A/N: Hey guys! This is my first official fanfic! Be sure to R&R, but please be kind! We'd love to hear what you guys think, and would love to hear some of your helpful advice as well! The prologue was written by Katie, and was revised/edited by me. I wrote Ch.1 and she revised/edited. Enjoy! :)

~Amanda

Prologue:

Castiel smiled as he heard a familiar silvery voice calling his name excitedly. He turned to face the speaker. Before he could greet her, however, she was pulling him away from the center of Heaven, where the angels of the Lord spent most of their time. The woman pulling him after her seemed anxious to tell Castiel something as the started heading away from the other angels. He tried to ask what she was doing, but each time, was shushed and forced to move faster. Soon, they were racing towards the outskirts of Heaven, or at least the part of it where the Garrison was allowed to walk freely in. When they finally got to a suitable distance from the Garrison, at least in the mind of his guide, they stopped. They stood in the middle of a small clearing surrounded by giant coniferous trees. The ground was a beautiful mixture of long grasses swaying softly in the breeze, dead dried up pine needles, and dark dirt. The smell of pine mixed with the fresh, earthy smell that only happens after rain filled the clearing.

Castiel tilted his head subconsciously and questioned, "Why are we out here, Angela? The other angels are going to be suspicious. We are nearly in forbidden areas."

Angela began speaking rapidly in a hushed tone, "Castiel, this is very important. You need to listen very closely. I was told not to speak of this and to forget I ever learned it, but I must tell you-"

"If you were told not to, you shouldn't. It must be a bad idea if you were told to not speak of it. The rules are there to protect us." Castiel interrupted.

Angela ignored his comment and continued, speaking just as fast as earlier, "Castiel, angels can become human! We can live among the humans and live like them." Her grin covered her face as she continued. "I was exploring the library and found an old tome. It hadn't been read in at least a thousand years, there were many layers of dust collected on it. It contained many strange rituals, like trapping an archangel and sending an angel to Hell. None of that matters, though, because what I wanted to tell you is that the tome contained a ritual for turning an angel human. The ritual was originally used as a punishment for rebellious angels. I read it multiple times, because I was scared that I wouldn't be able to find it again. As I was reading, Michael himself came and took the book from my hands. He told me to never speak or think of this again, but I had to let you know."

She leaned closer to Castiel and whispered excitedly, "Castiel, before Michael took the book, I had the ritual memorized. We can become human!"

Castiel stood frozen in shock, trying to process what she was saying. Angela stood staring at him with a worried, yet somehow hopeful expression coloring her face. After a seemingly endless moment, Castiel spoke, "Angela, I don't understand?" He made the statement sound more like a question. The hope on Angela's face slowly disappeared as he continued speaking, "If Michael himself forbade you to speak of this, then why are you? These things often have hidden consequences. We are meant to protect the humans, not become them! If the angels were to become humans, who would be there to protect them?"

Angela looked up to Castiel, her eyes hard. "Castiel, you know the angels have not protected a human, nor even been to Earth in a thousand years at least! We sit in Heaven and do nothing, humans are killed for no reason, and we are forbidden to leave Heaven. It would make no difference if we were here or on Earth!"

Both angels stood frozen, eyes locked together in a silent staring contest. Finally Castiel looked at the ground and spoke quietly, "Is that truly what you want Angela, to leave Heaven and become a human?" He paused for a second before adding, "To leave me?"

Angela's eyes softened at the last comment. "Of course I don't want to leave you, Castiel, I wanted you to come with me. We could become human together. I love-"

Suddenly, a fierce wind roared through the trees, cutting her off. The wind blew violently, making dirt and pine needles fly through the air, and ripping up the grass. The trees began creaking and swaying. Castiel tried to reach out and pull Angela to safety. The wind, however, had other plans. It grew stronger and stronger, nearly knocking Castiel of his feet and forcing him to close his eyes. The wind stopped just as quickly as it had begun. She never finished her sentence. That was the last Castiel ever saw of the angel he loved. "Angela!" He called out into the emptiness. But it was no use. The clearing was now empty. And Castiel stood in the middle. Alone.

Chapter 1:

Sam, Dean, and Cas checked into the first motel they could find. They didn't know where they were anymore, but they had no choice but to stop after the Impala broke down in the middle of nowhere. On top of that, they were in the middle of a huge thunderstorm. After getting out of the Impala, Sam and Dean were soaked to the bone within seconds. Cas remained in the car until Dean told him that they were going to walk into town and find a place to sleep. Luckily, they didn't have to walk for too far before they came across a motel that was old, and frankly kind of creepy. None of them cared much, though. Sam was tired, Cas was cold, and Dean was totally pissed that he had to leave his car on the side of the road for the night, no matter how many times Sam tried to assure him that it'll be fine and they'll have a tow truck get the car in the morning. But to make their night even better, the only room available only had two beds. Typical. The lady at the desk handed them their key, and Dean told them to go on up without him, so Sam and Cas started up the stairs.

"Dibs on one of the beds!" Dean called up after them.

Sam stopped and turned to face him. He was so done with his brother right now. "First of all, Dean, what are you, five? Calling 'dibs' on a friggin' bed? And second of all, no way. You get the couch." He turned and continued up the stairs.

"Oh, come on, Sam!" Dean called. But his brother ignored him. "Sammy!" He tried again, but he just kept walking, so Dean turned back to the lady at the desk. "I'm not going to get one of those beds, am I?"

She didn't look up as she scribbled something in a notebook, but responded, " I wouldn't bet on it." She continued writing and Dean still stood there in front of the desk. She finally looked up at him. "Can I help you with something?" She asked, slightly annoyed.

Dean simply smiled his winning smile and said, "Yes, actually, you see, me, my brother, and our umm...friend are on a road trip, and my car broke down on the side of the road, and we have absolutely no idea where we are. So if you can tell me where we are, or possibly call for a tow truck, that would be amazing."

Her tone softened a little with sympathy as she replied, "You're in Pleasantville, Ohio. And I'll see what I can do about that tow truck. Please, have a seat." She said motioning to a sofa across the room. As she picked up the phone to dial, Dean went and sat. Some old pictures on the wall caught his attention and he studied them while he waited.

"Excuse me, sir?" She said, hanging up the phone

"Dean." He corrected with a smile as he got up and started walking back towards the desk.

"Well, Dean, it seems our phone lines are down. Probably has something to do with the storm." She said almost apologetically.

"Crap!" Dean growled, growing more and more frustrated by the minute.

"But," She continued, "There's a bar just down the street, and you're more than likely to find a working phone somewhere in there." She paused for a second before waving her hand at him. "You might want to change, though..."

Dean's face lit up with hope at the statement. "A bar? Just down the street? With working phones?" He questioned. She smiled and nodded. Dean mirrored her smile. "That's the best news I've heard all night. Thank you so much. You've been very helpful..."

"Sandy." She finished for him.

"Sandy." He echoed. "Thank you so much." He said again as he went up the stairs to the room. Sam and Cas' heads turned at the sound of the door. "Good news, guys!" Dean said with a grin. The other two exchanged a look, confused at the sudden change in Dean's mood. "I know where we are, so I'm going to a bar!" He announced proudly. "But not for the reasons you think. Sandy told me-"

"-Who is Sandy?" Cas interrupted.

"The girl at the front desk. She's very nice. Not my type though, she'd be perfect for you, Sammy." Sam rolled his eyes at the comment, but let his brother continue, "Anyway, she told me that there was a bar just down the street and I could probably get a working phone there, but hey, why not have a little fun while I'm there, huh? Now who's coming with me? Cas?" He asked hopefully.

"I'll pass, Dean." Cas responded. So Dean moved on and turned to Sam.

"Sammy?" He asked just like he asked Cas seconds before.

"No, Dean. I'm with Cas. You go on ahead." Sam said, opening his laptop.

"Fine. Suit yourselves, you party poopers." He grabbed some dry clothes from his duffel bag and changed. He said goodbye, renewing his offer to come with him to the bar, which was turned down by both of them for a second time. So he grabbed the room key and left.

Dean came back about an hour later. And frankly, Sam was surprised that he wasn't drunk. He looked tired, but not drunk.

"Wow." Sam said, "I was not expecting you back this early. And not expecting you back sober either."

"Shut up." Dean said, taking off his jacket. "The phones weren't working there either. And I only had a couple beers, so no, Sammy, I'm not drunk. Sorry that came as such a shock to you."

"Sorry I said anything." Replied Sam, putting up his hands as if he were surrendering. Dean instantly felt guilty about the way he had snapped at his brother.

"Sorry, Sam. It's just, I'm tired and I can't stand the fact that I have to leave my car on the side of the road overnight." He fell back onto the couch which was surprisingly comfortable, for a cheap motel couch.

"Dean, it's all right. I told you, we'll deal with your car in the morning, and we'll be back on the road in no time. Now get some sleep." Sam paused. "Hey, didn't you take the room key with you?" He asked looking around. He didn't remember seeing Dean walk in with the key.

"Oh. I think I left it in the door." Dean said, starting to sound drowsy.

"Dean, you had more than just a couple beers, didn't you?" Questioned Sam knowingly.

"Alright, you caught me. Now shut up and get the stupid key would you?"

Cas came inside from the small balcony outside that was just big enough to stand on. Not much more.

"Cas, could you get the key that Dean left in the doorknob? I'm going to bed." Sam almost felt as tired as Dean. Minus the slightly drunk part.

Cas walked across the room and opened the door. He had taken the keys out of the knob, when out of the corner of his eye, he saw something move in the perpendicular hall. Curious, Cas wandered down the hall and turned the corner, just in time to see a blonde woman enter into her room. Cas only caught a glimpse of her, but she seemed strangely familiar. A thought came across his mind, but he quickly dismissed it. It's impossible he told himself. He went back down the hall to the room. As he got into bed, he couldn't seem to get the woman in the hall out of his head, making it a very long night with very little sleep.