Sam and Dean just stared at her. The woman was sitting with her back against the wall of the brick building, clenching and unclenching her hands Her blond hair was plastered to her face with sweat, the sleeve of her leather jacket slipping to reveal her shoulder, swathed in a black and white striped sweater.
"Dude, should we…?" Sam trailed off, pointing to the woman. Dean pushed his lips, giving his brother a pointed look.
"Sammy, you know we don't have time for this," Dean said bluntly. Sam rolled his eyes. Apparently they never had time for anything, what with hunting the demons that prowled the Earth to bring on the apocalypse. Dean spun on his eel, ready to go to the car.
Sam glanced back at the woman. It was obvious se needed help. Whatever kind of help, he wasn't sure, but she needed help nonetheless. He watched as she began to cry, still staring wide-eyed at her palms.
"Sammy!" Dean barked, breaking his concentration, "time to go! Come on!" Sam looked between his brother and the woman, then back at his brother.
"Sorry Dean," Sam called over to him, turning to approach the stranger as she sat there on hysterics, jumping as shadows crossed the ground. It was almost as if she was expecting someone to come after her, a gazelle being stalked by a cheetah. As soon as he was a foot away, she whipped her head in his direction, squeezing her hands into fists, tucking them in her lap.
"Hey, are you alright?" he asked, leaning forward. He really hoped he was putting on the kindest look he could, because she seemed as if she could use one. She eyed him warily, and Sam thought he could see… was it a red glow? He wasn't sure, but it seemed to glow between what he could see of her fingers. The woman bit her lip.
"….Yeah," she said hesitantly, going to wipe at her face, then rethinking the action, instead sniffing loudly while she pushed her hands deeper into the folds of her jacket. Her black mascara was running in rivers down her cheeks.
"Are you sure?" Sam prompted, and he could hear an aggravated groan from his brother as he joined him.
"Dude, come on," Dean said, "could you be any more weird?" Sam glared at him.
"Dean, she needs help," Sam said matter-of-factly. Dean looked at the woman, who glanced between the two brothers, shaking her head as she tried to press her back further against the wall, although she succeeded in only scratching her back as she rubbed against the bricks.
"N-no," she managed to get out, "I-I'm fine…" Dean raised an eyebrow at his brother.
"See Sammy? She's fine," Dean said, voice dripping with boredom, "now come on, Bobby's waiting for us-" Sam grabbed Dean's shoulder as he turned to leave, pulling him back.
"Dean, look at her." Sam ordered.
Dean sighed. They had a job to do, and harassing this woman was getting them nowhere. The sun was setting on the horizon, casting eerie shadows along every available surface- the sidewalks, the buildings, anything that could be stretched into an opaque black mass. He felt Sam's grip tighten, fingers digging into his skin through the fabric of his green shirt.
"Dean."
After a few seconds of awkward silence, Dean finally looked at the woman.
Indeed, she was a mess. In fact, she looked like one of those people who waited on the street to meet prostitutes or drug dealers in sketchy neighborhoods. Of course, based on what she was wearing alone suggested that she came from a middle-class family, one hat was doing pretty well economically, if that made sense. As he looked at her she jumped, glaring down at her hands momentarily before trying to smile it off, her teeth perfect rows of pearls.
Of course, that didn't hide what Dean saw.
Blinking, he asked, "Did your hands just glow?"
In a split second, she was scrambling to get up, running like a madman down the block. The brothers charged after her, "Hey, wait!" She ignored them, pumping her arms and legs to go faster. Sam saw the farther away she got, the stinger the glow, until it became a searing red beacon in the night.
"You never told me we were dealing with the Eye Of Sauron, Sammy!" Dean yelled at his brother as he reached alongside him, skidding to a stop once they got within a foot of the woman. Her chest was heaving as she panted, holding her hands out in front of her, as far away as possible.
"Stop!" she demanded, "don't come any closer, I don't… I don't know if I can control it!" Dean couldn't help but scoff- if he had a dollar for every time he heard that line, he'd be rich. Sam shot him a look, then turned back to the woman.
"Listen, we aren't going to hurt you-" he raised his hand up, taking a cautious step forward-
"Get away!" the woman nearly screeched, and a blast of energy shot from her palms. Sam grabbed Dean, jumping out of the way just in time, as the light smashed far off into the darkness. There was a crash, followed by a car alarm blaring loudly.
Brushing dirt off himself as Sam helped him up, Dean looked at the woman, then at the car. The alarm was still going. Once he saw the damage, he couldn't help but let a "Oh shit…" escape his lips.
A yellow buggy was crushed under a fallen lamppost. The paint was chipped, pieces of metal and gears groaning under the weight of the broken metal pole. The bumper had fallen off the front, the license plate hanging by a single nail. The light in the lamppost flickered three times.
It took a few seconds until it blinked out completely.
The woman looked ready to run once more until the three of them- the brothers and her- froze in their place, a voice ringing out on the dark street corner.
"Emma!"
A rather tall man was running down the street towards them, the soft fluorescent street lights reflecting idly off his long leather trench coat. It reminded the brothers of Castiel's coat, although the angle's was a dull brown and made of a fabric that was not so rough on the skin.
"Emma, love-" the man began, cutting himself off when the woman- Emma, Sam tucked the name into his thoughts- raised a hand to distance him, taking a few step back. A closer look and Sam could make out the man's features- scruff and stubble on his cheeks and chin, high cheekbones and a slender yet muscular build. He had windblown black hair, and eyebrows that seemed to sass you with what could be a single movement. Sam jabbed his Dean, jutting his chin at the man.
"Dean, what do you think?" Sam inquired, "friend or foe?" Dean raised an eyebrow at Sam as he looked the other guy up and down.
"What does this look like, a dating website? eHarmony?" Dean quipped, but as he looked at the dude, he had to silently admit the guy was definitely attractive- enough so to make anyone question where their loyalties lied, sexual and otherwise. Sam's voice broke through his thoughts.
"Well?"
"Oh, uh-" it took Dean a minute to snap back into focus, "friend. Definitely friend- I mean, he's here for her…" he trailed off, gesturing to Emma, who was trying to tell him to go away and protect himself.
"Emma, love-" the man began, flinging his hands in the air.
"Killian please go-" Emma pleaded, jumping in the next minute like she had just seen a ghost.
"Emma, I'm not leaving without you!" Killian yelled at her, raising a hand, reaching out to her. Dean leaned over to Sam.
"Is he hiding his hand in his sleeve or something?" Dean asked. Sam watched alongside Dean as the man Emma called Killian raised his hands out to her once more, catching a sharp gleam in the corner of his eye. Sam shook his head- that was not "hiding a hand in his sleeve or something."
"Dean, I think he has a weapon," Sam grumbled under his breath. Dean looked again.
Then he saw it.
"Hey!" Dean barked suddenly, withdrawing from his place on the sidewalk, "hey you!" The man turned around, Emma staring at Dean with disbelief.
"Me?" the man pointed to himself, with a heavily jeweled finger.
"Yeah, you, Fancy Pants," Dean said, "is that a knife you got up your sleeve?" Killian looked between Emma, his sleeve, and Dean, then back at Emma.
"Is this the company you keep these days, Swan?" he scoffed. Emma returned the sentiment.
"No!" she yelled, "do you really think I'm that stupid?!"
Dean shot her a glare before turning his attention back to Killian, who wouldn't look at him directly, focused instead on Emma. The man had a nice profile, with a strong jawline to go with his high cheekbones. He could detect a bit of what was possibly an Irish accent once Killian opened his mouth.
"Whatever is going on, just show me what's in the sleeve!" Dean grabbed for the coat, Killian jumping back.
"What planet do you come from where you think it's okay to grab people at random, Pretty Boy?!" Dean froze at the comment, meeting the man's icy blue eyes. Again, they were like Castiel's, probably even bluer in color, deep and glassy like an ocean.
"What did you call me?" Dean asked, snapping back into reality.
"Although, with your short stature, you could pass for Crocodile, along with those green eyes…" Killian trailed off as he tilted his head, scratching at his chin with…
"A hook."
Dean turned to find Sam had joined them, momentarily forgetting all about Emma Swan, who stared at them, her hands glowing uncontrollable red.
"What was that?" Killian asked, pointing to Sam with the menacing instrument.
"You have a hook instead of a hand," Sam pointed out once more. Killian looked at him, then at Emma, who stood at the opposite end of the street conner, waiting.
"Here I am trying to save my girlfriend's life, and you're judging me about a hook?" Killian asked.
"Oh is that what we're doing here?" Dean said condescendingly, "see, to me it looked like you were running after her with a weapon-"
"Are you crazy?!" Emma yelled, and the men all turned their attention to her. Hesitantly, she braved taking a few steps closer to them, keeping her hands as far behind her as possible.
"Okay wait-" Dean began, but Sam cut him short with a pointed look. A rough hand on his shoulder told him that he needn't do anything. Dean rolled his eyes, jerking away from him.
"Listen to me, Killian, please," Emma's voice warbled, "you have to go-"
"And what will Snow and Charming do?" Killian interrupted her, ignoring Sam and Dean completely, "you expect them to be fine with you running off?" Pain flashed in Emma's brown eyes, the glow from her hands growing brighter.
"They're my parents, Killian," was all Emma could say.
"And they want you home," Killian said, then added hesitantly, "I want you home."
"….I can't, Killian."
Dean looked at Emma. Tears beaded in the corners of her eyes.
"Bullshit!" Killian shouted, making Emma and Sam jump. Dean stood his ground, watching intensely as the two fought. Why he was just standing there, he wasn't sure, but he really didn't have anything better to do after getting himself and Sam in this mess.
"Emma we can help you learn to control it-" Killian was desperate, eyes sad and pleading, "Elsa can help you, she went through the same thing in Arendelle-"
"This isn't Arendelle, Hook!" Emma snapped, and all three men were taken aback, the ferocity of her tone stinging like a wasp in a hornet's nest.
"You're going back to what they called me in Neverland?" Killian drilled, raising his hook, "really, love?"
Dean coughed- did he say what he thought the man said? Like, pirates and sword fights and mermaid lagoons Neverland? Peter Pan Neverland? Sam rubbed his temples. Out of everything he and Dean had done, this was probably the weirdest thing on their list. They exchanged glances, unsure of what to do.
"Either this is really happening or you're seeing Lucifer again," Dean whispered to Sam, receiving an eye roll from him.
"Very funny, Dean," Sam retorted under his breath, shoving his hands idly in his pockets. The situation had gone from helping someone in need to a mere lovers quarrel. About what, he wasn't sure, but he didn't really want to find out either. Slowly, he began to back away, grabbing Dean by the shoulder.
A few minutes later, they were in the Impala, peeling down the road and leaving the two weirdos to squabble on the corner of a dark street in the middle of the night.
