Chapter 2

I spent the following day settling back into life at home. I tidied up my room, opening the curtains to let in the sunlight While Georgie spent a few hours on her cell calling up her hunting connections for any leads on Lucifer and the apocalypse, I spent most of my day in the study with dad, doing some research while also on phone duty for other hunters. Say hello to Agent Forbes FBI.

"Yes, this Agent Forbes...yes I can vouch for Agent Carter...hmm yes he has been assigned to this case...are you questioning my authority Sheriff? No, I didn't think so...yes, good day to you too" I said into the phone, spewing out the usual speech.

Dad always said that when answering the phones you should speak with authority, charisma and a voice that would instil just that little bit of fear into them at the thought of crossing the FBI. It worked every time.

At lunchtime, I took a break from the work to make us all some bacon and egg sandwiches. I switched on the radio and sang along to some cheesy pop song while flipping over the eggs carefully to avoid breaking the yolk. I spun round on my heel in some sort of crazy dance move towards the fridge but half way into my turn I bumped into a person. I let out a little screech and stumbled back from the man. He was taller than me although that didn't take much since I was only five foot one. He wore a suit, the tie loose around his neck, and a trench coat. And he was cute.

"Sorry" the man said, his voice gravelly and serious, "I didn't mean to startle you".

I suppose this was the point where I should have screamed for my dad, after all there was a strange man in our kitchen. Yet, I didn't. Logically, you could say that this was because there were always hunters turning up here for some reason or another, that is the reason I'm sticking to. However, the reason I didn't...well, I don't really know, I just sort of frozen for a moment. Stood there, like an idiot, looking at him.

"It's ok, I was in a world of my own" I finally said, shaking my head as though the action would clear it and allow me to string a sentence together.

The man's forehead creased into a frown, and he stared at me with his piercing blue eyes..

"You share the world with billions of people" The man stated.

"Yes, I know that, it's just an expression" I laughed, how didn't this man know this? In fact, who was this man stood in my dad's kitchen.

"It's not an expression I understand"

"Yeah, i did get that impression"

"I'm Castiel" he informed me as we stood somewhat awkwardly in my dad's kitchen.

"Kat Singer" I replied, thrusting my hand out towards him.

He looked down at my hand and raised an eyebrow at me before sticking his hand out and grabbing onto mine. He shook it up and down mechanically. I tried not to laugh at him.

"You really need to learn some human traditions" I laughed "how do people not realise you're an angel?"

"They can't see my wings" he said with a all serious.

"Right" I nodded "would you like a bacon sandwich? I'm making lunch"

"No thank you"

"Ok...was there something you needed? My dad's in the study?"

"I have a lead on Crowley" Castiel told me as I buttered the bread.

"He's the crossroads demon, yeah? The one with the Colt?" I asked. I'd been brushing up on my demons and apocalypse stuff since I got back but I was still a little unsure.

"Yes"

Before I could say another word, Georgie came bouncing into the room, her ever present smile widening as she spotted Castiel. She sprang her way over to him and hugged him. He stood, without hugging her back. A small half smile barely on his face. Georgie didn't seem to care that Castiel wasn't hugging her too. When she stepped back, jumping up to sit on the kitchen bench, she grinned.

"How's it going, Cas?" she asked, reaching for the bacon and egg sandwich that I was handing her.

"I am fine, thank you, Georgie" Cas smiled pleasantly.

"So you've got a lead on Crowley?" I interrupted.

"Yes, he has a property, but I can't get into it"

"It's been angel-proofed?"

"Yes, I need Dean and Sam to go there and retrieve the colt. Once we have it we can track down Lucifer and use the colt against him" Cas explained.

"They are already on their way back here" said Georgie "And I think Jo is coming too, she wanted to come see you, Kat"

I nodded. It had been a good while since I'd seen Jo. Jo, and her mom, Ellen, were pretty close with us, very good friends, practically family. They owned the roadhouse, a place where many hunters gathered. It was both a great place to gather intel for jobs, and to wind down after a stressful hunt. Jo was a similar age to me, so growing up, it was great when she would come to see us. I loved Sam and Dean, but they were both older than me, it was different. Jo would visit and we'd spend hours playing with our dolls or hide and seek in the yard. When we'd spend time together it was like we were normal children. It was just a shame that as we grew older we didn't get to see each other so often, especially this past few months when I'd moved out.

Castiel disappeared abruptly as I dished out lunch for dad and I. One second he was there, watching Georgie and I joke with each other, looking all serious yet handsome in that trench coat, and then...poof...he was gone. Georgie saw me watching the spot where he'd been standing and laughed at me.

"He does that...he just disappears" Georgie laughed "he's a good guy as far as angels go"

"He's odd" I replied "like, he takes everything so literally"

"He isn't great with human ways, trust me he is getting better, you should have head him when he first joined us"

We got back to work in the afternoon, spending a good few hours with our noses in books. To be honest, we didn't really achieve much, I think we were doing it just to keep ourselves busy, to trick ourselves into believing we were making a difference with this whole apocalypse. I was nervous for the rest of the day too, I knew Castiel had a plan to find this crossroads demon, Crowley, get the colt and then go kill Lucifer. I was nervous about how it would all play out. Going after Lucifer was going to be dangerous.

So, I tried to keep myself busy. First it was with research, then I moved on to more domestic chores. I put a load of laundry in the machine, wiped down all the surfaces in the kitchen, then spent an hour or so baking. I'd always found baking to be quite therapeutic, it helped me calm my nerves, to relax. I made a few batches of cupcakes, some with buttercream icing, others with white chocolate buttons as a topping. I know, utterly delicious!

Jo arrived in the late afternoon, a big smile on her face as she saw us. We grinned back at her. Since Jo started hunting, especially recently when she teamed up with her mom, she'd changed slightly. She carried herself differently, she seemed stronger, more confident in herself. Although it was abundantly clear that she was still the same old Jo.

"Ahh Jo!" I grinned, wrapping her up in a hug, "it's been far too long!"

"I just wish it was under better circumstances" Jo sighed.

"Don't be a downer, Jo!" Georgie laughed.

"What are you idjits cackling about in here?" dad asked teasingly as he rolled into the room.

"Hey Bobby" Jo greeted.

I let dad and Jo have one of my cupcakes, I'm legendary at baking and it would be rude not to share them. I chatted to Jo for a while, she was filling me in on some of the demons and spirits she and Ellen had been hunting. Her face lit up as she spoke. It was clear that she was really into the supernatural right now. Dad had said that she was getting better, but he also said that Ellen had had to pull her ass out of the fire on numerous occasions.

Sam and Dean turned up a little while later. Pretty much immediately after they set foot in the door Castiel appeared. His piercing eyes taking us all in. When his eyes reached mine I felt like he was looking right into me, I had to look away first. Why did he have this affect? I do not know.

"We have to go, I have located Crowley, we need to retrieve the Colt" Castiel informed the brothers.

"What? You're just going to knock on his door and ask for it?" I questioned "he's a demon, I don't think that he will fall for that".

"No, he wouldn't" Castiel replied seriously.

In the end, dad, Castiel and the boys came up with a plan. Jo and Georgie would pitch up at the house where Crowley were staying, dressed up fancy, and claiming they needed to use the phone. Dean and Sam would then help them break into the house. They'd then find Crowley and somehow get the Colt from him. I was to stay at the house with Castiel and dad. I wasn't happy that I had to stay at home, especially since Jo and Georgie got to go. Dad said it was to keep him and Castiel company but I knew for a fact that it was because he didn't think was up for it since I'd been out of the hunting game for a while.

When the boys and Jo left, dad sat in his study by the phone, just in case they needed to ring him for any help. He wanted to feel useful. I did think about going to sit with him but decided against it. I'd spent most of the day in his company and well, frankly, he could be a grumpy old man sometimes and I could be bothered with the hassle. So, instead, I changed into my PJs and sat in the lounge with Castiel. He sat perched on the couch beside me, stiff and upright. You could so tell he wasn't a human.

"How long have you been an angel, Cas?" I asked.

"Since before my father created the Earth" he replied simply "I have been an angel of the lord for a very long time"

"Do you enjoy it?"

"I don't understand." God he was cute when he was confused. Ok, so maybe he was cute all the time.

"I mean, do you find it fulfilling? Do you like it?" I explained.

"I find it satisfying fulfilling God's will, yet, I find the action of many of my brothers unsatisfying...I do not agree with their behaviour" Castiel informed me "I like working with Dean...and Sam...Dean and I share a bond...ever since I pulled him from the depths of hell"

I let out a peel of laughter at his explanation of his so called 'bond' with Dean. He raised an eyebrow at me, his blue eyes showing his confusion. This caused me to laugh even more. It wasn't like I was trying to be cruel or anything. It was simply that I found him so funny, his simple, honest ways of explaining things with such seriousness were really quite adorable.

"Sorry, Cas, I'm not being mean, I promise" I giggled.

"You have a strange laugh" he replied, leaning towards me and staring into me.

Feeling self-conscious, the laughter died in my throat, I felt my cheeks warm with embarrassment. I couldn't meet his piercing gaze.

"It is a good sound" he clarified.

"It's a good sound?"

"Yes, it reminds me of my home"

"My laugh reminds you of heaven?" I questioned sceptically.

"Yes. I do not know why"

"Oh"

We sat in an awkward silence, me fidgeting nervously with my hands, Cas staring straight ahead. Thankfully, my dad came into the lounge and broke the strange tension between Cas and I. I jumped up, forcing a big smile onto my face, and turned to face my dad.

"They're back" dad told me.

I nodded and rushed for the door. I wanted to make sure they were all ok. I pulled open the door, and scanned their faces, illuminated in the dim porch light. They were all there and they all looked ok. Ellen was with them too, her car parked up next to the Impala and Georgie's little yellow Beetle. I rushed forward to hug Georgie and Jo.

"I'm glad you're both alright" I gushed "did everything go ok?"

"Yeah, Crowley gave us the Colt straight up" Georgie said "he claims he wants Lucifer dead too"

"A demon wants Lucifer dead?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow questioningly.

"Yep, reckons old Luci will go after demon once us pesky humans are out of the way"

We all went inside, gathering in dad's study to plan for the trip to Carthage, Missouri to hunt down Lucifer. We decided to wait till the morning, it was too dangerous to go there in the dark. Instead, we'd all stay the night here at our house and head out early. All of us were going to Carthage other than my dad. I don't think he was happy that Georgie and I were going, hell I don't think he was happy any of us were going but I think he knew that he had no choice. After the meeting was over, dad made us take a group photo. It was a hunter tradition, if a group of hunters were going on a dangerous mission, with the likely possibility that they wouldn't come out of it alive, they'd take a photo. I was stood between Cas and Georgie. We all smiled at the camera, all of us complaining about getting our photo taken. Cas made some comment about this being our last night on earth. I'm pretty damn sure we were all going to look pretty miserable on that photo.

We left the study and I sat down in the kitchen, grabbing a glass of apple juice from the fridge. Georgie sat down beside me, one of my cupcakes in hand. Sam and Castiel hovered on the periphery of the room. I spotted Dean and Jo over by the fridge. Dean was stood awfully close to Jo, his hand grazing the small of her back. He had his signature smirk on his face, it was clear that he wanted to get lucky, since it would probably be our last night alive. I glanced to my side, Georgie was watching them too. Her jaw was strained, a look of pain flashing through her eyes. I saw that her fingers were clenched around the fabric of her pyjama pants. I reached over to squeeze her hand comfortingly. I looked back up to see Jo raise her head defiantly and turn Dean down.

"She said no" I whispered to Georgie "she wouldn't betray you like that"

"I know" Georgie murmured "I'm going to bed"

Georgie pulled her hand out from mine, pushed her way past Dean and headed upstairs to her room. I sighed. It was such a horrible situation for her, she hated her feelings for Dean, but she just couldn't make them go away.

I was feeling pretty down, I didn't want to have to sit with the group making pre-battle small talk. I stood up and slipped out into the lounge. I curled up on the couch, pulling a tattered yet soft blanket over me and rested my head on a pillow. I was feeling nauseous and more than a little terrified for the next day. There was every possibility that I could die. I felt a couple of tears run down my cheeks. I know being a hunter was something I'd always had to deal with, it was practically in my blood, but I was still so scared.

"Are you ok?" a deep, gravelly voice asked me. Castiel.

I sat up slowly, sniffling a little and quickly wiping the tears from my cheeks. I gave him a weak smile as he sat down beside me.

"Not really, Cas" I whispered.

"Why are you upset?"

"I'm not upset, Cas, I'm scared" I confessed "I'm just so scared about tomorrow, I'm going to die tomorrow, Cas. I don't think I'm ready to die yet. I don't want anyone of us to die. My sister, the boys, Jo, Ellen, you. I don't want any of us to get hurt"

"It's highly likely that we will die tomorrow" Castiel confirmed. I chuckled without humour at his blunt honesty.

"I know" I sighed.

Castiel, edged closer to me, his hand moving to rest on my shoulder. He patted my back in what I assumed was meant to be a comforting gesture. It may have been a rather awkward action but I could tell by the look in his eyes that he was truly trying to comfort me.