Disclaimer: I own nothzing.
A/N: This was written for the Spn_Hetexchange on Livejournal and gifted to sun_shot_sky.
It had been years –more like centuries- since he had last seen her, shortly before she had ripped out her Grace, fallen to Earth and been reborn human. Now she stands before him, looking at him with a calm resolution, chin up and shoulders back. He had tried to find her for a long time but it had been no avail and when he did, she had been a frightened young woman who had no idea what she had been.
Now she's the Anna again, with her powers restored.
"Castiel, are the orders still to kill me?" She asks him curiously as her green eyes look at him expectantly.
Castiel nods slightly, "Yes."
Anna lets out a chuckle; it holds no humor and more than a little bitter. "I should have expected as much I suppose."
She walks over to the window and pushes back the heavy curtains, the last rays of sunlight in shades of pink and orange streaming into the room. It would be a short time before night would fall. She enjoys the evenings and mornings when the skies are painted these colors.
"I never appreciated views like this until recently."
Castiel lets her do the talking as he takes in how beautiful she looks with the sun reflecting off her skin and hair. It's an unfamiliar thought.
"It is a nice view." He says uncertainly. He walks up next to her and joins her in watching the sun sinking below the horizon. He remembers that they used to do this back then during the days when they had some time to spare, standing or sitting next to each other and just observing the world. He never realized how much he had missed those times.
Anna suddenly speaks and breaks the silence that had descended for those few minutes.
"If I leave, will you follow me?"
Castiel doesn't know how to reply. His first thought is that, yes, he'll follow her because he'd been ordered to remove her but another part of him feels regret. Despite her actions in the past, he didn't want to have to kill her. They had been comrades and friends after all.
Before he can come up with a suitable answer to speak out loud, she's gone and leaving no trace of her presence but the distant sound of fluttering wings.
He runs into her a few days later to find her taking down several low ranking angels on her own. She barely reacts when he appears beside her after the fight, simply picks up her blade that Castiel assumes she had taken from one of the others.
"How did I know you would follow?" Anna pockets her weapon and turns to look at him, folding her arms. "Never mind, you're following orders."
She sees the confusion making its way onto his face and she laughs lightly. He looks so much like a little puppy with those large blue eyes and with his head slightly tilted. She almost wants to hug him.
"Okay, then since your superiors seem hell bent on keeping tabs on me, meet me tomorrow in Florida. I'm sure you'll figure out where."
Their meetings run in few day intervals, and always now at some sort of public location. This time it was in another motel room and when Castiel appears, he sees Anna sitting by the window sill, watching as the night sky lights up from the storm brewing outside and the ground trembling from the loud thunder.
Despite the noise, Anna looks over at him with that knowing sort of smile, I knew you would follow it says without her really having to say anything at all.
Their meetings are usually quiet, with Anna doing most of the talking, reminiscing about days long past. She asks about the current state of Heaven, even though she knows, and he tells her about everything. They're both aware that it will be only a matter of time before one of them will have to make a move, rather Anna pulling him to her side or Castiel taking her back to even or destroying her if he needs to.
It was at this meeting that Anna finally confronts him.
"Why do you continue to do their dirty work, Castiel?" She asks him as she moves to stand in front of him. He meets her green with his blue unblinkingly at the question.
"It's what our Father wants us to do." This prompts the redhead to roll her eyes dramatically.
"You know he isn't calling the shots anymore, Zachariah is."
Castiel carefully keeps his face blank but she can see the doubt in his eyes.
"You don't want to do this, do you?" she places a hand on his arm and she feels him tense up at her touch. "Join me, Cas. We can change things, make them better."
She looks at him pleadingly, moving her hand up and brushing his face with the tips of her pale fingers. She's testing waters here; she knows he's edgy and filled with confliction. He will rather run or go with it; it's difficult to judge.
"You feel doubt, you're starting to question and feel. It's a good thing, trust me, these emotions." Anna closes the distance and gently kisses him, just barely touching his lips. He doesn't respond but he doesn't pull away from her either. She takes this as a good sign.
She kisses him more and, slowly, hesitantly, he kisses her back like a schoolboy's first attempt. Anna smiles against him, runs her fingers through his hair and he follows suit. He copies her motions as he's unsure of what to do or really why he's giving in to this.
Anna removes his coat and it falls to the floor with a muffled thump, his jacket follows shortly afterwards. She's doing this for his own good, she thinks, still kissing him as the move to one of the beds. Yes, she's selfish because she chose to embrace her emotions but she doesn't want to see Castiel, sweet, innocent Cas, to be betrayed by the Garrison and she's willing to do this to prevent that from happening.
She does love him after all, and has for a long time, even before she knew what it felt like.