x
The Search
Chapter 1: When Everything Is Perfect
"Perfection seems sterile; it is final, no mystery in it; it's a product of an assembly line." - Dejan Stojanovic
Bobby Singer hadn't seen a more beautiful tree in years, no decades, maybe never. The seven-foot tall fir tree's branches were full and the multi-colored lights twinkled brightly, while the silver garland enhanced their shine. The ornaments that hung from the ends of the branches were clearly picked out by Karen, santas, reindeer, snowmen, stars, and icicles. A few he noticed she'd picked out for him - a truck, a cap, and a specially made miniature Singer Salvage Yard sign.
He smiled.
"Do you like it?" she asked from behind him.
Bobby turned to face her and nodded. "I love it Karen, but it's not Christmas yet, is it?"
His wife chuckled. "You forget there is no time in Heaven. We can make our heaven look and be however we want it to be."
As soon as she finished speaking Bobby looked out the library window behind the tree and noticed that it had begun to snow outside, even though just an hour ago he'd gone out the house and to the shed in sunny seventy-degree weather.
"Are you making that happen?" Bobby inquired.
"Yep," Karen replied.
She appeared to be very pleased about it.
Bobby forced a smile. He was glad Karen was happy, he was glad to be with her again, but there was something about being able to change their heaven just by thinking about it that bothered him. Bobby glanced at the tree again.
It's too perfect. He immediately shook his head at the thought. Deal with it, Singer. You're dead and if you weren't, you'd soon be. At least this place has a view, unlike your cell back in Hell. At least you're with Karen again. Be grateful.
"Is something troubling you, Bobby?" Karen asked.
"No, no," he said quickly. "I was just thinking about how glad I am that I'm here with you. I wasn't sure I'd ever be."
Karen grinned and kissed him. "I am too. Now how about supper?"
"Are you going to cook it?"
"Of course," Karen said. "I love cooking too much to make this meal instant. Lasagna?"
Bobby nodded. "Sounds great."
Karen headed for the kitchen and Bobby headed for the front door, grabbing his old red plaid coat off a hook that was by it before stepping out on the porch. It was cold outside, but with the coat on he was warm.
He stood at the top of the porch steps and took a deep breath as he scanned his shadowy front lawn. Above him the moon was full and a thousand stars lit up the night sky.
It's not real.
He couldn't shake his inner grumblings. He just didn't like Heaven; it was too easy. He knew too much, and he didn't want to be here. Not now. Not when Sam and Dean were on Earth fighting angels and demons and whatever else came their way. What if they needed him?
Bobby pushed back his thoughts and made his way to his shed in the backyard, hoping to distract himself with fixing a car until Karen called him in for their meal.
He found Rumsfeld lying on top of the rusty old blue Corvette by it, asleep. The sound of his boots on the gravel woke the Rottweiler, and the dog leaped down from the hood of the classic car. He followed Bobby into the shed and Bobby gave him a scratch on the ear before turning on the lights inside.
A black 1980 Charger was sitting in the shed, its hood up and engine removed. With a thought, a new engine appeared in front of the car. Rumsfeld whined in surprise.
"A real guard dog would bark," Bobby huffed.
The dog ignored him and lain down on a greasy towel in the back left corner of the space. He rested his head on his paws and looked up at him.
Bobby shook his head and after opening his toolbox, got to work on placing the new engine in the Charger. At least here in this shed, I can lose myself in my work.
After what seemed like nearly two hours, but could have easily been only five minutes (Who knows in Heaven? It was supposed to be a timeless place) Karen called Bobby in for supper.
He put away his tools then walked over to the house, Rumsfeld trailing behind him.
When they were inside Bobby threw his coat temporarily over a bar chair and helped Karen set the kitchen table. Rumsfeld meanwhile, made a B-line for his bowl of kibble Karen had placed on the floor at the edge of the bar and started chowing down.
Just as Bobby and Karen were about to sit down and start eating too, there was a knock at the side door.
The Singers glanced at each other.
"Who would be here?" Karen blinked, confused.
"Heavens don't have visitors, do they?" Bobby inquired.
She shrugged. "I've never had any before."
Bobby cautiously walked up to the door and thought about it having a peephole, and so it did.
When he looked through it his eyes widened. "Well I'll be damned."
"Who is it?" Karen asked.
Bobby glanced back at her then opened the door. A tall, dark haired woman on the other side rushed towards him with open arms and gave him a bear hug, proceeding to lift him off his feet. "Bobby!"
The long haired man with her grinned at him as the woman set him back down on his two feet. "Hey, man."
Bobby starred at them as the woman stepped back. "Pam, Ash, what are you two doing here? How are you here?"
"Did Sam and Dean forget about their last trip to Heaven again, or did they just not tell you about how I use the String Theory to cross into other heavens?" Ash inquired, sounding annoyed.
Bobby had a flood of memories about the Winchesters telling him about their death experience a few years back. "They told me."
"It's about damn time they remembered something," Ash muttered.
"Can we talk Bobby?" Pam inquired.
He nodded. "Of course. What about?"
Pam and Ash stepped into the house.
"About Ellen, and Jo," Ash told him. "And Sam and Dean's parents."
"What about them?" Bobby asked.
"They're missing," Ash explained. "I've been searching for them for a long time, and nothing. Then I stopped being chased around by those dang angels and everything goes quiet, no chatter. At least not up here in Heaven. I can hear something on the angel radio, a few words here and there, but it's mostly static. It seems all the angels are gone. They left."
"Why?" Bobby inquired. "Why are Ellen, Jo, and the Winchesters missing, and why did the angels leave?"
"That's what we want to know," Ash said.
"And that's where you come in," Pam added.
Together they said, "We need your help."
A/N: Hope I have caught the characters' personalities. Please tell me what you think so far; it would be very appreciated.