This sequel is a reboot and centers on Castiel. It complies more fully with Season 6. In 6.20, Castiel asked for a sign. What if Lily and the unknown angel were the sign? Did Castiel stop in time? Can he forgive himself?
Lily was sitting in her back yard, on the first warmish day of the year. The sun was shining and her garden, the one that Bobby had helped her with last year, would soon be ready for a new season of flowers, plants and… maybe some vegetables?
She looked around at the oasis of peace that Bobby had created for her. A cleared space that had grass and flowers, a toddler's play set and which also had a table and chairs for eating. There was even a fancy grill. One she had never bothered to figure out, but Bobby and her boys used frequently. There was even a white picket fence surrounding the area.
Beyond that, was the salvage yard; she never complained about the view, though. The yard beyond was how Bobby supported his family; even though she contributed with the books she wrote.
There was other money, too; money, which she and the boys had inherited from their families after the massacre and destruction of their home. It was all in a bank; as were the insurance payouts. The government had also purchased land from any identified, surviving heirs. She was actually in good financial shape, but it was money she never wanted. At some point though, she was going to have to figure out what to do with it. It would probably pay for college for the kids or something. It was last on her list of things to do that she referred to as 'recovery steps' and it would soon be time to handle that chore.
She shook her head; she was sitting in the backyard trying to think about the next chapter she was writing. This book would be about her characters, Chloe and Conner and not about Sam and Dean Winchester. She pondered whether she was done with them or if she ever really would be done with them. She hadn't had flashes for awhile and that made her smile. If she was done with them, then that meant they were at peace and could have that storybook ending they both needed so badly. Anyway, the last thing she wrote about them felt like the end.
In a couple of weeks, she and Emily would go and visit them and their wives. She loved that both girls were pregnant and that Sarah was finally over the morning sickness that had been plaguing her. She thought of them as a combination of sister and daughter and loved how happy they made Sam and Dean.
She loved how strong willed Blair was and how she could stand up to Dean when he was being his most overbearing, protective… self. She also loved that Sarah could pull Sam out of his occasional bouts of bad mood with humour and patience. The South didn't hold the patent on Steel Magnolias. She was glad that these iron-strong women had been chosen for the boys. She hoped that she was that strong now and that she could raise Emily to be strong as well.
As she thought of her daughter, she glanced over at the baby monitor. Emily had an afternoon nap everyday; mainly because she thought six am was a great time to be awake and woke the whole house every morning. She glanced at her watch and realized that her quiet time was nearly over. Emily would wake up soon – so much for thinking about her book.
Just as she was gathering up the things she had brought out, a cup with the last of some tea, the baby monitor, her notebook (the one she hadn't even opened), and her sunglasses, she heard a sound. Turning around, she saw Castiel standing in her yard.
He was looking at her with a hopeful expression on his face, "Is she awake?"
Lily smiled at him. He didn't come around too often, but when he did, his first question was invariably about Emily. She shook her head and started for the back door, "Not yet, but any minute now. You can go get her if you want." The distinctive sound of wings flapping told her that Cas had done just that.
She went into the house and waited for them to come down. When Cas was with Emily, she rarely interrupted them.
SPNSPNSPN
Castiel stood over Emily's bed and just waited for her to open her eyes. As he waited, he ruminated on his role in her life. When Emily was 9 months old, she had been baptized at the Lutheran Church. Castiel had been there because Lily had asked him. He was surprised because when he got there; he discovered that Lily and Bobby had named him her godfather.
When he met the pastor of the little church, Castiel had discovered that the man was a simple and faithful servant of God. The pastor had not been told that Castiel was an angel, of course, but Cas thought the man might know anyway. Castiel had started to visit him from time to time, because he found a measure of peace when he talked to the man.
The Civil War in Heaven was over and had been for awhile, but Castiel was still angry with himself and filled with shame over the things he had done in an effort to stop Raphael. He had yet to find the peace that Chuck had helped Sam and Dean find. He found that the pastor of that small Lutheran Church was helping him a little. So did spending time with this child and Lily. For some reason, Lily had a hold on him that the others, not even Dean, had.
Castiel continued to watch over Emily as she slept. He thought about their link; she had some of his grace and its presence was becoming more obvious. He no longer had to touch her to feel it and that was unexpected. He had assumed the grace would just be there. Like it was in the people he had healed, but it appeared to be growing as she grew. At some point, he would have to talk to Bobby and Lily about it.
When Emily opened her eyes, the first person she saw was her Godfather. As usual, she smiled and laughed in delight. Then she got up and held up her arms for him to get her. Castiel smiled and picked her up. She grabbed his face, planted a kiss on him and shouted, "Cas!"
SPNSPNSPN
Downstairs, Lily smiled when she heard her daughter shout and knew that she probably would have been able to hear it without the monitor. Emily had a loud voice on occasion, especially when she was happy. When she was mad, well, she got even louder. Lily reached over and turned off the monitor; Cas was with her.
She thought about the little girl God had given her and Bobby and she smiled. Emily Claire Singer was a happy baby. She rarely had bad moments and when she did they were over quickly. She was nearly always smiling and cheerful. To be honest, it kind of wigged the entire family out on occasion. They would, however, fight tooth and nail to see that she remained that happy forever.
She and Bobby had known from the jump that they were going to have to share Emily with Castiel and they included him as much as possible. They tried to call him so he could be there to see the firsts. Cas was there when they got Emily on her feet and walking; he saw the first smiles, the first laughter and her first rollover.
Her sons, however, were the ones who taught Emily her first real word: 'dammit'. They laughed like loons when she said it the first time, and didn't seem to care when they were punished for it. Even now, if they were reminded, they'd start to laugh again. Cas had missed that one.
Emily's second word was 'balls!' and she wasn't talking about the round, bouncy, child's toy, either. Castiel had been there for that, but thankfully had not understood the reference, or had ignored it. Lily had been irritated and Bobby had had much explaining to do to get out from under her wrath. Now, even though she was only a little over two years old, Emily was talking a lot and sometimes in complete sentences. It was disconcerting, but they all knew she was smart; Chuck had said so. Everyone had learned to watch their mouths though.
Lily started thinking about her sons; her Sam and Dean. They were going on 16 and 17 years old. They were amazing and wonderful and everything a mother could want. They had been able to return to school shortly after they moved to South Dakota and they were friendly and popular and they kept their grades up. Not that she was complaining, but they were almost too good. They never got into fights, lost their tempers or acted up in any way. It was probably the result of what happened to them, but it did worry her some.
They were the best of big brothers, though. They would play endlessly with Emily or 'e-Claire' as they persisted in calling her. They would also take her with them if they were doing something that she could safely participate in. They had even taken her with them on a double date once. Although that was a rare occasion and involved a picnic at a local play park. Lily knew that with their training, they could protect Emily almost as well as Bobby or the Winchesters. They still went around armed with knives, and for that matter, so did she.
Because their dad wasn't able to, Bobby was teaching them about mechanics and power tools; and with Bobby's and Dean Winchester's help they had rebuilt a car. They sold it because they couldn't drive it yet, so with the money they earned, they rebuilt another one; just in time for Sam's driving lessons. She started the lessons and covered defensive driving. She knew that Bobby and Dean had both taken a turn with lessons in offensive driving. They had all stressed that safety was paramount, though. Now they were rebuilding a car for Dean. They earned the money for the projects by helping Bobby in the garage or with some of the research. Dean Winchester was also giving them pointers about carpentry.
While she was ruminating, Lily had cleaned the kitchen and dusted Bobby's office, where they almost always ended their day together. A longer, more comfortable couch had been moved into the room. As she was cleaning, she realized that working on her book today was a lost cause.
SPNSPNSPN
Awhile later, Castiel brought Emily down. He wouldn't use his wings with her, so he carried her down the stairs. He put her down and she ran to her mother who picked her up and then winced. "Would it kill you to change her diaper? Or sit her on the potty?"
Castiel nodded at her and with a serious face answered, "Yes, I believe it might."
Lily spluttered, "Cas! You made a funny!"
He watched from a distance while she took care of the chore and then brought the little girl back to the kitchen. Lily turned from washing her hands at the kitchen sink and looked at the angel. He was worrying her and had been for awhile. "Cas, are you alright?" She leaned back against the counter and rested her hands on its edge.
He didn't answer her as he sat down on the floor and watched Emily move about her toy kitchen set. Occasionally, she would bring him something she had 'cooked' and watch and laugh while he pretended to eat it. Finally, he looked at Lily and shrugged. "I'm fine."
Shaking her head and grumbling under her breath, Lily responded to the non-answer, "The longer you are on earth and hanging with my men, the worse you get."
If he had been human, Castiel probably would have given her a look. The one that said, 'back off', but he decided to ignore her and just watched the little girl as she moved on to another toy. This time it was a doll baby.
After she picked up the doll, Emily looked at her mother, "Cas is sad." Then she picked up a baby bottle and jammed it into the dolls mouth. She cradled the baby in her arms and walked over to Castiel who was still sitting on the floor. She then sat down in the angel's lap.
Lily felt chills on her spine when her daughter spoke those words. Emily was a little more astute than the average toddler. It had happened before, but so far, it had only been when she was alone with her daughter. She was always a little disconcerted when it occurred, though.
She looked at Castiel to see his reaction, but he was holding the child and wasn't looking at her. "Cas, is she right?" She asked softly.
Castiel kissed Emily on the forehead and hugged her. He then set her on her feet beside him and gave her a smile. The next moment he was gone.
Nothing could have alarmed Lily more. Castiel usually stayed hours when he was visiting Emily. He would take her outside and play with her or take her to her room and read her a story or any number of things. This was the first time he had left so fast.
Lily watched her daughter play with the doll. She saw that Emily was neither disappointed nor upset when the angel left so fast. Lily thought that maybe her baby girl knew exactly where Cas had gone. She looked at Emily and with a shaky voice asked, "Sweetie? Do you know where he went? Did Uncle Sam or Uncle Dean call him?"
Emily looked at her and then looked off to the right, as if she was thinking, "No, Unca Sam and Unca Dean okay."
Lily smiled at her daughter as though this whole conversation they were having didn't scare her witless. She took a deep breath and nodded, "Oh well, that's good. Are you hungry? Do you want a snack?"
Emily smiled at her mommy and said, "Apples?"
Relieved by the 'normal' request, Lily huffed out a breath and laughed, "Of course! You want peanut butter, too?"
Emily giggled and ran to her chair at the kitchen table and climbed into it while Lily got an apple and started to prepare it. After setting the apple bites in front of her daughter, she turned to get her phone. She was going to call Bobby.
SPNSPNSPN
Castiel hated that he had left Emily that way, but he hadn't realized that the link he had with her was now going both ways. He had always known exactly where she was and how she was feeling. He was glad that she was happy most of the time and was genuinely surprised when she got mad. He would have to go back later and start explaining to the family what he thought was going on.
When he had flown away, he had no clear destination in mind and was slightly surprised to discover that he was standing in front of Pastor Scott Jacobs' small home. He walked up to the door and knocked.
The pastor had been reading in his study when he heard the door. Somehow he knew who it was and was therefore unsurprised to see the man. As he opened the door, he said, "Castiel, come in, come in!"
The pastor didn't stand more than 5'6 inches tall and had a slender build. He was in his mid 60s and his hair was mostly gray. It needed a trim, but since the man's wife had died two years ago, he rarely remembered to go to the barber until it was long enough to notice. That was the sort of thing Lucy, his wife, had handled.
When Castiel entered the house, the pastor looked at him. For some time, now, he had noticed that his unusual new friend was struggling with something. He hadn't seen him in awhile and today, he seemed to be even worse.
He gestured to the angel to follow him back into his study where he poured Castiel a shot of whiskey. He usually didn't drink much, but kept the alcohol around for occasions such as these. He gestured to the chair opposite his and Castiel sat down. He waited a few moments and when the other man didn't speak, he decided to begin the conversation, "Have you visited your little goddaughter lately?"
Castiel was looking into the glass of whiskey and nodded his head, "I was just there." He didn't look at the pastor as he took a sip of the drink.
Scott was watching the man across from him, "And how is she? Lily mentioned awhile ago that they had started potty training. Is that going well?"
Castiel shrugged, "I am sure Emily will understand soon. She is a smart little girl."
"Yes, her Sunday school teacher says the same thing. Emily doesn't contribute much in Sunday school, unless her teacher is discussing angels. Then she tells the teacher when she thinks Mrs. Simmons gets something wrong." Scott had been watching the man across from him carefully when he said that.
Castiel smiled a little at that, but otherwise didn't comment. He was looking into the glass he was holding. Finally, he said, "I tell Emily a lot of angel stories."
Scott nodded, hoping Castiel would continue.
Castiel swallowed the rest of the whiskey in the glass and then finally looked at him, "Do you know who I am?"
A little confused by the question, Scott smiled, "You're Castiel, and you're Emily Claire's godfather."
"Do you know… what I am?" Castiel was looking at the pastor closely.
Scott lost his smile, "I suspect…"
Castiel leaned forward, still holding his glass and put his elbows on his knees. Quietly he asked, "What do you suspect?"
There was sweat on the pastor's back, suddenly he was afraid. Not that he would be hurt, but that he wouldn't be able to handle the truth of this man. He decided to say the most extreme theory he had, "I, uh…" Scott stammered, "I think you might be God?"
Castiel leaned back and smiled; repeating words he had said to Dean a long time ago, he whispered, "That's a nice compliment, but no, I'm not God."
Scott looked relieved, but then thought further, "Are you… an angel?"
Castiel nodded slowly, but didn't speak.
Scott was looking at the man across from him as if seeing him for the first time, "Why are you here?"
Castiel looked up in confusion, "In this house?"
Scott cleared his throat, "No, I mean, why are you here on earth?"
"I was sent here to rescue Dean Winchester."
Scott knew Dean Winchester. He'd met him when Emily was baptized. He nodded, but wasn't at all satisfied, "Have you accomplished that mission?"
Castiel looked away, "I saved his life, but I think his wife actually saved his soul." He looked at his friend and continued, "She was handpicked by God."
A little shocked, Scott nodded again, "How long have you been here?"
Castiel thought for a minute; time on earth and time in Heaven and Hell were three totally different things, so he answered, "I rescued Dean on September 18, 2008."
"Rescued him from where?"
"Hell."
"I'm sorry?" Scott was shocked and appalled by that answer. "When you say that, do you mean a hellish place? Or do you mean…?"
"I mean I saved him from perdition. I was sent by God to rescue him from Hell." Castiel got up and moved over to look at the books on a shelf by the door.
Suddenly Scott realized that all of this was way above him, "Can I ask… why he was in Hell?"
Castiel looked back at him, "Because Lilith wanted him there."
Scott nodded and sat there for a moment in thought, "In medieval text, Lilith was thought to be Adam's first wife."
Castiel nodded, "She ran away from Adam and Lucifer turned her into a demon." He turned fully to face the man, "Lilith was the first demon. Sam Winchester destroyed her."
Scott got up from his chair and moved over to the whiskey. He poured himself a drink and shot it back quickly. "Castiel, there's a lot here I don't understand." He thought about another drink, but decided it wasn't a good idea. "Why was Dean Winchester so important? How could a human destroy the first demon, presumably a powerful one?" He turned around to look at the angel in his house.
Castiel smiled at him sadly, "It's a long story, but there are books. One day they will be referred to as the Winchester Gospels. Lily has them. I'll ask her to get them to you."
Scott nodded his head, he blinked his eyes and Castiel was gone.
Moving slowly over to his chair he sat down and put his head in his hands. Rubbing his face a little, he decided to speak to his wife. She had been gone two years, but he still told her things from time to time. He folded one hand over the fist of the other, "Lucy… I think I'm in a little over my head on this one." He sat up, but his eyes were still closed, "I had an angel in my house. I think… I think he's in trouble. I think he's trying to tell me something." He shook his head, "I don't know if I can help him." He paused for a moment, shook his head again and laughed a little, "It occurs to me… maybe this is over your head, too." He bent his head forward and started to pray to God.
Scott Jacobs finished his prayers and then got up from his chair. He looked around the room trying to decide what to do. Then he went to the front door, put on a jacket, picked up his keys and left.