Chapter 02 - Are You There God? It's Me, Dean Winchester

Addison is sitting at the small kitchen table in Bobby's house, eating a salad as Sam, who was sitting across from her, and Dean, who was pacing around the kitchen, argue. "Well, then tell me, what else it could have been," Sam asks his brother.

"Look, all I know is that I was not groped by an angel," Dean counters and Addison lets out a sigh.

"An angel isn't going to lie, Dean," Addison comments and Dean looks at her.

"The maybe he's some kind of demon. Demons lie."

"A demon who isn't affected by salt rounds, devil's traps, or Ruby's knife?"

"Lilith is scared of that thing," Sam tells them.

"Don't you think that if angels were real that some hunter, somewhere, would have seen one? At some point, ever!"

"Yeah. You just did, Dean."

"I'm trying to come up with a theory here, okay, work with me."

"We already have a theory," Addison counters and Dean rolls his eyes.

"Yeah, one with a little less fairy dust on it, please."

"I'm not saying we know for sure, I'm just saying that I think we—" Sam starts.

"Okay, okay, that's the point. We don't know for sure, so I'm not gonna believe this thing is a fucking 'angel of the lord' because it said so."

"You three chuckleheads wanna keep arguing religion or you wanna come look at this," Bobby calls from where he's sitting in the living room. Addison stands up and the three of them walk into the study. Bobby turns the book he was reading and the three of them look at it. "I got stacks of lore. Biblical, pre-Biblical, some of it's in damn cuneiform. It all says an angel can snatch a soul from the pit."

"What else," Dean asks him.

"What else, what?"

"What else could do it?"

"Airlift your ass out of the hotbox? As far as I can tell, nothing."

"See, Dean, this is great news," Addison comments with a small smile.

"How," Dean asks.

"Uh, because it was an angel who saved you. And guess what? Angels are on the good side."

"Okay. Say its true. Say, there are angels. Then what? There's a God?"

"This point. Vegas money's on 'yeah,'" Bobby answers and Dean smiles, turning away from them.

"I don't know guys."

"Dean, this is less about faith and more about proof now," Addison tells him and Dean looks at her.

"Proof," he ask her and Addison nods. "Proof that there's a God out there that actually gives a shit about me, personally? I'm sorry, but I'm not buying it."

"Why not," Sam asks.

"Because why me? If there's a God out there, why would he give a crap about me?"

"Dean—" Addison starts.

"I mean, I've saved some people, okay. I figure I've made up for the, uh, for the stealing and the - the ditching chicks. But why do I deserve to to get saved? I'm just a regular guy."

"And Joan of Arc was a regular girl until God told her to lead the French army to victory against England. Point is the man upstairs thinks you're important and that's why you're here," Addison tells him.

"Well, that creeps me out. I mean, I don't like getting singled out at birthday parties, much less by…God."

"Okay, well too bad, Dean. Because I think he wants you to strap on your party hat," Sam counters and Addison grins.

"Fine. What do we know about angels?"

They look at Bobby, who had been quietly sitting there. He sits up in his chair and grabs a book from a pile before dropping it on the table with a thud. "Start reading."

Dean turns to Sam and points at him. "You're gonna get me some pie."

Sam glances at Addison a they stop at a red light. She had been distant while they were in the store and he knew the exact reason why. But she had also been distant for the past couple of days. "Addison—"

"You haven't told Dean yet, have you," Addison asks, turning in the seat to look at him. "About Ruby?"

The light turns green and he presses on the gas. "No, I haven't."

Addison sighs and looks back out the window. "He thinks that we're sleeping together. So, you can use that as a cover. I'll even tag along."

"Ads…" Sam trails off, not knowing what to say. He turns his attention back to the road and a silence falls over them.

When they arrive back at Bobby's house, a tense and uncomfortable silence had settled over them. Bobby walks over to the Impala. "Keep your engine running."

"Why," Addison questions, exchanging a confused look with Sam. "What's going on?"

"I've got a friend one state over, Olivia Lowry. I've been trying to reach her for three days on this angel thing. It's not like her to ignore this many phone calls."

"Olivia Lowry," Sam repeats. "A hunter, right?"

"Yeah. We're gonna go check on her. You guys follow me."

Dean walks over to the driver's side and opens the door. "Scoot over." Addison rolls her eyes and climbs into the back. Sam hands Dean the bag from the store and Addison watches as he searches through it. "Dude."

"Yeah," Sam asks him.

"Where's the pie?"

The three of them walk into the house behind Bobby, armed. "Olivia," Bobby calls out and suddenly stops when they reach the living room. Addison looks around Dean and sees a bloody body lying in the middle of the room with a ribcage ripped open. Bobby turns and quickly leaves the house.

"Bobby," Dean calls and is ignored by the older hunter.

"Salt line," Sam states, pointing to the line on the floor. They walk over it and look around the room, with Addison trying not to look at the body. She spots an EMF meter on the table filled with weapons.

"She had an EMF meter," Addison comments, picking up the device.

"Spirit activity."

Addison places the EMF back on the table and walks over to Sam. "Yeah, on steroids. I've never seen a ghost do this to a person," Dean tells them as the door opens and Bobby walks back in. "Bobby, you all right?"

Bobby tightly grips his cell phone. "I called some hunters nearby—"

"Good. We could use the help."

"Except, they ain't answering their phones either."

"Something's up, huh," Sam asks him.

"You think," Bobby replies and walks out once again.

Addison takes a deep breath as she pushes open the door to the men's room and walks in. "The ladies room is out of order," she explains, quickly ducking into one of the stalls. Sam shakes his head and zips up his jeans.

"Look, Ads, you don't have to help me. I mean, you're not exactly Ruby's biggest fan," Sam replies as he washes his hands.

"Well, Ruby isn't exactly a fan of mine," Addison reminds, flushing the toilet. She emerges from the stall and walks over to the sink next to him. "Besides, you need someone there to remind you to take a break every once in a while. You like to push yourself past the breaking point, Sam."

Sam notices the mirror freeze over. Neither of them had brought any kind of weapon into the bathroom. Addison turns around and freezes. She takes a step back and bumps into Sam, causing him to turn. Agent Henriksen was standing there. "Hiya, guys. It's been a while."

Sam takes a step forward. "Henriksen. Are you — did you—"

Henriksen disappears, then quickly reappears. "I didn't survive. If that's what you're asking."

"We're sorry," Addison softly says, taking a step towards the door.

"I know you are."

Sam moves away from the door. "Look, if we'd known Lilith was coming we—"

"You wouldn't have left a half a dozen innocent people in that police station to die in your place. You did this to me." A guilty look appears on Sam's face. "It was your fault. She was after you and I payed the price."

"I—"

"You left us there to die!"

The second Sam flies across the bathroom, Addison yanks open the door and takes off across the parking lot. Dean wakes with a start when the door is slammed shut. He looks to see Addison rummaging through the trunk. He frowns when she grabs a shotgun and runs back to the bathroom. Dean enters the bathroom to find Addison kneeling on the ground next to Sam.

"Damn it, Bobby, pick up," Dean says into his phone as they drive towards Bobby's house. He glances at Sam, who was sitting in the passenger seat. Addison was leaning on the seat, with a comforting hand on Sam's shoulder. "How are you feeling, huh? How many fingers am I holding up?"

"None," Sam replies. "I'll be fine, Dean."

"Henriksen?"

"Yes, it was him," Addison says.

"Why? What did he want?"

"Revenge cause we got him killed," Sam sadly tells him.

Dean sighs. "Sam."

"Well, we did, Dean."

Dean hangs up his phone and glances at Sam. "It's not your fault, Sam," Addison softly tells him. "It's no one's fault. And what happened to Olivia and Jed seems to be happening to us. So, you can't think about things that you had no control over. You have to focus on this." She kisses his cheek. Dean shifts in his seat, feeling uncomfortable with the intimate moment between his younger brother and best friend.

They enter Bobby's house holding weapons and start looking around for the older hunter. "Bobby," Dean calls out. Addison looks through out the living room. Dean snaps his fingers and Addison and Sam look at him. He motions to the fire poker that was lying on the floor. "I'll go. You two check outside."

Addison follows Sam out of the house. She stares at the junkyard filled with old cars. "It's like finding a needle in a haystack."

"I take the left, you take the right," Sam says. Addison nods in agreement and starts to walk off. He grabs her arm. She looks at him. "Be careful."

"Sam, I'm the red headed Buffy. Minus the slayer powers." She smiles at him, then jogs to the right. Sam watches her for a moment, before walking away. Addison searches a few cars but doesn't find anything. Her breath mists. "Bobby?"

Feeling someone staring at her, Addison turns around but doesn't find anyone. She turns back and Henriksen is standing there. He starts to say something, but she fires a shot at him and Henriksen disappears.

Addison runs in the direction that Sam had went. She finds him searching one of the cars. "You okay," Sam asks.

Addison nods. "Yeah. Henriksen showed up. Again."

Sam lets out a deep breath and it mists. They look around, searching for any other sign of Bobby. Addison puts the shotgun on the ground and grabs an extra crowbar. Her and Sam work on opening the trunks of different cars. "Anything?"

"No."

Sam notices a mirror covered in ice. It was attached to a car sitting higher up. "Ads!" She jogs over as he combs up. "Bobby! Hold on, Bobby! I'm coming!" He looks in the car and sees Bobby lying on the floor. "Bobby!" Sam wedges open the door, then is thrown back onto a windshield.

"Sam!" The ghost appears on top of Sam and Addison quickly swipes the crowbar through the ghost. They look up to see Bobby leaning out the door.

"So, they're all people we know," Sam asks, walking around Bobby's living room. Dean was sitting on the couch, while Bobby was standing by his desk, which was covered in more books and paper than normal.

"Not just know. People we couldn't save," Dean replies as Addison walks into the living room. He watches as she moves to stand next to Sam. "Hey, I saw something on Meg. Did she have a tattoo when she was alive?"

Sam shakes his head. "I don't think so."

"It was like a - a mark on her hand. Almost like a brand."

"I saw a mark, too, on Henriksen."

"What'd it look like," Bobby asks.

"Uh, paper," Sam asks. Bobby hands him a piece of paper. He quickly draws the marks and holds it up for Dean to see. Addison frowns, she had never seen that mark before.

"That's it," Dean says.

"I may have seen this before," Bobby comments and moves over to the bookshelf. Dean hands Sam the rifle he was holding as the lights start to flicker. "We gotta move."

Bobby shoves some of the books he was holding into Sam's and Addison's arms. "Whoa," Addison says.

The older hunter grabs some more books and starts to walk out of the room. "Follow me."

"Okay. Where are we going," Sam asks.

"Someplace safe, you idjit," Bobby answers. Addison smiles at Sam, then follows the older hunter. They walk down to the basement and Bobby goes over to a large door before pulling it open. The three of them enter and Addison looks around the circular room. There were protective symbols all over the walls and floor.

Cabinets were pushed up against the wall and revealed the numerous weapons that they held. A desk and chair were next to a wall. Shelve were filled with different canned food. There was a cot and another desk that held books. And a sofa with a poster hanging above it. Bobby closes and locks the door, before moving to put the books that he was carrying on the table.

Addison puts the books down. She touches the wall. "Is this—"

"Solid iron. Completely coated in salt. One hundred percent ghost proof."

"You built a panic room," Sam disbelievingly asks.

Bobby shrugs. "I had a weekend off."

"Bobby," Dean says. Addison rolls her eyes when she sees him holding one of the rifles from a cabinet.

"What?"

"You're awesome," Dean answers and Bobby lets out a laugh. "Oh." The older hunter turns and notices the poster hanging up. Addison shakes her head in disbelief and takes a seat at one of the tables.

The room was filled with silence. Addison sat across from Bobby, each of them searching through one of the books that they had brought down. Dean and Sam sat at the other table, making salt rounds for the guns. "See, this is why I can't get behind God," Dean says, breaking the silence. Addison looks up from the book, confused.

"What are you talking about," Sam asks him.

"If he doesn't exist, fine. Bad shit happens to good people. That's how it is. There's no rhyme or reason, just random, horrible, evil…I get it, okay. I can roll with that. But if He is out there, what's wrong with him? Where the hell is he while all these decent people are getting torn to shreds? How does he live with himself? You know, what doesn't he help?"

Addison looks down at the book in front of her, not knowing what to tell him. "I ain't touching this one with a ten foot pole," Bobby replies.

"Yeah."

Addison sighs. She looks up at Dean. "It's just how God works, Dean," she replies.

Dean shakes his head, clearly not believing her. He turns back to her. "When the hell did you start praying for me?"

She stares at him. "A long time ago. I pray for all of us. What'd you think that I did when I went to Sunday Mass?"

Silence settles over them. "Found it," Bobby says after a moment, tapping the book with a pen.

"What," Sam asks.

"The symbol you saw, the brand on the ghosts."

"Yeah?"

"Mark of the Witness."

"Witness? Witness to what?"

"The unnatural. None of them died what you'd call ordinary deaths. See, these ghosts; they were forced to rise. They woke up in agony. They're like rabid dogs. It ain't their fault. Someone rose 'em on purpose."

"Who?"

"Do I look like I know," Bobby counters. "But whoever it was, used a spell so powerful it left a mark, a brand on their souls. Whoever did this had big plans. It's called 'The Rising of the Witnesses.'"

"Wait, I've heard of that before," Addison says, flipping through another, smaller book. It was well worn with a dark green leather cover. "It's part of a prophecy."

"What book is that prophecy from, Ads," Dean asks, walking over to the table.

"Revelations. It's supposed to be a sign of the apocalypse."

"As in apocalypse, apocalypse? The four horsemen, pestilence, five dollar a gallon gas apocalypse?"

"That's the one. 'The Rising of the Witnesses' is a…a mile marker," Bobby explains.

"Okay, so what do we do now," Sam asks.

"Road trip," Dean replies. Addison stares at him as he walks back over to his seat. "Grand Canyon, Star Trek Experience, Bunny Ranch."

"I vote for Hawaii," Addison comments.

"First things first," Bobby says and Dean looks at him. "How about we survive our friends out there?"

"Great. Any ideas besides staying in this room till judgement day," Dean asks.

Bobby motions to the book in front of him. "It's a spell…to send the witnesses back to rest. Should work."

Sam scoffs. "Should. Great."

"If I translated it correctly. I think I got everything we need here at the house."

"Any chance you've got everything we need here in this room," Dean asks.

"So, you thought our luck was gonna start now all of a sudden," Bobby counters and walks over to the weapons cabinet. "Spell's gotta be cast over an open fire."

"There's a fireplace in the library," Addison states.

"Bingo," Bobby says.

"That's not as appealing as a ghost proof panic room, you know," Dean comments.

"Cover each other. And aim carefully. Don't run out of ammo until I'm done or they'll shred you," Bobby tells them, handing Addison a shotgun filled with salt rounds. "Ready?" Bobby opens the door and Sam walks out of the room, with Dean following him.

Addison takes a deep breath and walks out, with Bobby following her. They arrive at the stairs and Addison sees a figure sitting there. The ghost looks up and it's Ronald Resnick. "Hey, guys. You remember me," Ronald asks.

"Ronald, huh," Dean questions. "With the laser eyes? I wish I could—"

A shot goes off. Dean turns to see Addison with her shotgun raised. She rolls her eyes and walks pat him. "And you make fun of me for crying at the end of A Walk to Remember."

Bobby chuckles and follows her. Dean sees the amused look on his younger brother's face. "Shut up."

Once upstairs, Addison and Sam pour a salt ring around the desk and fireplace. Dean works on building a fire while Bobby starts gathering things. "Upstairs, linen closet. Red hex box. It'll be heavy," Bobby says.

"Got it," Sam replies, then jogs up the stairs.

Addison sees two little girls standing outside a salt line. She shoots them and quickly moves to the other side of the salt line. Bobby shoots her a thankful look before turning to Dean. "Kitchen. Cutlery drawer. It's a got a false bottom." Dean nods and moves towards the kitchen. "Hemlock, opium, wormwood."

Dean stops and looks back. "Opium?"

"Dean," Addison snaps. He glares at her, then walks into the kitchen. Addison tightens her grip on the shot gun. The little girls appear again, this time by the window. She shoots them for a second time. She glances at Bobby. She wanted to ask questions, but kept her mouth shut. The doors separating the kitchen and living room slam shut.

"Dean," Bobby calls out.

"I'm all right, Bobby," Dean calls back. "Keep working!"

"Need any help," Addison asks.

"Just keep the ghosts away," Bobby answers, turning back to the book.

"Easier said than done," Addison softly replies and looks around the room.

A few minutes later, Sam and Dean come in from the kitchen. Sam was carrying a box while Dean was carrying a bowl. Ronald appears on the outside of the salt line. She felt sympathy for all the ghosts. They had been unable to save them and seeing them angry, was making the long buried guilt surface. The ghosts keep appearing and they keep shooting them.

Henriksen flings Dean's gun across the room. Addison shoots him. Meg shows up and pins Sam between a desk and bookshelf. Addison goes to shoot Meg but the ghost diapers. Addison drops the shotgun in shock when an icy cold pressure grips her heart. "Addison," Sam shouts, pushing against the desk.

"You and Sam are monsters," Meg angrily whispers and Addison gasps for air. "What the two of you do with Ruby—"

The ice cold pain disappears and Addison collapses to the ground. Dean makes his way over to her and kneels down. "Ads?"

"I'm fine," Addison gasps as he helps her up. "I'm fine. You guys okay?"

"We're fine," Dean answers, glancing over to where Sam was helping Bobby up by the fireplace.

With a heavy heart, Addison sits down on the toilet lid. She watches as Sam shaves. She had spent most of the night staring at the ceiling. Meg's words had kept replaying in her head. "We're not monsters, are we?" He shoots her a confused look and she shakes her head.

Sam sets down the razor. He kneels down in front of her and sets his hands on her thighs. He remember what Meg had said to him. "Ads, I promise that we're not monsters." He could see the inner conflict play out on her face. "You're gonna believe a ghost over me?"

"Of course not. But you know how feel I about this whole thing, Sam. I just want to know that we're doing the right thing."

He grasps her hand and squeezes. "We're doing the right thing. And we're saving so many people."

"You're saving all those people, Sam. I just make sure they get home."

"We're saving so many people, Ads," Sam tells her. He reaches up brushes a loose curl back. "We're doing the right thing. And we'll find a different a cover to use." Addison opens her mouth and he shakes his head. "Dean's an idiot."

Sam presses a soft kiss to her cheek as the bathroom door suddenly opens. "Whoa, hey," Dean exclaims. He backs out of the bathroom. Addison rolls her eyes. "The last thing anyone wants to see when they get up in the morning is the two of you fucking."

"You need to learn how to knock," Addison tells him.

When Dean doesn't say anything, Sam takes another look at his older brother. "What's wrong, Dean?"

"So…you guys got no problem believing in…God and angels?"

Sam and Addison exchange a look. "No, not really."

"So, I guess that means you believe in the devil."

Sam frowns. "Why are you asking me all this?"