Jeremy rubbed his belly as Matilda sat next to Sam on the bed. The monster of a man tensed up. He did not want Matilda finding fault with him at the moment. The little angel had calmed down, but she was still very aggravated with her associate.

"Tell me what happened," Matilda ordered through gritted teeth. She had folded her hands atop of her lap and squeezed her fingers. Jeremy lumbered over to a chair, and then he told her what he had done down in Hell.

Sam listened to his story with rapt attention. He became very appreciative of Jeremy when he heard of his brother's rescue and forgave the man for knocking him over earlier.

"Why in the name of all that is holy did you do that?" Jeremy scraped his boots together in response to Matilda's question. His eyes surveyed the carpet dolefully.

"I-I couldn't just leave him like that Tilda! You wouldn't have been able to either! Poor kid was getting his ass and everything else handed to him," he told her. She removed her glasses and began wiping the lenses slowly, sighing as she did so. Sam relaxed next to her, as she appeared much less murderous than she previously had been.

"Jeremy, look at me please." Her intelligent brown eyes were piercing Jeremy, Sam could tell. He observed the older man's discomfort with vague amusement.

"He's whipped," Sam thought with a grin. He palled as Jeremy glowered at him from across the room.

"Excuse me son? What was that you were thinking?"

"Oh stop it you know it's true," Matilda smiled. Jeremy glanced at her rather darkly then scratched his neck.

"I'm not going to apologize for it y'know," he muttered at her. Matilda's eyebrows rose in skepticism yet she remained silent on the issue.

"Jeremy, dear, please look at me," she said once again. Unhurriedly, the angel met her gaze. "What?"

"You know the rules as well as I do. We can't intervene in their punishments. There need to be consequences. Otherwise-"

"I know. I know," Jeremy interrupted. "But what was I to do? Sit there and watch him get smashed to pieces? I'm his guardian! I'm supposed to look after him!" He exclaimed, growing angry. Something flashed in Matilda's eyes, but Sam wasn't quite sure what.

"Yes, dear. You're supposed to look after him. You can still do that, but you can't make things easy for him!" She replied. She rose from the bed when Jeremy jumped from his chair. Sam realized with a start that he might actually be shorter than Jeremy. The thought was oddly disturbing.

"Make things easy for him! He's in Hell Matilda! Things already are hard enough for the boy!" He glared down at her while she folded her petite arms.

"Stop feeling sorry for yourself," she snapped. Sam cocked his head at her words. Why would Jeremy be feeling sorry for himself? Weren't they just talking about Dean? He shook his head, deciding that angels were just a bit too bizarre for him.

"I'm not." The growl of Jeremy's voice caused Matilda to stick her nose in the air.

"What is it with males and sounding like dogs? Honestly…But darling, really, stop it. He got himself into the mess and now he's got to get himself out of it. Help him; just don't open the door for him. Understand?" She asked. Her eyes held an unexpected softness that caught Jeremy off guard. Sam could see the tension leave him with the drooping of the man's shoulders. A small, crooked smile crept across Jeremy's face.

"Yeah, yeah. I get it."

Sam chose this moment to open his mouth and speak for the first time.

"Are you going to bring Dean back?" Jeremy eyed him before he answered.

"I'm not bringing Dean back to life. He's dead Sam. I'm just trying to save his damned soul."

Anger began boiling in Sam. His jaw tightened and his eyebrows pulled down. He stood up, glaring a patented Winchester glare of pure loathing.

"What do you mean you aren't bringing him back?" He snarled. Jeremy picked Matilda up and placed her to the side.

"Bring my brother back! Some damn guardian you are! You couldn't protect Dean from Hell, so bring him back!" Sam commanded. Tension seemed to crackle like lightening in the room. The light shining behind Jeremy's eyes glinted in a dark fashion.

"I'm not demon spawn." In an instant he used his forearm to shove Sam against the wall. Sam wriggled, but he couldn't remove the arm from his neck. His eyes widened as oxygen failed to reach his lungs. "So don't try ordering me around!" Jeremy finished his sentenced by letting Sam fall to the floor in a heap.

Jeremy turned to look at Matilda, who returned his livid gaze with serenity. He pointed a large, calloused finger at the comatose body on the floor and rumbled softly, "I was a damn good guardian for Dean. Physically at least. I tried to save him Tilda. Damn it I tried! So don't ever let him say that I wasn't…again." Matilda blinked.

"It's time for you to go Jeremy." She spoke in a monotone.

"Tilda…" The angel stared at her with remorse and sadness. Matilda opened her arms and beckoned him to come to her.

"You did your best Jeremy." With that Jeremy sank his head between her neck and shoulder, nearly crushing her in his bear hug.

"I love you," he whispered.