Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural or any rights connected to it. I am not making any money off of this and never will.
I'm not the most religious person and I found all religion stuff on the internet so if they're REALLY wrong could someone tell me, please.
Mary walked into her seven year old daughter's bedroom with a smile. She had said goodnight to little Sammy and John was putting Dean down, so only Gracie was left.
"Hey Gracie, it's time for bed", whispered Mary, leaning over her only daughter. Gracie put the small book she was reading down and smiled at her mother.
"I almost finished my book today!" she declared excitably, while pulling off the covers as she and Mary got ready to say a prayer.
Mary kneeled down and Gracie kneeled down too and they said the prayer together, one voice smooth and the other young and squeaky, stumbling over words.
Now I lay me down to sleep.
I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
If I should die before I wake,
I pray to God my soul to take.
If I should live for other days,
I pray the Lord to guide my ways.
Father, unto thee I pray,
Thou hast guarded me all day;
Safe I am while in thy sight,
Safely let me sleep tonight.
Bless my friends, the whole world bless;
Help me to learn helpfulness;
Keep me every in thy sight;
So to all I say good night.
Gracie hopped up onto her bed again and Mary leaned down to kiss her,"Angels are watching over you, sweetheart", she said before leaving the room.
Later that same night, Mary woke up alone in bed to hear Sammy crying. She walked over to his room, rubbing her eyes, but it seemed that John had beat her there.
"Is he hungry?" she asked. John just shushed her. The mother left the room and tapped a faulty lightbulb before hearing the television. Silently cursing her husband, she walked downstairs to turn it off, but instead found a sleeping John on the chair. Mary remembered the figure in Sammy's room and gasped,"Sammy!" before running up the stairs and into his room. The figure turned around and,"You!" cried Mary.
John woke up to a scream from upstairs. He raced up the stairs, but couldn't see anything wrong but Sam whimpering. Assuming the scream was a figment of his imagination, John walked up to Sammy,"Something wrong, Sam?" he asked the baby before a drop of red liquid fell on a blanket. John looked up and yelled to see Mary pinned to the ceiling dripping blood.
He yelled again as the ceiling burst into flames that quickly spread through the room. He snatched up Sammy and put him into the suddenly appearing Dean's hands,"Take your brother and run! Go, Dean, go!"
The four year old ran out of the house as John frantically tried to get to Gracie. He screamed,"Gracie!" and heard her scream back, just as loud,"Daddy!" John saw the flames spread towards the staircase and knew that if he didn't leave, he'd die too and then where would Dean and Sam go?
"I'm sorry, Gracie! I love you!" he yelled before bolting down the steps. He heard a loud scream and then silence, which almost made him burst into tears at the sound- or lack thereof. He got out of the house, grabbed his boys and just made it far enough away to avoid the blast.
Gracie could tell that the house was on fire and would of jumped out of the window like the firemen always said to during assemblies at school, but the window frame was on fire already and so was the door. So she did the only thing that she could do. She grabbed the cross necklace that she wore during the day and prayed.
An angel's head turned as she heard the desperate cry of a human child. She listened more carefully and realized who it was. Dean and Sam Winchester's sister.
In another reality, Gracie would have died in that fire. In countless others she was never born at all or died while hunting sometime later. But in this one, at this one time, the angel Anael heard her prayer. Anael, the angel who had already secretly helped several human children. And then, Anael chose to save this little girl.
Gracie was almost about to give up when suddenly a great calmness descended upon her mind. She looked up and saw a beautifully bright white light. She nearly cried with joy, knowing that an angel had come to save her.
Anael was surprised that a small human child could look at her Grace without being blinded. She had been in a rush and had expected to have to heal her eyes. Nevertheless she had a self assigned job to do. The angel enfolded the awed child within her Grace and spread her wings, transporting them to the street outside, keeping them both invisible so as not to blind anyone.
"Thank you, angel", whispered the child,"What's your name?" Her eyes were still full of wonder as Anael answered quietly,"Anael", then disapeared.
Gracie ran up to her father, startling him greatly,"What?! Gracie!? Oh my God, you're okay!" He grabbed her in a hug and Dean who had been crying grabbed her too.
"How did you get out?" asked John.
Gracie felt that she shouldn't tell him about Anael, so she said that she managed to get to the bathroom and climbed out the window. Plus, John was so relieved that he didn't really care how.
What Gracie didn't know is that Anael was punished rather severely for this infraction. And a mere two years later, she ripped out her Grace and Fell, reborn as Anna Milton.
Twenty Two Years Later
Grace pulled up to Stanford with Dean in the passenger seat, sulking that he didn't get to drive and was forced to listen to country music (Which Grace wasn't the biggest fan of but it annoyed Dean so..).
"Which building was it again?" asked Grace, once again displaying her lack of memory when it comes to addresses and numbers in general.
Her brother sighed,"It's the fifth on the right".
The twenty nine year old manuvered them into a parking space and said,"Shouldn't we wait until morning? I mean if we have to pick up Sam, can't we at least do it in the day time?"
Dean smirked,"What and lose the chance to get the drop on him? I think not".
Grace sighed,"Why can't you let him finish college? I got to finish!"
Twenty six year old Dean replied,"Well yeah, you didn't tell us that you were going to college until you had already left! We looked everywhere and we couldn't find you!"
"I was in France! Of course you couldn't find me!" exclaimed Grace, getting annoyed,"And it's not like you wanted me around. Dad said that if I left, I couldn't come back when I talked to him on the phone!"
Dean struggled for words,"Do you even speak french?!"
Grace looked annoyed,"Vous êtes un âne!"
Dean was baffled,"What?"
"I said 'you're an ass'".
Dean looked insulted,"How dare you!" He laughed sarcastically,"Let's just get Sammy".
Grace fingered the cross she'd had since she was a child that hung around her neck, before following her brother.
Dean walked into the building with Grace trailing behind. He picked the lock on Sam's apartment door and they both walked in, Grace purposefully making a stomping noise to wake Sam up. Dean looked back at her and shushed. Grace just stuck out her tongue.
Her brother scoffed and got out,"Real mature", before being tackled from behind. Grace burst into laughter when she realized that it was Sam doing the tackling.
"Sam!"she called,"Get off your brother!"
The twenty two year old froze and jumped up, turning around to see Grace.
"Hey, Grace!" he exclaimed, sweeping the tall ,but not taller than him or Dean, girl up in a hug,"I haven't seen you since Easter!"
"Wait a minute", said Dean, dusting himself off,"You've been in contact with each other?"
Grace looked sheepish,"Sort of. I pop by every once in a while, stay for an hour or two then leave. We have phone calls every so often too. Speaking of phone calls, you mentioned that you were taking your LSAT! How did it go?"
Sam smiled,"I got a 174".
His sister squealed,"Oh my God that's awesome! You'll totally get a full ride!"
Suddenly, a blonde girl in a v neck smurfs shirt came around the corner. "Is everything all right, Sam?" she asked.
"Yeah, Jess it's fine. This is my sister, Grace and my brother, Dean".
Jess glanced at the siblings, noticing that Grace had straight, almost white blonde hair in a bob cut and blueish gray eyes. She was thin as a stick with lean muscles and was smiling kindly at her brother's newfound girlfriend. Dean, on the other hand, was checking her out and slightly leering. Grace noticed the look on his face and elbowed him, hard if his huff of pain was anything to go by.
Jess blushed,"I'll go put something decent on".
"Oh no, I wouldn't dream of it", answered Dean. Grace elbowed him again and smiled at Jess.
"Sorry about him. He's just naturally rude to everyone". Jess decided she liked her.
"Sam we need to talk to you", said Dean, then he eyed Jess,"Alone".
Sam put his arm around Jess,"Whatever you want to say to me, you can say to her".
"Okay", Dean started,"Dad hasn't been home in a few days".
"So he's working overtime on a Miller Time shift. He'll stumble back in sooner or later".
Grace cleared her throat,"Um. Dad's on a hunting trip and he hasn't been home in a few days".
Sam looks awkwardly at Grace,"I told her".
Dean looks angry,"You what?"
Grace looked relieved,"Well that makes this much easier".
Dean turned to her, incredulous,"Seriously? You want to involve an untrained girl in this mess!?"
Jessica looked insulted,"My father was a marine, I know how to shoot a gun. Sam's started teaching me the basics of fighting, too".
Grace gives him a stern look,"No, of course not. Didn't she just say that she was sort of trained? But it's easier to not hide things. I should know. I went to college for four years without telling anyone".
Jessica looked curious,"Oh, what were you studying?"
Grace smiled and answered,"Mythology, folklore, french considering I was in France, Greek and Latin. I told people that I wanted to become a college professor. They believed me, thank God. And luckily they didn't question why a future college professor had two tattoos".
Sam turned to her,"Two? I thought that all you had was the anti possession tattoo that you forced us all to get".
Grace turned around and pulled up her shirt. On her spine was 'Προστασία και τη ζωή'.
"What do they mean?" asked Sam.
"It's Greek for protection and life".
"Cool".
"I know".
"Back to the topic at hand", interupted Dean,"Dad's been missing for two weeks already and we need to find him".
Sam got down to buisness,"Alright where were you two when it happened?"
Grace cut Dean off,"We were both on different cases".
"He lets you hunt by yourself, Dean?" asked Sam, teasingly.
"I'm twenty six, Sam!"
Sam held up his arms in mock surrender. Grace laughed and Jess smiled.
"So", asked Grace,"Is Jess coming with us?"
Dean looked startled before loudly declaring,"No!" as Sam said,"If she wants to". They turned to Jess and she hesitantly nodded her head. Dean groaned, Sam smiled and Grace exclaimed,"Yes! Not the only girl anymore!"
Sam and Jess were packing bags while Grace walked around their small apartment. She found a cross necklace sitting on Sam's dresser and smiled. While Dean hadn't taken to her teachings about Christianity, Sam certainly had. Since Grace had practically raised them, she had tried to teach them as much she could about God and the angels while never telling them that an angel had saved her life that fiery night.
"Grace?" she heard a voice behind her and spun around to see Jessica looking meekly at her,"What's hunting even like?"
Grace thought for a moment,"It's bloody and risky and a lot of people die. But there are some things that are worth dying for, like saving other people's lives".
Jessica smiled,"I guess. The only reason I asked you was because I think Dean would laugh and Sam would make me stay here".
"Yeah he probably would", answered Grace, fingering her necklace again. That was a habit of hers, one she had no intention of breaking. Sometimes it felt like the Grace of Anael was still on it. That was kind of funny considering her name was Grace and the Grace was on it.
Jessica saw the necklace and said,"Oh are you religious then?"
The oldest sister smiled,"Very".
The two girls smiled at each other and left to go on Jessica's first hunt. The first of many.
Unknown Amount Of Time Later
Tears streamed down Grace's face. Sammy was dead and she didn't know what to do. She'd sworn to herself to protect them and she had failed. He was dead and Dean was beating himself up and Jessica was sobbing and the girl who'd sworn to protect her brothers and later, Jessica, couldn't take it. She got up and ran out. She got into the Impala and drove, not knowing that by doing that, she had stopped Dean from making a deal and going to Hell, but she had also condemned herself.
Stopping at the crossroads where they'd had all those problems a while back, she pulled a box out, full of the ingredients needed to summon a crossroads demon, including a picture of herself.
Before she buried it, Grace held tight to the cross around her neck and prayed, really, really hard that she was doing the right thing.
And then, she buried the box.
The demon was a girl, as Grace was expecting. The grieving girl made her case and was given a year.
"Please give me more. You give everyone else ten!"
"Ah ah ah. But you're not everyone else. Can't let my boss think that I'm going soft, now can I?" answered the demon, almost seductively.
"Okay. Fine then. Sammy lives and I get a year until I go to Hell?"
"Affirmative".
"I accept", answered Grace. The demon pulled her in for a kiss and the deal was sealed. By the time, Grace got back to the house that they were keeping Sam's body at, he was alive and of course Dean was freaking out and holding a knife to his neck. Jess looked about ready to cry.
Grace walked in and immediately pulled Dean off of Sam. "What's the big idea?!" cried Dean,"It's obviously a shapeshifter or something!"
His sister bit her lip,"Trust me, it's Sam".
Dean narrowed his eyes,"What did you do?" When she didn't reply he grabbed her shoulders and yelled,"WHAT DID YOU DO?!"
"Don't tell me you weren't about to do the same thing!" yelled Grace,"Sam was DEAD! Do you want me to say sorry?! Okay then sorry I brought our brother back to life!"
"But at what cost, huh?" asked Jess, who until now had been quiet,"How long have you got?"
Grace swallowed,"A year".
"A YEAR!?" cried Dean,"ARE YOU KIDDING!?"
"Um guys? What exactly happened?" asked Sam who was hugging Jessica, looking confused,"Was I dead?"
Dean yelled,"YES! And this IDIOT here sold her soul to bring you back!"
Sam turned on Grace,"WHAT!? Are you crazy?! Grace, without you what are we supposed to do? You practically raised us!"
Grace looked at him seriously,"You live your life to the best of your abilities. You have the best life you can and you move on"!
Dean looked at her incredulously, "Seriously? Move on? That's the best you can do? I hate you sometimes, Grace!"
Grace's voice turned to a deadly whisper,"I know that, Dean, but there's nothing that you can do about it now! The deal is struck and there's no going back!"
Jessica looked at Grace,"Is that really what you think! Do you really believe that we'll just lay down and let you go to Hell?"
Grace answered,"Yes, I do, because there's no way out of a deal. At the end of a year, I'm going to Hell and there's no stopping it!"
Sam looked determined,"Yes, there has to be! You did this for me, so I'm going to save you for a change!"
"I sincerely hope you do, Sam", said Grace smiling sadly,"I sincerely hope you do".
It was then, at that moment, that everyone in the room knew that she didn't want to die and that's what made them even more determined to save her.
364 Days Later (the night before Grace dies)
They had tried everything but the only solution they could find was to kill Lilith. So, here they were, outside of a seemingly normal house surounded by demons with Grace hallucinating and seeing demons.
"So what's the plan?" asked Sam, determined to see this through.
Dean answered,"We've put holy water in the sprinklers and Bobby will set those off while the rest of us go for Lilith".
Sam nodded,"It's the best plan we got. Right, Grace? You're going to be fine".
Grace looked up and closed her eyes briefly as Sam's face turned gray and disformed. She shook her head to clear it. "Yeah, yeah. We'll all be fine".
Sam, Dean, Grace, Jessica and Ruby crept up to the house, killing any demons they met as quiet as they could. They did have to turn on the sprinklers, but then they made it inside.
They stepped over the long dead body of an old woman, Grace looking sick. The kitchen was a mess, with cake and candy all over the tables and an old man keeled over in a chair. Sam and Grace walked upstairs while Ruby and Dean took the downstairs. They urged a man to go in the basement over a salt line and were going to force him when Sam and Grace stumbled down the stairs with a woman with a little girl following behind them.
"That's Lilith, Sam!" cried Dean. Sam looked at the girl and shook his head.
"No it's not, Dean", he answered bleakly,"It's just a little girl". They made the family go into the basement and drew a salt line.
"Stay behind the line", said Jessica,"Demons can't cross salt. And don't break the line!" The family nodded, little girl looking terrified. Jess closed the door and walked back to the others.
"Now what?" she asked,"It's already 11:30! We can't track down Lilith anymore!"
"Um, guys…" started Grace. The group turned to her. She pointed at Ruby,"I don't think we have to. That's not Ruby!"
The demon's eyes flashed white and she smirked.,"Smart girl. Sadly- well not really- I still have to kill you". Grace's eyes widened as she looked at the door, hearing something nobody else did.
"They're barking!" she cried and suddenly the door started being pounded against by something large.
"HELLHOUNDS!" Grace screamed as the door gave way. She shot at the dogs, but it was too little too late. They pounced on her and she screamed,"KILL LILITH! KILL HER NOW!"
Sam, Jessica and Dean turned to Lilith but she threw Jess and Dean back hard enough for them to pass out. Lilith did her little light trick but it failed and she looked scared. Sam raised the knife, about to stab her when she screamed and left the vessel. Sam turned around when Grace stopped screaming to see her lying dead in a pool of blood, chest ripped open.
He raced over,"Grace! No! You can't be dead, you can't!" Sam sobbed and looked down at his older sister with complete and utter disbelief, as if he couldn't believe that Grace's strong spirit could be gone. Completely. Dean stirred and got up, teary eyed as he viewed Grace. She was torn to shreds and it was awful. Jess got up and sort of wailed.
They took her body to an empty field in the middle of some trees and put up a cross over it. Bobby and Jessica wanted to give her a hunter's funeral but Sam and Dean will have none of it. They say that they're going to bring her back and that being in Hell from a deal is different than normal death, which is technically true.
Meanwhile in Heaven
Heaven was in an uproar. The Righteous Man (or in this case woman) was in Hell and they had to get her out before she shed another's blood. Every so often, the Righteous Man (woman- you get the picture) is born. If they go to Hell, the angels lay seige on it and usually they can get to him (her) before they get off the racks. But this had been unexpected. Dean was supposed to be in Hell. Not his sister who was supposed to be dead! They didn't have enough time to prepare and because they didn't rescue Grace in time, she got off the rack after thirty five years. She spent five years torturing before a young (in angel standards anyway) angel named Castiel finally made it to her.
Castiel descended quietly, well as quietly as an embodiment of light can descend into Hell. Lower level demons scattered before him. Higher ones were avoided or smited. He finally reached the location of Grace Winchester. She was whipping another's soul while weeping and the angel's heart went out to her. He was about to grab her soul without her noticing- or remembering- when she turned around.
She looked at his true form without even blinking and whispered,"An angel". Castiel was surprised that she didn't even question what he was. Almost like she had… But no! That was impossible!
"Yes", he answered, his voice impossibly loud and heavenly,"My name is Castiel and I am here to save you".
She gasped,"Save me? But no! You mustn't, other souls must be more worthy! I've tortured!" She looked about ready to cry again so Castiel sent out a tendril of his Grace to calm her down. He was shocked to find remnants of another angel's Grace lingering on her. And he didn't recongize it!
"What angel have you already had contact with?" he asked, confused.
She averted her eyes and whispered,"Her name was Anael. She saved me from a house fire when I was seven. Why are you helping me?"
Castiel was shocked. Anael? But she had Fallen, long ago.
"Because you deserve to be saved. And Anael Fell in 1985".
Grace was shocked,"She Fell? But that's like dying isn't it?"
The angel shook his head,"No. She ripped out her Grace and was reborn as a human. Now that I know she helped you, I can understand why she could not take it anymore".
"Couldn't take what anymore?"
"Anael has always admired the humans and their creations. After she rescued you, she was punished rather severely. Nobody was aware of what she did, though she did Fall shortly after so we had assumed it was rather important", answered Castiel, readily,"Angels are not supposed to cross onto Earth. The only reason I was comissioned to help you was because you are the Righteous Man".
"The what?" asked Grace.
Castiel replied,"Every once in a while, the Righteous Man- or woman in your case- is born. If they go to Hell, we have to get them out before they start torturing, as they are the first of the sixty six Seals that need to be broken for Lucifer to escape his cage".
Grace blanched,"Does that mean…?"
He nodded,"Yes, the First Seal has been broken and it is your job to serve Heaven and stop the Apocalypse that Lucifer will be willing to start. But not now. I need to get you out of here. Do not let your brothers or anyone else see my true form. It would burn their eyes out".
"Well, why isn't it burning mine?"
"I am not sure. But it most likely has something to do with your strong faith and the fact that you came into contact with Anael as a child", answered the angel.
"I could see her true form, as you call it, then too", said Grace, still confused,"How could you tell, though?"
"There are small traces of her Grace clinging to you. If she had not Fallen, there would likely be more".
Grace nodded,"Okay, I'm ready". Castiel enfolded her into his Grace, unknowingly leaving traces behind, as Anael had. More then Anael, but not enough to have any reaction within the girl, even with Anael's added in there.
He gripped her tight and raised her from perdition. His joyful cry reverberated around the world, awakening a certain Fallen angel from her human- like stupor.
"Grace Winchester is saved!"
Grace groaned and lifted her head, banging it on the lid of something. She groaned again- louder this time, before remembering her death, Hell and subsequent resurrection. She managed to claw her way out of her coffin and into the first in forty years. Grace thought about the second angel she had met when she collapsed onto the ground.
"Castiel…" she murmured, testing it out and suddenly there was a bright light in front of her. She shielded her eyes until they got used to it and then turned towards the light. Somehow she could sense that it was Castiel without even asking.
"Hey, Castiel", she started,"How are you even gonna talk to my brothers without blinding them?"
She could sense that he was confused, which was kind of weird but his Grace was strangely soothing, so she didn't focus on it.
"You called me here to ask about that?" he asked.
Grace was puzzled,"I called you here?"
"Yes. You prayed to me".
"I did?"
"You said my name which is like a prayer", he answered.
"Well no, I wasn't trying to contact you. I figured you'd come when you could. I imagine angels are rather busy", she said.
"To answer your question, I will obtain a vessel".
Grace was horrified,"You're going to possess some poor guy?!"
"No, I have a man in mind. His name is Jimmy Novak and he is a very devout Christian, rather like you. He must accept me before I can use his body. He has to say yes".
Grace sighed in relief,"And you're not going to threaten him or anything?"
"Of course not. I am not like some of my siblings". Grace decided to let the 'not like my siblings' thing slide. She didn't want to get into a fight with an angel.
"Do you know where the nearest building is?" asked the newly revived Winchester.
The light reached out towards her, she saw a flash of black, scorched wings and with a few flaps they were outside of an old gas station. She stumbled and exclaimed,"Warn a girl!" before remembering he was an angel and blushing.
"Sorry", she muttered.
She could sort of sense that Castiel was tilting his head rather like a confused child as he asked,"Why are you sorry?"
She blushed again,"Um- I was rude".
He tilted his head again and looked to be about to ask another question when Grace said,"You know what, nevermind".
The newly resurected human walked into the old gas station and grabbed some things, such as water and an apple. She went towards the cashier's table when she realized that there was no cashier and she had no money. She turned to Castiel, about to ask him a question when he said.
"You can take those".
"What?" Grace asked, incredulously,"You're not going to tell me that stealing is wrong?"
"Why would I? I created money to put into the machine".
Grace's eyebrows went up,"You can do that?"
Castiel's Grace nodded amically.
"Well then…"
Once Grace had eaten her apple and had drank two water bottles, she felt fully satisfied. The girl turned to Castiel, ready to ask how she was supposed to go anywhere when Castiel enveloped her in his Grace. She felt warm and peaceful, enveloped in his power like that, but with a few wing beats, she was deposited outside Singer's Automotives. Grace glanced at the angel, surprised and awed to see his wings. They were a dark gray with several scorch marks and patches of missing feathers, but they still shown with a beautiful blue glow and Grace wanted nothing more but to touch them, stroke them, heal them. She snapped herself out of it as she thanked the angel earnestly.
Grace frowned, looking nervous,"Will I see you again?"
Castiel looked grave,"I believe so. You and your brothers are important in stopping the Apocalypse".
Grace smiled sadly,"Okay then. Goodbye, Castiel".
At the Motel Dean and Sam are Staying In
"Dean!"
"What?" answered Dean groggily. It was about ten and he had just started drifting off to sleep.
"Wake up!"
"Why?" grumbled Dean, throwing his pillow at Sam and instantly regreting losing it.
"Bobby just called. He's coming up here. He's outside!" cried his brother. That was all it took to get Dean up. He rolled out of bed and immediately asked.
"Is this about Grace?"
Sam looked pensive,"He didn't say, but I would assume so".
Dean pulled on a pair of pants, then a shirt, lacking the usual grumbling. But then again, he, Jess and Sam had been lacking many things since Grace's death, like the complaining and joking around. Nightmares plagued them and it was just generally awful.
There came a knock on the door. Jess got up, as neither brother showed any sign of moving, too lost in their own thoughts.
She sighed,"I'll get it". Sam jumped up and walked over with her,"Sorry, Jess, I was distracted". She just looked at him sadly and opened the door.
There was a gasp, then Jess had yanked the girl wearing Grace's face into a hug, but Sam and Dean were grabbing for their guns and were pointing them at the imposter.
Bobby walked in, closing the door."Calm down, do ya really think that I'd bring her here without taking precautions?"
The two boys relaxed and once Jess had stopped, Sam swept her up in a hug of his own and Dean soon followed.
Bobby turned to Grace,"Now can you tell us what pulled you out? You refused to at my place!" Everyone turned to her and she blushed, being the topic of everyone's stares.
Grace cleared her throat,"Well… This might sound crazy, but it- it was an angel".
Dean looked unconvinced,"An angel? Seriously, Grace? Look, I know you're religious and all, but angels don't exist!"
His sister got defensive,"They do, actually. The one who saved me is named Castiel. If I remember correctly, that's the angel of Thursday".
They still looked skeptical, so she sighed and prepared to talk.
"Okay, look. I'm going to tell you something that I've never told anyone but the angel that rescued me", she started.
Sam looked hurt,"You told the angel, but not us?"
Grace shifted guiltily,"Sorry. It was a huge secret. But- look, you know how during the fire where Mom died, I almost got trapped inside?"
Sam and Jess looked shocked. "No!" cried Jess,"You almost died?!"
"Well yes, but that's the whole point! I would have died! But an angel saved me! Her name was Anael. Castiel said that she Fell two years after that happened and was reborn as a human! That's why I'm so religious! Because I witnessed an angel as a child!"
"Well then, where's this angel of yours, huh?" asked Dean, angry.
Grace shrugged,"I don't know. He said he'd be back as soon as he got his vessel".
"Woah woah woah! Stop right there!" exclaimed Sam,"A vessel?! He's going to possess someone!?"
"He's going to possess a man named Jimmy Novak, yes, but Jimmy has to say yes", replied Grace,"And plus-".
A large crack of lightning lit up the parking lot and surrounding area, including their motel room. They all ducked as glass shattered and several car alarms went off. Suddenly the door burst open and in stepped a man, shorter than Dean, but still rather tall. He had dark hair and was wearing a trench coat and suit. Everyone stared at him for a moment, before Grace cried,"Castiel!", recognizing the large burnt wings trailing behind him.
"Yes", answered the angel. Dean then proceeded to shoot him. It didn't have any affect, but Grace still shouted at him.
"C'mon, Dean!"
"It's a reflex!"
"Ugh!"
Sam looked nervous,"Um, hello".
"Sam Winchester, the boy with the demon blood", said Castiel, tilting his head.
Sam quickly backed up, suddenly afraid of what the angel might do to him.
"Thank you so much!" cried Jess, grabbing Castiel's arms,"You pulled Grace out of Hell! Oh my god, thank you!"
Through this, Castiel had looked startled.
Grace gently steered Jess away from the angel,"Okay. I think you're scaring him".
Castiel drew himself up to his full height, being slightly taller then Grace, insulted.
"I am an angel of the Lord, you're small friend does not scare me".
The others snickered and giggled, amused as Castiel looked slightly scandalized.
This was the beginning of a vast and powerful friendship, one that would span dimensions.
Later
"You're gonna show your ugly mug, now?" asked Dean, angry,"I should kill you where you stand".
Ruby raised her hands in surrender,"I've just got info. Then I'm gone".
Grace glanced suspiciously at the demon. Her gut always twisted strangely whenever any demons were near and Ruby was no exception.
"Yeah? What kind of info?" asked Sam, curiously. Dean just glared.
Ruby gave a hidden smirk,"There's a girl. Broke out of a psych ward, and now it seems like angels and demons want her bad".
"What's her name?" asked Grace.
Ruby answered,"Not sure, but if both demons and angels want her, she must be important".
Ruby left soon after, slipping a piece of paper into Sam's pocket for the time of his next fix.
"So, do we go?" asked Grace.
"Of course not!" shouted Dean,"It's probably a trap!"
"Umm, maybe not, Dean. It says here that a girl named Anna Milton broke out of a psychiactric ward by slamming a fifty pound cabinet into a doctor and running out without being seen", said Sam.
"Let's go", said Grace, getting up. Dean argued, but she and Sam overruled him.
It was fairly simple to discover that she was going to the church. In the heat of the moment, it was hard for Grace to have any interaction with Anna herself, but later on she noticed something weird.
Anna seemed to have a light glow around her. It was sort of like the glow Castiel's grace gave off, but much dimmer.
That's why Grace wasn't much surprised to find out that Anna was a Fallen angel. And it just seemed natural that she would be the one that had saved her as a child.
They didn't have time to talk, what with the angels and demons wanting her, but several meaningful looks were exchanged.
"I am so sorry", said Castiel, looking at Anna with woefully sad eyes,"I wish I didn't have to do this".
"No, you're not", she said bitterly,"Just get on with it".
It is unknown what Castiel would have done next, just that he didn't get a chance to. Because just then, Alistair and two other demons burst into the room.
"Ah ah ah. What do we have here?" asked Alistair, smirking as if he knew something dreadfully important that they didn't,"Angels and their pets. Hello, Grace".
She ignored him and it went down just as it was planned to. The demons fought the angels and the angels fought the demons. Anna somehow got ahold of her Grace and smashed it on the ground. It shattered as she yelled.
"CLOSE YOUR EYES!"
Grace didn't need to. The light swept over her, bringing the smell of smokey cinnamon. Two red wings formed, beautiful and glorious, rising above them and Grace watched it happen.
In the confusion, nobody noticed a small sliver of Grace head into Grace herself. It twisted with Anael's other Grace and Castiel's remnants and started the very slow transformation that would take place.
Anael's Death Scene
Anna had gone crazy. It was well and truly clear to see. Grace didn't know what had been done to her, but it obviously wasn't good.
When Micheal stabbed Anna, Grace felt a brief sadness, but not for long. For there was suddenly a great rushing sound and Anna's Grace flew into the air and towards Grace. She stumbled back, tripping over a board and landing hard on the ground. She opened her mouth on instinct and the Grace flowed in, filling her with a great sense of peace and contentment. She almost smiled, but then came the burning pain. It filled her up, twisting and changing. She felt the most pain in her back, like someone had taken a burning knife to her spine and twisted. She screamed in agony, closing her eyes, when suddenly it stopped.
Grace Winchester turned around to see that she had grown a large pair of angel wings. They were about the size of Castiel's, and a creamy brown color with darker brown spots and white splatters near the tips.
She stared in amazement, noticing that her body felt different, almost… freer. She felt light as a feather and happier then she had in a long time.
Grace finally noticed that she wasn't in the shack with Dean, Sam, Mary and Michael. She was in the middle of a small living room, spaciously filled with several couches. On one of the couches, a man sat, staring at her. He had shaggy brown hair and bright, curious green eyes. He wore a rumpled robe and pajamas. He looked as if he hadn't shaved for several days.
At first, Grace didn't recognize him. He was unfamiliar. But the more, she stayed in his presence, the more she understood.
"You're God", she said,"Aren't you?"
He just looked puzzled,"I didn't create you. Are you human? No. Is there another God now?" He bustled into a small kitchen that she hadn't seen. Grace followed him, noticing that he was only about 5'5".
"Is it Raphael? Is Raphael making new angels? Nah, he can't. Micheal? No. Gabriel? No, no, NO. Let's hope not. Wait, what was I doing?" He stopped making what looked like coffee and dropped the cup on the counter.
"Are you one of Death's Reapers? Is he up to mischief again? AGAIN? He promised that Atlantis was the last time". He continued mumbling until Grace understood. God had removed himself for everyone's protection, not because he was lazy.
"Um, sir..?" she asked, quietly,"You were making coffee, I think".
He grinned at her,"Oh yes! Of course, I was!" God actually made his coffee, then sat down on the couch, whistling a small tune,"Well? Aren't you going to sit down?" Grace sat and listened to him chatter on about inane things, like birds and the paint color.
"Are you aware that your children are trying to start the Apocalypse?" asked Grace, genuinely curious.
God looked concerned,"They are? Well, I'll have to do something about that. But, did you know that Gabriel used to…" Grace decided that he really wasn't capable of helping them out. God was just too out of it.
She smiled and laughed at the right parts and came to enjoy spending time with him as the afternoon came to an end. He kept chattering though, not eating or getting rid of his cold coffee.
"Where exactly are we?" she finally got up the nerve to say.
He smiled mysteriously,"That's a secret even though it's very easy to get here. I mean, all you have to do is write 'God' on any locked door, and then unlock it and here you are!" He smiled, then frowned, then grinned brightly, only stopping the chatter when his stomach growled.
"Would you like me to make something?" asked Grace politely.
He smiled sweetly at her, but didn't reply, so she entered the kitchen, pulling out all the things for baked chicken, rice and asparagus. God peered curiously over her shoulder as she cooked, finishing in record time.
He made 'mmm' sounds as he ate. Grace just smiled at him, happy that he enjoyed her food.
"You're a very good cook", he said as he finished the last of his asparagus.
She blushed,"Thank you".
God wandered off somewhere and Grace sat down on the couch, the day's events catching up to her. He new wings ruffled. She focused on making them insubstantial so that she could lay down on her back, finally achieving it.
Grace collapsed on her back, exhausted. She mulled over the whole angel thing. She'd definetely have to confront Dean and Sam soon. That is, if she could bring herself to leave.
Only meaning to rest her eyes for a second, Grace fell asleep on the couch. God stumbled back in almost an hour later. He was cold and saw Grace as a potential heat source. Crawling on top of her, he used his powers to calm her dreams and keep her asleep until he could adjust on top of her. God soon fell asleep as well.
Of course, good things can't last forever and eventually Grace had to go back. She did, but God insisted on coming with her. Her family's reaction was priceless.
God had told her that the door thing worked in reverse, too. So, she carved 'Bobby' into an old locked door and then unlocked it, giving Bobby the scare of a lifetime to see his adopted daughter come out of a crowded storaged room with a short man in tow. She coughed a bit from the smoke coming out of the room, then smiled at him.
"Hey, Bobby". His gun was out in two seconds flat. His gun was on the ground in two seconds flat, God having knocked it away with his power.
"I don't like guns", he pouted, and then Grace smiled at him.
Dean's reaction was even better but it's not suitable for anyone's ears, but his own. Sam, as it turns out, was in the house with Bobby.
God WAS able to help them stop the Apocalypse. And it turns out that Grace was more powerful then the average angel, since technically she was sort of Anael's and Castiel's child.
Grace did go back to hang out with God when he left again, and he did still curl up against the millenium younger angel like a cat.