Chapter 2

New World

Cassie threw herself into the sky's embrace as her wings emerged and catapulted her through the crisp, clean air. This was what she missed the most.

Even as a human, her heart was always trying to make its way into the sky, under the sun's warm gaze and through clouds, feeling the cold moisture cling to her finger tips.

She followed Joshua until they landed in a brightly colored playground, where Heaven's entrance was located. A sigil was drawn, and the entrance was opened in a brilliant glow of whirring light.

The moment Cassie was through, she was hit with a pang of nostalgia and familiarity so powerful it stopped her in her tracks.

Joshua turned around to check on her. "Cassandra?"

She took a deep breath and nodded, her eyes clearing. "I …I just haven't felt this in such a long time…"

A lightness in the air, a soft, barely-there scent unique to Heaven. She was home.

But somehow it didn't feel the same as it once did. It was as though she was returning to her hometown after being gone for twenty years.

She felt a tie to this place, but deep down, could Cassandra ever become a part of it again?

"This way," Joshua urged, still beaming. "Castiel is waiting for you in Heaven's Prison."

Cassandra no longer needed to be escorted.

She knew exactly where that was. She'd brought enough evil doers to justice by throwing them there.

Cassandra started to walk in front of Joshua, soon leaving him behind to his dismay.

Once she was in the stone chambers, she saw her brother, standing with Hannah.

Hannah was smiling and immediately walked over to pat Cassie on the shoulder. "Welcome back, Sister," she said with obvious pride.

Cassie felt color flush to her cheeks, and pulled her in for a one-armed hug, looking over Hannah's shoulder at Castiel.

His eyes were damp with moisture.

"It's really me," Cassandra assured, pulling away from Hannah and taking Castiel's hands in hers. "I'm here, brother. And I'll do everything I can to help you rebuild our home."

Castiel was biting back a smile. "You weren't known for your construction skills in the past," he joked.

She scowled playfully at him. Then leaned in to whisper into his ear. "They want me to wear a business suit. With a skirt."

Castiel's eyes flickered over to Hannah's with confusion.

Joshua finally caught up, panting a little with the suit still wrapped in plastic. "I am here…" he began, out of breath, "to present Cassandra the Duel Wielder, whom I showed the gate and escorted here. I apologize for her not being adorned in our typical garb, she refused to change clothes."

Cassandra was surprised to feel an instant and hot well of anger spring up in her.

Like her brother, Cassandra would always feel emotions more completely and intensely than other Angels, because the energy they were made with was flawed. Or perfected, depending on your point of view.

Which is why Joshua's comment would not go unaddressed. "I understand that all you're doing is carrying out orders, but I was trained to be a soldier. A warrior who destroys any demon spawn that dares to hurt God's creations – "

" – Cassandra, it's alright," Hannah said, trying to diffuse the situation. "What you say is true. Thousands of years ago, we were largely at a time of war with Hell's forces. But now that Lucifer is caged, Hell is under control, and Metatron has been brought to justice, we are at a time of peace. We do not need soldiers. We need healers. Builders. Educators. We need you."

The old Cassie would've blushed and turned away at such a claim, not seeing how she could possibly be useful to anyone.

But this Cassandra held her head high and met direct eyes with Hannah. "So you're saying that since we're not in a time of war, I don't have to worry about being combat-ready?"

"Exactly," Hannah said with pleasantness in her voice.

Cassandra glanced at all three Angels. "Yet we all still conceal and carry Angel Blades, demons still walk the earth terrorizing humans, and we are taught how to create sigils for protection and defense. But we have no need to be prepared for fighting?"

Hannah took a deep breath. "Humans still have free will that allows them to consult with demons if they choose, we cannot interfere with that. And I'm sure the impulse to carry around an Angel Blade will prove to be unsupported, once the last few straggler angels on earth are dealt with. For the most part, you can now enjoy simply being an Angel of the Lord. Aside from rebuilding, you can stow away your weapons and armor."

Cassandra had no desire to do any such thing. She'd just gotten back her sword and armor, and now they wanted to take it away from her? And dress her up like a secretary?

"We also don't have the need for protective sigils anymore, much less ones for anti-demon possession," Hannah pointed out, glancing at Cassandra's neck.

Cassie stiffened, knowing full well what Hannah was referring to without looking down. You're not taking this necklace away. Sam gave it to me. It keeps me connected to him.

Once again, she knew she shouldn't feel such a strong affection for a necklace or for a human, but she did, and she was done fighting it.

"I know my brother summoned me back to Heaven in the hopes that I would help him lead you all. I was a commander in War, I was a leader of Troops, and one of the top warriors in our Garrison. But my area of expertise is battle and warfare, not paperwork."

She glanced back up at her brother. "I will rebuild, I will heal, and I will teach," she continued, "But I cannot do any of that in a pair of heels and a skirt."

Castiel shrugged, not having a preference either way.

Hannah sighed. "I just thought you'd want to adorn something more appropriate. Denim and Flannel is what common humans wear who've had to brave harsh wilderness."

Cassandra stiffened. Right, this is the part where I have to be completely dedicated to our cause and not emotionally connected to humanity at all what-so-ever. "I'm….still transitioning," she claimed, color rising to her cheeks. "This is the closest thing humans have to armor and it's comfortable."

Hannah nodded. "Very well. Until you are done transitioning, Joshua will hold on to your new uniform."

Cassandra scowled. That's not a compromise. It just means I'll have to wear it at some point. Ugh.

"To be honest, I think we've debated my wardrobe choices for a lot longer than was necessary," Cassie snapped. "There are more important matters I need to discuss with my brother than my clothing preferences."

Hannah raised an eyebrow and Joshua scoffed as he left the room.

Metatron finally chimed in after a few moments of silence. "Darn. I thought I was gonna get to see the great and powerful swordswoman in stilettos. Such a shame."

Cassie glanced up at her brother, still visibly weaker than usual.

His grace was fading fast. Cassandra had no way of telling how much longer her brother had left, but she knew it wasn't long.

She took her brother's hand and glared at Metatron in his prison cell. "I have a few things to discuss with you as well," she said darkly.

I'll be here," his voice echoed down the hall.

Metatron's words permeated Cassandra's mind before she pulled Castiel out of the prison until they got to what used to be Metatron's office.

She slammed the door shut. "I know everything is in shambles up here, but we got problems back at home, too."

Castiel sat down, finally letting himself feel and show how tired and weak he actually was. He'd been putting on a brave face for Hanna and Metatron but now that he was with his sister, who wouldn't utter a word about his condition, he relaxed.

"I'm surprised you refer to the Bunker as home instead of Heaven."

Cassie sighed. "For the most part, Heaven seems to be about the same. A place with alotta rules, over-worked employees and stupid dress codes. Back in the day, I spent more time on the field, not up here filing records."

Castiel smiled. "What did you want to tell me, sister?"

Cassandra bit her lip, willing herself to be calm. "Something's happened to Dean."

Castiel's eyes widened and Cassie's heart fell as she saw his face fill up gradually with dread and despair as if he were a pitcher. "Metatron said Dean's…" He couldn't say it.

Cassie cleared her throat. "We have no idea where he is, but Sam is doing everything he can – "

" – Wait, he's alive?" Castiel burst from the chair he was sitting in, unshed tears glistening in his eyes. "Dean's alive?"

Cassie pushed her hair out of her face. "Dean was stabbed by Metatron. I healed him, but he was still dying. After I did my best to heal Dean, I sent him and Sam back to the Bunker, then I began to duel Metatron but he vanished. I heard on Angel Radio that you had succeeded in apprehending him, so I went back to the Bunker to check on the boys. Sam thought Dean had died, but when we went into his room to check on him, Dean was gone."

Castiel's heart and mind were racing. "I don't understand…"

Cassie hugged her brother close. "Sam refuses to acknowledge it…but Dean has the mark of Cain. I think he died…but then came back as something else."

Castiel vision was starting to blur as his emotions overwhelmed him. "You think he's…"

Neither one would say the words, but they rang in their ears nonetheless.

A demon.

Cassie clung to her brother tightly, then let him go and whispered what she said next. "I think you should go. I'll handle things here. You need to find him. If he really is…" she trailed off, "then you and Sam are the only ones who can help him."

Castiel didn't have the strength to refuse.

"I know you would do the same for me if it happened to Sam," she coaxed, her voice soft.

Castiel's eyes widened. "So after everything…getting back your powers, your memories…you still love Sam?"

Cassie smiled. "Yes. Go out into the world, find Dean. Don't worry about your grace, I'm going to find a solution. I'll handle things up here. Just help the boys."

The broken-hearted Angel didn't know how to begin to thank his sister, so he just stood very still, closed his eyes and waited for the touch that would shoot him back to Earth.

"I heard the rumors," the dark haired demon woman said. "I said no, that's can't be. A Winchester? One of us? But it's true, isn't it? Whatever soul you had, whatever Boy Scout code you cuddled up to at night...It's all gone. Leaving what? Look at you!"

Gone was the sweet, doting, caring and gentle Sam that Cassie knew and loved. In his place was a cold-hearted monster who didn't care that he was inflicting wounds onto a girl, demon or not. "Where is Crowley?" he asked harshly.

The demon girl breathed hard, holding back tears. "Eat me," she said.

Sam nodded, stabbing her in the side once again.

She screamed, squirming away from Sam.

Sam wasn't taking any prisoners. "One more time. Where is Crowley?"

"AAHH!" she cried as he jabbed the knife into her once more.

"Where's my brother?!" he demanded.

"I don't know!" the demon girl cried uselessly.

Sam shoved her harder against the tree she was chained to. "Then call someone who does!"

She sobbed. "No one knows. He won't answer!"

"Make the call," he insisted.

"We're under orders," she tried, saying anything to make the psycho hunter stop.

"Make the call!" He sliced her neck and allowed her blood to pool dark and dangerous into a chalice, preparing for a call. "WHERE'S MY BROTHER?!"

Cassandra summoned Joshua into the room so she could adorn her new work clothes.

She untied the torn t-shirt she'd woven around her forearms and started to lift her tank top over her head but blushed when she realized Joshua was looking at her.

"You can go now," she said with annoyance bubbling under the surface.

Joshua narrowed his eyes, offended. He wasn't used to be addressed so bluntly. "We're all brothers and sisters. We aren't humans, nudity and undressing shouldn't make you uncomfortable."

Cassandra gritted her teeth, knowing it was true. "Well, it does. So leave." She insisted, shooting him a glare.

Joshua shook his head, closing the door behind him.

Cassie sighed, suddenly yearning for Sam.

He was the only one who she wanted to see her like this.

She shimmied out of her jeans and slipped out of her black tank top until she was in nothing but underwear and a bra.

With reluctance and difficulty, she slipped the silky light blue blouse over her head that brought out her eyes. Next was the nude-colored pantyhose, white pencil skirt and white long sleeved suit jacket.

She looked at herself in the reflection of the shiny cherry wardrobe, sighing at herself.

The last time she'd had to put on clothes to fit a part…

She cringed as flickers of Amarandos and being tied up in his basement made their way into her mind.

Last but not least, Cassandra slipped on the black heels which made her about two inches taller. She tucked her necklace underneath her blouse so it wouldn't raise suspicion.

"I'm where I belong," she told herself, but as she said the words, only one word filled her heart.

Sam.

Dean bit into the woman's shoulder as she rode atop him, the scent of her sweet perfume and strawberry shampoo flooding his senses.

But it was all wrong. It didn't satisfy him the way it used to. He was receiving jolts of pleasure but it wasn't anywhere near as all-consuming and intense as getting sucked off by those damn crystal blue eyes.

He had booze and wings up to the ears in his new life, not caring about anything or anyone except himself. And sex was without a doubt one of the only ways Dean could completely lose himself.

But this busty blonde just wasn't doing it for him. It really pissed him off.

Like a trooper, even after she'd tensed and moaned through the spasms of her climax, she kept pumping her hips up and down so Dean could enjoy it as much as she had.

He closed his eyes, trying to recapture the sensations he experienced with that goddamn goody-two-shoes Angel. The more he focused, the more he felt himself building up to that sweet explosion of pleasure he craved.

But when he opened his eyes, the gaze looking down at him with attraction and shyness were hazel brown.

Pre-Cas Dean would've killed for sex like this, but Dean found himself disappointed with the experience.

He should've never fallen into Castiel's kiss. If only he could take back the night his lips danced against Castiel's, bodies intwined and interlocked until the cold numbed his fingers and the dark night shrouded their tryst.