he may have just sold it as scrap metal.” He glanced out the window to his right. “The Coulters are moving.”
“They're the deaf couple, right?” Wes rubbed his nose. “They're nice.”
“Yeah. They're probably off to retire in some place where there's no winter.” He grinned absently. “Their home is almost as old as ours.”
“Ours is older, right?” He started to check his bag for something.
“I think so.” Noah replied as he turned the corner, heading for Wes's school.
*
Noah slid his bag under his seat, set his lunch next to him and opened his rather battered copy of The Killer Angels. He had lost track of how many times he'd read this book. Even though he usually only read it when he flew, it was providing a welcoming distraction to what was going to take place in a dozen or so hours. He'd have gone to Bethel yesterday, but his parents couldn't get into town until then and he wasn't going to leave Wes with a baby-sitter on a school night. His trigonometry students, however, were probably thankful for the fact that he'd canceled their class yesterday. After the rather brutal midterm he'd given them, they deserved an afternoon off.
*
Sam kept his face passive as he drove across the state border of Pennsylvania into New York. He'd spent the night in Ohio and had taken off before dawn. It was sort of strange, to be making a trip halfway across the country in the Impala without Dean. He'd not done it since... since before his brother came back from Hell. Oh, there had been the brief time shortly after Lucifer walked free that they had gone their separate ways, but this was different. Odds were, if Dean wasn't currently Michael's meat suit, they wouldn't have stopped at all and just driven all the way to Bethel straight through, stopping only when they had to. He gave an odd smile down at the I-Pod jack currently residing on the dash board. Dean would have a fit if he'd known. Heather had taken one look at it and stated 'oh thank goodness one of you knows what century it is' and then stated that when Dean got back, perhaps they could convince him to come around to liking the device by getting him his own I-Pod loaded with the complete works of 'mullet rock' from AC/DC to Zeppelin.
Bobby had remained behind in South Dakota with a pile of books that might be helpful stacked on his desk along with a fully charged cell-phone. As much as the hunter had thought he should go, Sam pointed out that if both of them left, anything keeping tabs on the salvage yard would know something was up - and while the house and grounds were heavily warded, they needed to act as if nothing was going on. There was also the fact that what few hunters might be able to come and hold down the fort with Heather, the only one Bobby trusted not gank her for being 'half supernatural' was a man named Garth who was tracking some ghouls in Miami.
Heather was under orders to act as if 'nothing weird was going on' to which the girl had replied 'oh, so it's situation normal?' in a tone that reminded Sam of his brother. She was still recovering from her own angelic possession, and the six inches of height she gained was starting to look like the least of the side effects. She'd told him that her greatest problem seemed to be how slow walking was - and that she was looking forward to the snow melting so she could run. The thing where she knew someone was lying? Sam still didn't know how to explain that. He certainly wasn't expecting it to last. Just like Heather would get used to traveling normally again.
“Where are we?” Castiel's voice was groggy from the backseat. The angel had appeared in the parking lot in Ohio, looking slightly disheveled and confused.
“About five hours from Bethel.” He replied, glancing in the rear-view mirror at the angel. “I do apologize again about my appearance.”
“It's okay.” Sam stretched his neck from side to side. He never slept well in motel beds that tended to be too short for his long frame. “I thought you were done with sleeping.”
“As did I.” He frowned and sat up, running his fingers through his hair. “As much as my grace is returning, I'm starting to feel as if I've neglected my vessel.”
“That's weird, didn't you say that you didn't require things like food and sleep in the beginning?” He hit a button on the I-Pod so it skipped the 'Amazing Grace' that had somehow shown up on it.
“That is true. This may sound odd, but I'm becoming more aware of Jimmy and his needs.” He leaned back against the seat. “Would it be possible to get something to eat soon?”
“Sure.” Sam checked his watch. “I could use some lunch myself.” He paused. “The food thing - is that why Heather was eating everything in sight the first few days she was back?”
“Yes. Because of her youth, her hunger was a lot stronger than the first time I vacated Jimmy's body. It is one of the reasons that children are... not exactly the ideal vessel for an angel. The only time they are usually possessed is in extreme emergencies.” He cricked his neck. “Which is exactly what happened to Heather.”
“You're not pissed at her anymore, are you?” He said, rather surprised.
“No.” Castiel frowned. “And yet, you are.”
“Well, think about it, Cas...” Sam stopped short at the look on the angel's face.
“It was being possessed by Michael or freezing to death by that train track, Samuel. By right, she shouldn't have been there. She should be in Jasper, with her parents and blissfully unaware of what is going on.” His shoulders fell. “I do not mean to be so cruel about it, Sam. But the fact remains that we all must claim part of the situation that led her to do what she did.”
Sam nodded. “Well, on the plus side of things, she and Michael did uh... take care of a few problems.” He could feel the smile tugging at the corner of his mouth and saw that the angel was slowly smiling as well.
“I do imagine that the Whore was quite disturbed to meet Heaven's greatest warrior in the body of a girl barely out of childhood.” He cleared his throat. “If Heather remains aware of what all the two of them did, however, I do not know.”
“Well, when we all get back to South Dakota, you and Dean can ask to see her mason jar of bullets.” He knew he was grinning as he eased the Impala off of the highway. “Pancakes okay with you? I could use some serious breakfast food right now.”
“Pancakes would be fine, Sam.” Castiel replied, settling back into the seat.
*
Mnemosyne and Gabriel walked side by side along the trail next to Lake Placid. For her part, Mnemosyne was trying not to let her nerves get the better of her. What they were going to attempt was extremely risky; they had all known that from the very start. But it was this or let the planet burn. She understood orders very clearly. She and her brothers had been told to love humanity. This plan was humanity's best shot at lasting another few centuries. She kept her hands in the pockets of her coat, fingering Pestilence's and Death's rings as she did so. Morpheus had already told her what the price for Death's ring was - and she understood that as well. She also wasn't going to mention or warn anyone about it. Maybe, if anything, the action her grandson would have to take in June would let this planet get back in shape, so to speak.
“You're quiet.” Gabriel kept his gaze down at the ground, kicking absently at a ball of slush that had worked its way free from one of the many piles of plowed snow lining the street. “You still think this is going to work?”
“Unless you can come up with a better plan by sundown, yes.” She sighed. “I've had a long time to think about it.”
“Well, it's not that bad of a plan, I will admit.” He chuckled. “A little better thought out than my plan was when I stole Loki's identity.” He paused. “Well, more like borrowed.”
She scoffed at that. “Borrowing it would mean you intended to give it back one of these days. Given that it's been over ten centuries, I don't think you will.”
He held his hands out, grinning. “You have me there. But even if I did, what good would it do? The Norse Pantheon is completely gone.”
“That's not true. You know as well as I do that Thor is only classified as missing.” She shrugged. “And for that matter, isn't Sigyn only classified as that also?” She smirked at him. “Unless you know something about that as well.”
“I'll never tell.” Gabriel grinned. “Since you know so much, do you know where the hammer wielding blond barbarian is?”
“Please.” She rolled her eyes. “I haven't seen him since Ulysses Grant was president. Most likely he's changed his appearance and runs around chasing storms these days.”
The archangel laughed outright at that. “I can see him having a YouTube account and a string of videos that go in depth on tornadoes. Which everyone thinks are faked, because of how close he can get and not die.”
She chuckled. “Something like that, yes.” She sighed, “are you going to go home after this?”
“Just for a little while. Much as I'd love to continue to hang out with you, I think I may have worn out my welcome on Olympus.”
“I'm more than happy to let you stay.” She dodged a mailbox. “I don't mind.”
“I think it's better if I went back to Heaven - just for a few years, at least. Maybe see if I can teach some fledglings to have a sense of humor, because this deadpan thing most of the angels have going on? It's not a good thing in my book.” Gabriel let out a breath. “How much time do we have?”
Mnemosyne checked her watch. “A few hours. What, you want to have lunch?” She frowned. “Seems awfully - wrong, in a manner of speaking.”
“True.” He shrugged. “But just in case we're not making it out of here alive, we should have one last meal.”
“Now who's the morbid one?” She laughed. “Fine, we'll have something to eat.”
*
Lucifer rose from his seat in the middle of the warehouse. In a circle around him, were ten camp beds, all with a sleeping woman in them. He would be leaving them here until he returned with Persephone's soul. If her soul wasn't in Elysium, he'd have to search Purgatory and then the Oblivion - but really, were else would the goddess be? The girl's father, if Zeus could be called that, was even more clueless than the average pagan. The only thing that creature had points on was having the common sense not to show up to that hotel in Indiana several months ago. Of course, that was before Arael showed up and revealed herself to him.
When this was all over, he and his sister going to have a nice, quiet talk. Granted, he wasn't ready to admit out loud that she'd been in the right all those years ago when he was trying to get into Eden, she'd only been trying to help. His silly sister thinking she could get him and his brothers to get along by trying to find a way for them all to come to a mutual agreement. Admirable? Maybe. Stupid? Definitely.
Perhaps he'd just kill Apollo and Zeus, get back on her good side and then things could start to get back to how they should be. Persephone would get him into the stronghold of Olympus, of that he had no doubt. It'd make a much better home than Hell, that was certain. Arael's wards on the place would be subverted easily once he was there. She'd been keeping angels and demons alike out of the place - the only way one could come in was if they were brought in by a resident. Well, he and his sister would just have to discuss how things would be run from now on. She'd give him the names of all the remaining pagans - and he'd deal with them soon enough as well.
Pagans were nothing more than toxic waste.
*
Claire Novak kept a firm grip on the dog leash as she mounted the stairs of the Arlington Police Station. The notion that by tomorrow, she'd at least be with her family again gave her courage and she glanced down at the greyhound who was trotting faithfully next to her. “It's going to be just fine, Knightly.” She pulled open the heavy door and stepped inside.
The place smelled of strong coffee and Lysol. It wasn't like police stations she'd seen on TV. All chaos and people screaming. She swallowed and walked up to the desk, where a very harried looking man was signing papers and handing them off to another officer. No one had even noticed her come in. Claire had been certain someone would have told her to take the dog outside by now. Maybe they thought he was a service animal.
She didn't know what exactly she was going to say to the man at the desk. She decided she'd do what she'd always been told to do if she ever got separated from her parents and needed help. She cleared her throat. “Excuse me.”
The man glanced at her, back at his papers and then his head shot back up, the documents ignored. “Can I help you, sweetie?” His voice was thick with an accent, and Claire honestly didn't mind the term of endearment. The guy probably had kids of his own.
“Hi. My name's Claire Novak. I'm lost.” She smiled awkwardly. “I could use some help.”
The man set down his pen, smiling. “Where are you supposed to be, Claire?”
“Illinois.” She bit her lip. “I um...”
“Wait a second...” He turned to his computer, typed something quickly and then glanced back at her. “Claire Novak of Pontiac, Illinois?”
She nodded. “I um...”
The man's expression turned serious. “Why don't you and...” He finally noticed the dog. “Your friend go have a seat over there?” He pointed to an empty bench to her left. “I'm going to get my supervisor to help you, all right?”
“Thank you.” She smiled halfheartedly and went over to the bench. Just the act of sitting calmed her and she rubbed Knightly's head as the dog rested it on her leg. “That was the hard part.”
*
Heather shut the chain link gate at the entrance to the salvage yard and locked it. At least she didn't have to walk the half-mile from the main road anymore. It turned out that the former bus driver had been letting off a lot of kids where he wasn't supposed to - forcing her and at least ten other students to walk distances in the arctic weather. Now there was a new driver and he let her off where he was supposed to: right at the drive of the salvage yard. She wagered it was a good thing that the school didn't know about her being hit by the neighbor's car, or the former driver would be in at least twice as much trouble as he currently was.
The gravel crunched under her boots as she made her way to the house, not looking forward to this weekend at all. She certainly hadn't wanted to go to Bethel, and even if she did, what was she supposed to do there? She kicked the excess snow and rock salt off of her boots and let herself inside. “Hello?” She called out, not really expecting a reply.
“Hey, kid.” Bobby's voice was muffled. “How was school?”
“Fine. I got a hundred on my math test, can I put it on the fridge?” She was being sarcastic - who the hell cared what she got on her tests around here anyway?
“Hell yes!” A door slammed and Bobby came into the kitchen as she was unlacing her boots. “Did you get your report card as well?”
Heather stared at him in utter disbelief. “Who are you and what have you done with Bobby Singer?” Her hand fumbled for the bottle of holy water she knew was on the counter.
“Calm down, kid.” He took the bottle, poured her a shot glass full of water and handed it to her. “I checked that sheet of dates the school sent, I figured I would at least ask.”
She downed the shot, grinning when she was done. “See, another day and no demonic possession. Though I'm starting to wonder if the other girls I go to school with are.” She removed her coat and hung it up on a hook next to the door before going over to the table and opening her backpack.
“What makes you say that?” Bobby asked, incredulously.
“Because they're all starting to become obsessed with this singer called Justin. I listened to him for maybe thirty seconds before I knew he was crap.” She rolled her eyes. “Then again, they also think Twilight is good reading.” She pulled out her report card and handed it to him. “Afraid it's not straight As, but I think I can pull that off for the last quarter.”
He took the report card and scanned it quickly. He raised one eyebrow and smirked. “The lowest grade on here is a B and that's in physical education.”
She folded her arms. “Well, I was unaware that South Dakota has a mercy rule in basketball.”
He snorted. “Yeah kid, not many states do, but this is one of them.”
“Right. Now watch, I keep playing that sport the way I do and if I'm still here for my sophomore year of high school, the coaches will be begging me to play.” She ran a hand through her hair and gave him a bemused look. “You know I'm right.”
He shook his head and handed the card back to her. “They show you Indiana kids Hoosiers in the maternity ward or something?”
“I wouldn't know. I do know that they start showing us that movie in school about once a year starting in first grade.” She chuckled at the look on Bobby's face. “Hey, odds are they started doing the same with Miracle up in Minnesota after it was released on DVD.”
“Not seen that one.” He replied, folding his arms. “You lock the gate up?”
“Of course.” She replied, taking out her math test and affixing it to the fridge with a magnet. “Although that could be considered a fire hazard.” She leaned against the counter, her arms folded. “Why?”
“Because I'm too worried to bother about cooking dinner and honestly, we need something more substantial than peanut butter and jelly.” He held up a hand before she could protest that she was more than willing to make dinner. “We'll order some delivery and pretend like the world's not in danger of ending tomorrow.” He opened a kitchen drawer and began to rummage through it. “You still not eating meat on Fridays?”
“It's only for one more week.” She paused. “Uh, Mrs. Turabian offered to pick me up and take me to church on Sunday, is that okay?”
Bobby outright laughed at that. “Heather, you really are too much sometimes, you know that?”
Heather picked up her backpack. “I know. But someone has to keep the faith around here. Might as well be me, since I probably can't hunt worth a damn.” She walked out of the kitchen.
“Far as I'm concerned, you don't ever have to hunt!” He called after her.
*
Noah set his bag down on the hotel bed and checked the time. He was actually surprised he arrived here before dinner. He rubbed the back of his neck, an uneasy feeling settling over him. He slowly turned and swallowed hard. The angel was back. The body he was in looked terrible. The skin was blotchy, half pink and peeled, the other dead white and scabby. His clothes were stained with - something, he wasn't sure what. He took a step back. “I'm not...I...”
The angel held up his hand. It looked just as bad as his face. “It's all right Noah, you're doing wonderful.” He got an odd look on his face. “You've talked to my brother.”
“Brother?” He thought for a moment. “You mean the angel in the kid?” He frowned. “But that was over a month ago, how?”
“I always know.” The angel smiled, a cold, frightening smile. “The girl's name is Heather. I have a feeling we'll be seeing the two of them very shortly.”
“I'm, not late, am I?” He swallowed. “I was...”
The angel held up his hand again. “Noah, it's fine. Nothing is wrong, you're doing everything right.” He set a slip of paper on the dresser. “Meet me at this location in six hours.”
Noah nodded. “Yes.”
“Come alone.” He smirked. “Then again, you came here alone. Lying to your parents about what you were doing. So... so unlike you, Noah.”
“I don't think I need to tell my parents what I'm doing, not at my age.” He felt like a kid again, caught doing something naughty and trying to find a way out of trouble.
“Oh, I'm not angry, Noah.” He stepped forward and touched his cheek. His hand was ice cold and Noah had to fight the urge to step back. “Enjoy your dinner. I don't care if you eat meat tonight or not.”
And with that, the angel was gone.
Noah fell to a sit on the bed, breathing hard. He set a hand on his face, touching the spot where the angel had touched him. He winced in pain and when he drew his hand away, there was blood on his fingers.
*
“Here they are.” Sam dropped two rings into Mnemosyne's palm. “You really think this is going to work?”
“If it doesn't, Gabriel will get you out of New York and back to South Dakota. You understand why we can't take you with us to the field, don't you?” She gave him a solemn look.
“Yeah. Don't need Lucifer knowing his true vessel is walking around town.” He gave her a very weak grin. “Truth be told, even with the wards on my ribs, I'm still terrified he'll find me.”
“You'd need to drink some demon blood for that to work.” She glanced at Gabriel. “You two be careful at that warehouse. It's probably crawling with denizens of Hell and you can't go ice them all at once or the gig is going to be up.”
“Oh, I get to play around with them first?” The archangel laughed and went to stand next to Sam. “Come on, Chucklehead, let's go have some fun.” He pushed Castiel towards Mnemosyne. “You two be careful.”
“We will.” She took a breath. “Be careful.”
“Don't worry.” Sam leaned over and hugged Castiel. “It's going to be fine, Cas. We'll all be back in South Dakota by Monday.”
Castiel returned the hug awkwardly. “I wish I shared your optimism, Sam.” He paused. “And.. just in case... tell Heather I wish I shared her faith.” He shook his head. “Crazy girl.” He looked over at Mnemosyne. “She must get that from you.”
Gabriel led Sam away. “Come on, Jolly Green Giant, there's damsels to be rescued!” A moment later, they vanished.
Mnemosyne turned to Castiel. “Those two will be fine, don't worry.”
“It is hard not to worry.” He frowned. “How is Claire?”
“Claire is already in Arlington, Virginia. Odds are, her grandparents, well - aunt and uncle really, but grandparents none the less are already on their way to see her.” She smiled. “Come on, there's no need to stand around here.”
*
Michael stepped into the snowfield, trying to imagine how this place must have looked in the summer of nineteen sixty-nine. The Woodstock Festival was a popular memory in Heaven. He'd heard about it, of course. The rain, the mud, the music and the general human insanity. Perhaps it was something that required emotions to understand. What he remembered about that weekend in August was that while this was the site of a celebration of music and youth (and to some extent, drug use), far south of here, a nightmare of a hurricane named Camille swept up from the Gulf Coast, killing hundreds. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, leaning absently against a tree.
"Are we hidden?" Dean's voice sounded half-awake.
"Yes. For now." Michael sighed. I was hoping for less snow.
"I'll take snow over mud." Dean chuckled.
"Point." The archangel lifted his chin as he had the vague sense of something approaching. He didn't lean away from where he was standing, but a flicker of movement revealed a shadow skirting along the edges of the field, only to settle and in a wisp of snow, fifty feet away from him. He instinctively knew that it was Mnemosyne and Castiel. He tucked Dean back into the corner of his own mind and settled down to wait for the arrival of his brother and Noah Levin.
*
“I don't suppose you have a plan for this.” Sam glanced at Gabriel, uncertainly. They were on the roof of a building opposite the large warehouse where the missing women were. He peered over the edge of the roof, looking down and then curling back up out of view. “Because honestly, I didn't think we'd get this far.”
Gabriel snorted and took a look for himself. “Three demons and a pack of hell hounds.” He crouched back down next to the hunter. “Which means there's fifteen of them.”
He swallowed hard. “Explains why there's only three demons. That many hell hounds...” He shuddered. “I don't suppose there's an angelic equivalent to those animals, is there?”
“I think you would know about them if there were.” He frowned. “The trick is not letting Lucifer know we're here.” He checked his watch. “And getting out of here when he finds out Persephone isn't where he thinks she is.”
“Well, if all goes well with the other team, Lucifer isn't coming back.” Sam shrugged, then sensing movement behind him, pulled the gun from inside his jacket and whipped around, only to find himself facing Morpheus. “The hell?”
“What, you think I was going to skip out on you two?” The pagan nestled down by the wall as well. “Sorry I'm late, I needed to eat something before I came.”
Gabriel smirked. “How was Newfoundland?”
“Cold, like it always is this time of the year. But full of hockey worries.” He gave Sam a bemused look and peered over the wall. “That's a lot of dogs.”
“No shit.” Gabriel sighed, and then a wicked grin spread across his face. “I've got an idea.”
*
The demon walking in front of the warehouse door wasn't exactly in the best of moods. He'd managed to get a decent host, for a change. But apparently being the demon who showed up in the parka meant he was stuck outside with the dogs. They weren't exactly in the best of moods either, and he could tell they were longing for prey. Well, as soon as this was over, they could feast on whichever girls ended up sacrificed. Of course, that would be nine human females for fifteen dogs - he didn't want to be around when the fight broke out for certain body parts. Suddenly, all of the hounds stopped and growled, focusing on a narrow gap between two other warehouses. “Stupid human...” He stepped forward, squinting. “Who's there?”
A man stepped out, appearing to be in his late thirties or early forties, it was hard to tell. He smirked at him, and then glanced to his sides, as if he could see the hounds growling and lying in wait. “Here, doggies!” The man waved something over his head - and the demon caught the scent of beef. He hurled the steak towards them and then let out a sharp whistle and took off.
Two of the dogs dove for the steak and the remaining thirteen took off after the man.
“Come back here!” The demon yelled, not surprised when the animals failed to listen.
One of the remaining hounds bit into the neck of the other, winning the fight over the scrap of meat. The steak was all but forgotten as the hell beast started turning his former pack mate into dinner. The stench of blood and death hung in the air, just as howls of the hunt reached him, followed by a high pitched scream.
“That human is dinner.” The demon chuckled, knowing the dogs would return on their own and then whipped around as he heard someone else approaching. “What the?” He watched as a pagan, he wasn't sure who, walked boldly towards him, half-dragging, half-pushing a much taller human, a knife at the man's throat. “What is this?”
The pagan grinned. “Heard you demons had a price on this guy's head. What, wasn't it slaughter immunity to the being who brought you Sam Winchester?”
The hounds were completely forgotten and the demon grinned. “That it was.” He shot a bolt at the pagan, knocking him flat on the ground, just a few feet from the still feasting hell hound. “But don't expect payment.” He picked up Sam by the hair only to feel pain radiate through him.
“Sorry, I'm not for sale.” The hunter growled and tossed the body to the ground. “Morpheus?”
The god kicked something aside, or so he assumed, judging from the sound. “I'm good. Let's go save some damsels who don't know they're in distress.” He picked up the knife he'd dropped. “You okay? Sorry about the hair pulling there.”
Sam nodded turned towards the direction Gabriel had gone and they could still hear the hell hounds, only now their cries were of distress, rather than anger. “Hopefully, he won't waste time playing with them.”
“I don't think so, he knows the kind of schedule we're on.” The two of them went to the door of the warehouse. “Let's not do anything too fancy.” He pushed the door open, warily. “Oh for Zeus's sake...” They slid into the building, closing the door silently behind them. The single room was lit by a series of rings of candles that bathed the sleeping women in an ethereal glow. “Seriously?” Morpheus whispered.
“AAAHH!” One of the two remaining demons charged out of the shadows, slamming into Sam.
“Not this shit again.” The two of them rolled, each struggling to be the person on top until they crashed into several pillars of candles, knocking them over, which set off a domino effect with the rest of them. Thinking quickly, he shoved the demon into the spreading flames. The monster howled as Sam stood up, glancing at the beds to find that three of them were now empty. “Fuck.” He saw something move in the shadows and another one of the girls vanished.
“Move your ass, Carrots!” Morpheus's voice was lost in the sound of flames.
Sam lunged for the nearest occupied bed, throwing back the covers and picked up the girl - in the flickering flames, he could see that it was Jo. Not even pausing, he tossed her over his shoulder and ran in the direction of the door. The fire already out of control and he had no idea how much longer it would be before the whole place went up. He set his friend down on the sidewalk and ran back inside, in the direction he thought where the beds had been. “Morpheus?” He coughed. “Gabe?” His foot hit something and he almost fell. He reached out, feeling the object next to him and he heard a whimper. “Found you.” He picked up someone - he didn't know who it was, only that she was tiny and probably weighed less than Heather did. He raced back towards the door, his lungs screaming for clean air. He hoped that Morpheus had gotten all of the other girls out, or that the archangel had showed up to help because he definitely wouldn't survive coming back in here a third time.
He burst outside into the cold March air and collapsed next to Jo's body. He dropped the woman on the ground, gulping in the fresh air. He rested his head on the pavement, relishing in the cold concrete. “You're safe now.” He touched each of the girls on the shoulder and then rolled over onto his back, closing his eyes and waited for his breathing to return to normal.
*
The snow crunched under Noah's boots, his feet leaving deep indentations, while the angel left no tracks. The task was apparently quite simple, now that he was here. He wasn't even sure why he had to be here, of all places. There were fields aplenty in Virginia, or even in Maryland. Then again, there were enough military bases surrounding the capitol that something might be observed and after the incident with his flight from Chicago back in December, he was eager to avoid that sort of involvement.
“We are here, Noah Daniel, because this is where you began.” The angel answered him, giving him a wicked smile. “Or are you still so young that the idea of your conception bothers you?”
He blinked in response. “I will admit, it's not something I ever thought about. I just know that it was at sometime in late in the of summer of nineteen sixty nine, and nine months later, I was left in a hospital in New York City.” He shrugged.
“What a strange human you are, Noah Levin. You are far more practical than your half-siblings.” The angel smirked. “But that's a story for another day.”
“Right.” He swallowed as they came to a stop. “What do I need to do, exactly?”
The angel turned a lazy circle. “What do your instincts...” He stopped suddenly. “Well, well, if this hasn't turned into a family reunion.”
“I don't under...” Noah started to say and fell silent as the angel he'd seen in his kitchen a few weeks ago emerged from the shadows. He wasn't in the body of the girl anymore - he was in that agent from the Middleton Institute. “Wait a minute, I...”
“Hello, Noah.” The angel glanced at him and then at other. “Lucifer.”
“Well, look at you, Michael, in your proper vessel and everything.” He stepped forward.
Noah honestly hoped that he wasn't standing with his mouth hanging open. Lucifer? Michael? What the hell was going on? It was hard to process as another feeling was overtaking him. It was an odd, warm feeling that started at his ankles and was spreading its way upwards, filling him with a heat that while it was unnatural, was not at all uncomfortable.
“It should not end this way, brother.” Michael said, his voice sounding strange to Noah after hearing it in the girl's voice.
“Always the good little soldier, come to kill me, have you?” Lucifer taunted. “Or would you rather just fire a warning shot and wait until I have my proper vessel as well?”
Noah caught movement to his left and saw two more figures emerge from the shadows. One was the angel he'd seen at Christmas in Sioux Falls,the other was - well, he couldn't tell what she was, as her body and her shadow didn't match. Or perhaps that was the trick of the light. He shook his head to clear it, not entirely aware of what the two angels were discussing - or arguing about.
The third angel took a step towards him just as Noah raised his arms, his hands tingling and swept them through the air. For a great pair of doors had suddenly loomed in front of him and all he knew was that he had to open. He threw them back with the ease of parting curtains and the whole valley became filled with an intense, radiant light.
“At last! Elysium!” A voice cried - Noah thought it was Lucifer, but it was hard to tell. The light was so bright, it seemed to make a sound all on its own. “Persephone!”
Noah saw a shadow of movement and then, another portal opened up - this one on the ground. If hadn't known better, he would have thought he was looking down into an tornado. Something told him that this gaping maw went directly to Hell. Unlike the first portal, this one was making noise; a horrible, roaring sound that made him cower against the ground.“What have I done? What have I done?” He screamed, his voice lost in the din. He registered the word 'Elysium' - was that where the portal he opened up led?
“Arael, is it time?” Someone cried, Noah wasn't certain who. He didn't even know who that was. “Has the hour come?”
“No.” A woman's voice, it must belong to the being who'd been standing next to the third angel. “It is not.”
What happened next happened so fast, that no one present was entirely sure what happened. The light diminished just enough that Noah could see without squinting. The two portals touched, and energy crackled, releasing lightning into the sky. The ground shook and Lucifer lost his footing, his hand fumbling outwards, trying to catch something that wasn't there - and then the earth itself seemed to buck and tossed him off and into the Hell Pit with the same nonchalance a horse would bat away a fly with its tail. The Elysium Portal shuddered, cracked and then expanded outwards as the hole that swallowed Lucifer closed.
A scream filled the air, a sound filled with terror, uncertainty and confusion. There was a great groan as several trees uprooted themselves and fell back with muffled crashes.
“What's happening?” Noah's voice was barely audible above the din.
Another noise, similar to a sonic boom, echoed across the valley and then, it was still and dark.
Michael looked around, swallowing. Lucifer was gone. Only Mnemosyne was still standing, and she was bleeding from a cut along the side of her face. The others were lying sprawled in the snow, alive, but unconscious. He bent down in the snow and picked up the four rings. He stepped towards his sister. “I will see that these get back to their proper places.”
She nodded. “Thank you.”
He tucked the rings into his pocket. “You best get back home to Olympus before you're missed. Odds are, what happened here won't go unnoticed.” With that, he was gone.
Mnemosyne glared at the place where her brother had been a moment ago. “See you in twenty-five years, Mikey.” She stepped back and headed to her home.
*
“I don't know if the lack of a phone call is good news or bad news.” Bobby pushed his plate aside, frowning. “You've been quiet ever since you sank into that box of curried shrimp.”
“Sorry.” Heather brushed her bottom lip with a napkin. “I've been trying not to think about what's going on in New York, actually.”
“Any luck with that?” He took a sip from his beer.
“Not really.” She set her bowl on the table next to the couch, and then curled up in her chair. “At least you haven't told me to go to bed.”
“The way you've been sleeping, I figured there was little point.” He shrugged. “How's the room looking?”
Heather shrugged. “I've got most of the stuff scrubbed off the walls. Guess it was a good thing I used pencil, huh?”
“Yeah.” He sighed and set the bottle down. “And I can't be too angry with you. Only one you had to talk to in this house was me, and well, I'm not exactly the easiest person to talk to.” He chuckled weakly.
She picked up a crab rangoon from the package next to her bowl, pulling it apart and setting half of it in her bowl. “I haven't been my usual sunny self either.” She took a bite of the fried concoction and frowned before speaking again. “Then again, I don't think I've been sunny since the morning after Thanksgiving.”
Bobby picked up his bowl and chopsticks. “Reminds me, have any of your teachers suggested you talk to the counselor at school?”
She finished her crab rangoon and shook her head. Heather had thought about it a time or two, but she couldn't imagine what good it would do. If she walked in there and told them the truth, she'd probably be branded as a pathological liar. Child Services would probably be called, and she'd be taken from the salvage yard and who knew what would happen to her after that. “No, they haven't. I don't think any of them know about what happened to my mom and dad.” She picked up her own bowl of food. “And it's not like talking about will change anything.”
“Once things are...” He cleared his throat. “Heather, sometimes you act like Dean so much that it's scary.”
*
The warehouse was completely engulfed. It was an inferno unlike any the younger Winchester had ever seen. Acrid black smoke blotted out the stars and the air was pungent with the Sam stared blankly at the flames, resting his chin on the top of Jo's head, one arm around her, and the other around the small dark haired woman - Olga, he thought. They were the only two he'd managed to get free. He coughed, reality slowly coming back to him as he heard the sound of sirens.
“What?” Jo's voice was groggy and she hacked once. “Where am I?” She sat up, rubbing her eyes.
“It's okay, Jo. It's over.” Sam almost didn't recognize his own voice. “It's done.”
She stared at him and then her gaze went towards the fire. She shot a glance at the other woman before speaking again. “Where are the others?”
“Someone else got them.” Was his reply. “I don't know how many of them, but at least five of them got out.”
She shook her head. “I don't.... where the hell are we, Sam?” She frowned. “Where's Dean? Where's my mom?”
“One thing at a time, Jo. We're in New York - close to Woodstock.” He grimaced as the sirens drew nearer. “You okay?”
Jo rubbed her face with her hands, still looking confused. “I've been out of it for... what is today?”
Sam checked his watch. It was one in the morning. “It's the twenty-seventh of March.” He looked down at the still sleeping brown haired girl. “This is... Olga, right?”
“Yeah.” She rubbed her arms. “I have a feeling there's one hell of a story behind all of this.”
He nodded. “It can wait until we head back to South Dakota. It's a long drive.”
She snorted. “Yeah.”
*
Noah sat up, more confused than anything. The first thing that he registered was the cold from the snow and he blinked once or twice, struggling to put things together. He could remember a roar, a scream, and then an explosion. He didn't think he was hurt, or if he was, he was in shock. All three of the angels were gone. He heard a groan nearby and turned in that direction. “Hello?” His voice echoed in the cold March morning.
“Claire.” The voice cracked halfway through the name, and then there was a fit of coughing. “Claire.” The voice said again.
Noah staggered to his feet, stumbling towards the man lying a few feet away. “Just stay put, we'll uh... we'll find Claire.”
The man let out a groan that turned into a whine. “Castiel?”
Noah's legs collapsed under him and he had to drag himself the rest of the way. He assumed his theory about being in shock was correct, because a horrific pain in his left leg was making itself known, as was an even worse pain in his shoulder. “I'm coming.” He finally reached his companion, blinking once or twice. It was the man whom Castiel had been possessing. “Don't move, okay?”
The man spluttered, it was almost a laugh, punctuated by gurgles. “Just a few more minutes, I'll be fine.”
He sat down in the snow next to the man, smiling wanly. “Sure you will, kid.” The moonlight revealed the several cuts on the other man's face - and he had a feeling he had some of his own. “I don't know about you, but I sure as hell am not walking back to town.”
That brought a more certain smile to the man's face. “I feel... so dizzy.” He brought his hand up to rub his face. “And hungry.” He shifted his gaze to Noah. “I'm Jimmy.”
Noah dug his cellphone out of his coat pocket, relieved it had survived whatever the hell just happened. “Nice you meet you Jimmy, I'm Noah.”
“Do you build boats?” Jimmy's gaze shifted to the sky. “I hate boats. Always have.”
“Boats I'm okay with, it's flying I hate.” He breathed a sigh of relief when the phone showed he had a signal. “When they ask, we don't remember what happened.” He stated flatly before dialing nine one one.
Chapter Twenty Seven