One-Shot for .natural
"A Shift in Fate"
"Son of a bitch," Dean sighed in the driver's seat of his 1967 Chevy Impala, who he lovingly called, Baby.
"I know, I don't like 'em either," Sam, his little brother shrugged from the passenger seat that is, and will always be, his seat. He was looking down at his laptop, placed in his lap. Dean looked over to him to see him sluggishly resting his arm against the window, his brown hair with golden highlights fluttering in the summer wind.
They had gotten wind of a string of strange murders in a small town in Kentucky. They had been driving for two days and not only were they tired, but Sam had just put things together to assume what it was they were going to be hunting… again.
"But, Sammy, more shifters?" Dean grumbled.
"It's the only thing that makes sense, Dean. And from the looks of it, I think I know where the next one will be happening." He held his computer over for Dean to see the screen, "You think we can get here by tonight?"
Dean revved the engine, making the sleek, black car, hum and growl. He smirked looking out to the country road, "Hell yeah."
…
"Sammy look out!" Dean shouted across the living room of a nice house owned by the person who this shifter stole the face of.
Sam turned and ducked just in time for the shifter to miss her right hook. She was a young girl, about the same age as the boys, but her height would tell you otherwise. Compared to Sam and Dean each a few inches above the six-foot mark, she was at least a foot, probably more, shorter than them. She had long, burgundy hair that fell over her shoulders in loose waves, with brighter highlights and darker lowlights all mixed in, making it look like a waterfall of a fine, red wine. She had striking features and had more than skin and bones to her. If she wasn't trying to kill him at the moment, Dean would have found her very attractive.
Dean pushed the sofa she had pinned him against the wall with away from him and tackled her from behind. As they fell to the ground, she flipped and threw her arm out, adorned with a steak knife. It caught Dean in the bicep and tore through one of his favorite leather jackets.
"You bitch," he stated and as she sprang forward again a loud crack filled the room.
Before the brothers could react, the shifters body fell to the floor, a single hole through her forehead. They looked around and standing in the staircase threshold, stood the same girl, but smeared with blood, a bruise and bump forming on her forehead, and a pistol in hand with confidence.
"My thoughts exactly," she mumbled referring to Dean's remark towards the shifter. She stumbled out and almost fell to the hardwood floor before Sam reached out to catch her. But the surprise of it, led them both to the floor. In a woozy kind of voice and tired eyes, "The Winchesters," she huffed, "Who would've thunk it," she almost laughed, but it came out as a cough.
"Hey take it easy there, tiger," Dean crouched down beside Sam who was cradling the girl in his arms.
"What's your name?" Sam's eyebrows furrowed.
"Cadee," she coughed, "Cadee Novak."
As she passed out cold in his little brother's arms, Dean's eyes widened and met Sam's, the same thought running through both of their minds.
…
"Uncle Jimmy?" the girl, Cadee, looked at Cas, a shocked expression adorning her face. The most striking difference between her and the shifter who stole her skin, the eyes. Shifter's eyes are silver with a reptilian black slit, but the girl's, well, they caught Dean's attention. At first glance they are just brown. But as you look longer, the more shades of a dark rum color you can see, and when she looks into the light, you can see slivers of shimmery gold.
She's been with them for a few weeks now. She told them about how the shifter attacked her and she had just been tied up and was about to be killed when they showed. She escaped the bonds and ran downstairs as best as she could. She told them how she'd been a hunter for a long time, ever since a couple of vamps killed her parents and little sister when she was seventeen. How she lived on her own for a while until she met another hunter that went by the name of Aiden. She said he ran with two other girls mainly, Krissy and Josephine.
Sam and Dean exchanged glances at the mention of the names of the lone, young hunters and dismissed Cadee's question of, "What?"
She told them how she felt better being alone and broke it off with Aiden, especially since she could tell he felt more for Krissy than her own self. She left on good terms apparently and they still correspond now and then.
They asked her how she knew about them, and she responded with, "Of course I know about you, any hunter who's a real hunter, knows about you two and what you've done."
They felt like they were about to get another lecture on how they've hurt more than they've helped, until she spoke again, "You guys are legends," she paused with a sheepish grin, "You're the best hunters out there no doubt. I admire you." The brother's smiled at their shoes.
Sam and Dean had taken her in, they said until she was stable enough to be on her own, but she was growing on them. They had taken her to the bunker after several days and had gotten pretty accustomed to her being around. And Dean had been catching himself looking in her eyes more often than less.
When Castiel had appeared one day while they were eating in the bunker, is when things they had pushed aside, resurfaced.
"Dean, Sam? Who is this female?"
"Cas," Dean emphasized his name, directing it at Cadee. "This is our new… friend, Cadee."
More under his breath, Cas continued, "But why did she just call me Ji-"
"Cadee Novak."
This took Cas aback. "Oh… oh." he repeated, the thought sinking in.
"What's going on?" she spoke up while standing from her chair. "Why are you calling him Cas? Uncle Jimmy, I know it's been a really long time since we've seen each other, but Claire and I just spoke not that long ago, she said you were fine. It's me, Cadee. You know, c'mon Uncle Jimmy, this isn't funny."
"Cadee," Sam began, "You don't know, do you?"
"Know what?"
"You know how the world has monsters and demons?" Sam started to try to ease the shocking info to her.
"Yeah, so?" she gave Cas a cautioned look, stepping back with one, slow foot.
"Well, wouldn't it make sense if there were another side to that, a… for a serious lack of better words, good side?"
"I mean yeah, but what does that have to do with this?"
"Well, you see, your uncle became a vessel for one of these things, these creatures of higher power-"
Glaring at Sam, for obviously not get to the point quick enough for his taste, Cas concluded in a not-so-delicate way, "I'm an angel, you ass," he still didn't quite grasp some of the human features such as verbal filters and queues for gentleness in explanation. Then he looked back at Cadee, his expression softening some.
She stared at him for a moment and then adopted a big smile, followed by a loud, staccato laugh, plainly showing she thought this was insanity. "Sure, my uncle's an angel, and I'm a… a… a vetala?!" she laughed some more, a mixture of expressions in her eyes.
"Cas, do the thingy," Dean wiggled a finger at the trench coat-clad angel.
Cas looked straight at Cadee and his eyes turned blue. Not the bright blue that looked like the ocean they usually were, but the electric, glowing blue that signified his angelic abilities. Cadee' eyes grew wide and her smile fell to nothingness. The lightbulbs filling the room exploded all at once in a shower of sparks and crackling noise. It fell silent.
"Thanks bud, now we need new bulbs. Couldn't have thought of a better way to show your mojo?" Dean's sarcastic and so-done tone broke the quiet darkness.
…
"I can't believe this," Cadee's shocked expression matched her voice. "I mean… angels?" she paused, "What happened to my uncle?" she looked the the three boys.
"He gave his life for Claire, for me," Cas looked at her with sympathy.
"Is he, you know…"
"No, he is not still here, this is all me now, no longer just a vessel. Jimmy Novak is resting in his Heaven."
"Oh," was all she said in reply. She was trying to keep it together, but Dean could tell she was keeping her emotions in. He has been in the same mentality many times.
"Hey, Cas, let's let Cadee take all of this in, okay?" Sam stood and patted Cas on the shoulder and he followed him out of the room. Before they were completely out, he gave his older brother a quick glance that held so many words. Words like, talk to her, and be gentle.
But as soon as he was alone with Cadee, he could instantly feel her shift, tense.
"Cadee? Um, you okay?" he tread carefully.
Not meeting his eyes, "Yeah, I, I guess," she stuttered.
Every time the two of them were alone together, Dean could always sense her nervousness. He had known of girls to act flirtatious and such around him, but usually they were the ones interested in him. He knew Cadee wasn't… well he thought she wasn't. Was she?
"Dean?"
He blinked and Cadee was staring at him. "What?"
"Did you not hear anything I just said?"
Apparently he had zoned out. "Sorry, no, repeat?"
"I said, It's like I've known Castiel for years, then a laughed a little at my own joke, then realized I didn't at all and my uncle is dead, and you still were silent, then I looked at you and said, you look like you've seen a ghost, no pun intended. And now we're here," she babbled.
Dean blinked a few more times and shook his head. "Yeah, sorry, I, was thinking."
"Well that's dangerous, what idea did you come up with this time?" she grinned at the table, avoiding his eyes as much as humanly possible.
Remembering the thought of Cadee's possible feelings for himself, Dean brushed the question off, "It was nothing. So, uh," he cleared his throat, "How are you dealing with all," he spread his palms wide in a rainbow fashion, "this?"
"I don't know. I mean I wasn't super close with Jimmy, more with Claire, but when she kind of dropped off the map, I was curious, but she told me everything was fine. I was already hunting for a long while at this point. It never occurred to me she could've been too."
"Claire's all good if you wanted to know. She's hunting and is a bit of a rebel," Dean sighed, "but, for a young hunter, she's good. Hunting and living."
"Good to hear," she paused for just a quick moment, "You know what, I'm gonna, gonna get some sleep. I'll… I'll see you guys in the morning."
As she walked out of the room, Dean's mouth hung in frozen words that never verbalized themselves. He couldn't be feeling what he thought for a second. Could he?
…
Two months after she had met Cas, Cadee was adapting well to living with the Winchesters and an angel. Although she was still somewhat skittish and shy around Dean, he could tell she was becoming more comfortable around him. She joked around with Sam like a brother and even Cas, who she had just recently stopped looking at so strangely. The simple fact that Cas is so different than Jimmy was must've helped her too. The few times that Dean had met Jimmy sans the angel possessing him, for some reason, he looked nothing like the Castiel he knew even though they shared the same skin.
The four of them were in the library of the bunker researching for a case they just started when Dean felt eyes on him. When he looked up, Cadee looked down, just slow enough that Dean knew it had been her eyes following his every move, every page turn, every blink. It was an odd change from her rarely even matching his gaze.
He slowly looked back down to the printed words and continued to read. He read as Sam would occasionally throw out a new fact or something that might help them with whatever they were hunting. He read as Cas fingered through some journals left behind in the archives. He read until Cadee's chair scootched against the wood floor.
"I just thought of something that may help us," she announced as she started to walk away backwards, "Dean, if you could accompany me, it might make this go smoother."
He had looked up when she had first stood up and watched her the entire time. The confidence had been growing, but this was like three steps in the right direction instead of one. The way she locked his eyes made him curious as to what she was meaning. Her words and gazes felt like more than an invitation for some heavy lifting. He immediately wanted to know more.
Sam and Cas looked at him only for a moment before return to their studies, thinking nothing more of her request.
Dean followed Cadee into the kitchen and she stood by the sink, lower back grazing the counter, hands holding her up off it, knuckles white from squeezing the edges. As he walked all the way into the room, it was as if time had slowed and he could notice all the little things about her. Little things like the way her hair fell over her shoulders like a frozen waterfall, some of the baby hairs sometimes blowing gently with the air from her breathing. The way her cheekbones were positioned on her face, adorned with small sun-induced freckles. The way her bottom lips sort of pouted when she was thinking hard, like right now. How with the way her muscles were tensed and Dean could see a few of her larger veins and the way she was gripping the countertop, the sweetness that he had come to associate with her somehow seemed to vanish and the picture of her badass hunting moments took its place in his head. He noticed how her maroon and white long sleeved sweater fit against her curves, how it was stretched out around the wrists from her pulling at them and covering her hands with them like gloves. He took in the way her dark blue jeans hugged her thighs, how the waistband disappeared under her shirt. He caught himself wanting to follow the seams up under the striped fabric.
Time seemed to speed back up and before she could notice him watching, he looked at her face. the face that was changing emotions so often, she looked confused, conflicted, like she was struggling to find the words to speak. She kept opening her mouth and closing it again, sometimes a syllable or just a noise would make its way out.
"I… you… uh… well… ugh… see… er… we…" and then rubbing her forehead, eyes, and trailing down her nose, "Son of a bitch why is this so difficult?"
"Cadee," Dean calmly stated, "You can tell me anything, you know that right?" This was true, but in the back of his mind he was hoping she would come clean about one certain thing.
"I know," she smiled and looked down, "I know, Dean." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She went to say something, but stopped again with stuttering words and another frustrated sigh.
"You don't actually have anything for the case… do you?" Dean couldn't help the small smile playing on his lips.
"No-" she glanced up and did a double take seeing his smirk, "Dammit Dean! This is something I really need to say!"
Dean couldn't help the laughter beginning to spill out, he also couldn't help but think how cute she looked frazzled, especially frazzled at him.
He continued to laugh, even through her protests and it got louder and she kept trying to stop him. Through his laughter he could only hear three syllables uttered before his laughter was halted.
"Ah fuck it…"
Before he knew it, he heard a few footsteps coming toward him and felt the lips he had just been watching move in frustration press against his. Before he knew it he reacted like he had been dreaming about subconsciously.
Dean let his hands trail up her hips, sides, squeezing her torso lightly, the warmth of her skin making his muscles tingle with excitement. Her hands encompassed his face, her shoulders raised to her ears, eyes squeezed shut. One set of her fingers found their way to the back of his neck and held on to the soft spot below his hairline.
The kiss had ignited something inside of Dean, something he hadn't felt in a very long time. They parted lips for the smallest time and butted heads gently, yet forcefully and Dean gasped for air.
A side of Cadee he had never expected to see revealed itself as she looked up from under her eyelashes seductively, with a small grin of relief on her lips. Dean scooped her thighs up and she wrapped her legs around his waist, ankles locking against the small of his back. Her arms circled around his shoulders as they continued to kiss. He walked them to the counter and sat her down on it. As they explored one another's mouths and faces and necks, Dean helped her with the removal of her soft sweater leaving her velvety skin bare with her dark purple bra.
Somehow they made their way through the halls, Dean occasionally forcing her up against the wall and running his free hand against her ribs and through her hair. They found their way to Dean's room and he eased them onto the memory foam mattress.
As he caressed her collarbone with his lips, she fumbled with his belt and assisted him in kicking his jeans off. He enjoyed the feeling of her hands and fingers running down his hips and into the dip of his lower back. He had lost his shirt somewhere in the hallways and she seemed to be relishing in the fact that she was finally able to trace the lines of his abdomen.
He caged her shoulders with his own arms, propping him right above her. She wrapped her legs around him once more and nibbled at his ear.
As he moved his hips and she held onto to him, he could hear her breathless, little whimpers in his ear and he knew she could hear his own gasps and groans. The insides of her thighs rubbed against his hip bones making his spine shiver.
The last thing he heard before ecstasy took over was the faint, pleading, voice whispering, "Dean…"