Chapter 4

Sometimes I wonder the wisdom of my own choices. One would think that I would have learned from the past. Some say I have. I do know that one thing hasn't changed: I firmly believe in standing up and making your own choice and learning to live with them.

Standing at the edge of the precipice you can do one of two things. One is to turn away and never know. The other is to leap and it is only then that you learn you can fly.

'Two roads diverged in a yellow wood and sorry I could not travel both.' Sometimes I wished Frost would apply. If I were able to travel both roads, I would be able to pick the one that works out best but the best I can do is anticipate like my chess moves and then pick the one that is the path of less evil. I say less evil because that is the story of my life.

Choices are said to define us or rather it gives insight to our character…

Angela was sorting through her clothes, looking for something to wear to the show. She knew that Sam was going. Dean was following his lead and she prayed that nothing serious would happen. Of course Dean could take care of himself and he would come to her when he needed help. The same went to Sam too.

The breeze filtered through the opened window of her room. Not moving Angela picked out her top and jacket. It was designed to give a Romantic era look. The jacket she had was a dark teal blue with black embroidery on the lapels and cuffs. It was done in the elegant curlicues of her status as the warrior princess and it looked dressy. She laid it out and said, "You know there is such a thing as a door. You knock." She turned and said, "Hello, Ruby."

Ruby gave a slight smirk as she took in Angela's appearance. The woman could make the all black ensemble look really good. She actually entertained the image of what she would look like in the little black dress but kept her usual expression on her face. "I would have knocked but you tend not to be as receptive as Sam."

"Oh I'm receptive. I just make my disdain known," Angela countered as she moved to be a suitable distance so that they didn't have to shout. She got the feeling that Ruby didn't want to let Sam know that she was here. She offered the leftovers of her wrap with a raised brow, "Hungry? This is pretty good."

"Spare me the fake hospitality."

"The hospitality is real. I always know how to serve guests… even the ones with minimal welcome." Angela put the remains back in the fridge that she had found. "So what are you doing here Ruby?"

"I should be asking you the same question," Ruby countered using the same retort she had used with Sam earlier.

"You mean the one where you ask why I am here working a case when I should be out there sniffing out Lilith and ganking the bitch?" Angela intentionally played dumb and took pleasure in making Ruby pissed. "The same line you pitched Sam?" At Ruby's look she continued, "Yeah he told me."

"After you made him feel guilty about it," countered Ruby. "That kind of thing just makes him weak. Apart from you, he is the only one that can stop Lilith."

"I did nothing," Angela replied. Her tone was soft but held an edge to it. "I smelled you the moment I knocked on his door. I said nothing. He interpreted it in his way. So why are you here Ruby?"

Ruby gave a pouting look at Angela. It changed quickly and she said, "You know the whole world is about to be engulfed in hellfire if all sixty-six seals are broken and you are here."

"Just because the world is coming to an end doesn't mean you stop doing the job."

"Don't be stupid," Ruby spat as she walked past Angela to look around the room. "You know the angels are losing this war. They haven't even appealed to you for help. Now don't you find that strange?"

"Not really," Angela replied as she checked her weapons. She folded up a knife and put it in her pocket. She really couldn't carry a gun but she could carry a few small ends just in case something happened. "The feathered dicks only ever came to me when they needed something really bad. It was just bad luck the last time when we had Godzilla and Mothra."

"You had to bring that up," Ruby scoffed. "You were the one that decided bringing a baby and not just any baby but a baby with god powers into that fight. You could have actually sent us all to the other side." She gestured with her hands showing her agitation. "The angels are losing. Doesn't that even bother you since they are on humanity's side?"

Angela looked up from her preparation. "No because they don't care except for a few."

"What happened to you?" Ruby narrowed her eyes. She didn't like this version of Angela. "You're not the Absolution that is quick to defend her precious humanity; not the one I know."

"You're right. I'm not. Didn't you hear? Absolution was dead and then risen. What makes you think that Absolution it the one hundred percent Absolution that you know?" Angela looked up with her own narrowed eyes. She raised her brow slightly as she waited for her answer.

Ruby took a few steps closer and looked right up in the eyes of Angela. It was the closest she had gotten willingly to Absolution. "I know that you are still you in there. Your godling brat is gone and back to where she belongs so get over it. Someone needs to do something about the seals. It's either going to be you or Sam."

"Yes and you are backing Sam. Old news. That much hasn't changed since we last spoke over certain things that needed to be done." Angela studied the demon. It was a strong scent of demon and she could smell it.

"At least Sam is all for going against Lilith, the one who is doing the seal breaking. You seem content to let her find you."

"And the million dollar prize goes to Ruby," Angela deadpanned in sarcasm. She walked to grab a glass to fill it with water. She downed it and leaned against the wall. She raised her brow as if to challenge Ruby to do one better.

"Are you saying you want her to find you? How can she when even I can't find you because of your 'protection'?" She air quoted the last word in a fit of sarcasm.

Angela gave a snort at that and started laughing. It sounded almost like braying but it was pretty funny. "You can't find me? You just did and only because you can find Sam. If Lilith wanted she could come after me. She wouldn't have that much trouble locating the Winchesters and at her pay grade, she doesn't sweat my sigil."

Ruby studied Angela. She felt a little shocked that she hadn't seen this before. "You are really willing to use the Winchesters as bait? You, the one who is the quickest to jump to their defense when they decide to go in halfcocked as always? That is definitely not you; not the Absolution that I know of. No way."

Angela blinked owlishly at Ruby knowing that it would just annoy the demon. She knew that Lilith could find them if she wanted. Since she hadn't already, Angela was willing to assume that she had bigger fish to fry like breaking the seals. She wasn't going to count on Castiel to give her information and Cary wasn't too reliable either and it wasn't like she was willing to risk Hibah the last three months.

Looking at Ruby, she could see the incredulous look on the demon's face. She finally said, "You know me better than that Ruby. You really think that I would risk the lives of the boys?"

"From where I'm standing yeah."

"Then you must not have been paying attention to what has been happening." Angela slowly approached Ruby. Her eyes began to flicker as she approached the demon. "Especially when Dean was yanked out of hell."

Ruby wasn't sure of the change that overcame Angela. She frowned, "I know that it was cosmic. What does that have to do with anything?"

"Just seeing if you did your homework," Angela replied as she slowly reached out and touched the demon. She frowned slightly as she ran her fingers through Ruby's hair and gently touched her cheek. She removed her finger abruptly and turned to walk away. "If you remember what happened with Uriel, then you should know that I won't let anything happen to them."

Angela paused to look out the window. Ruby looked at her. This was different from the other times and she wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing. "So what do you intend to do? Finally open all of your arsenal?"

"For the most part yes. Some things though… not a good idea."

"You know, I'm going to give a piece of advice that I gave Sam," Ruby countered after rolling her eyes slightly. There was Absolution. Willing to step up but not completely and it was damned annoying and it wouldn't help them in the long run. "This would all be so much easier if you just admit to yourself that you like this; the show of power and the fact that you have the power. You are an equal to Lilith and Alistair if you just suck it up and let it loose."

Angela didn't say anything. She continued to stare out the window. She had her arms crossed over her chest. One of her hands had reached up to play with the pendant that had never left her neck by her hand. Her eyes were flickering as they stared into the night.

Ruby watched and continued, "You like that feeling it gives you. You like being in control of something that gives you an advantage. Are you going to tell me that you didn't like convincing that one scumbag of a human that his worse fear was right in front of him?"

It came rather quick as Angela flew at Ruby and pinned her to the wall. Her eyes were flickering golden orbs and Ruby's eyes were pitch black. Ruby was grinning with satisfaction, "You like it Absolution. You like being able to do things that are a figment of imagination. You have what the elders of all of your kind wish they had."

Angela leaned forward as she pressed Ruby into the wall. She could hear the creaking of wood from the force she was applying. She looked at the demon and got so close that their noses were centimeters apart. "You have no idea pretty little Ruby. You have no idea what I feel in my very being. You want to talk about letting it loose? It was Azazel's mistake to pursue me. In the end the ticking bomb you said in Sam makes Hiroshima look like an accident."

"And you are a fool to not use that against Lilith. She knows you have the ability to kill her. Do you think your demon pulling stunt wouldn't get out?"

Angela held her hand up and it glowed as it hovered near Ruby's head. "It was only a matter of time. As much as I hated being dead for two months I can say that it came with some benefits." She put it closer and could see the fear in Ruby's eyes.

"You wouldn't," Ruby countered. She felt her body tremble. "You wouldn't pull me and send me to hell. You wouldn't betray Sam's trust in you."

"Playing the Sam card again? Bad move Ruby. Besides, Sam knows that the truce will only go so far." Angela gave a sardonic smile as she put her hand closer towards Ruby's head. "I could easily say that you broke it and I defended myself."

"You wouldn't. It's not you."

Angela looked at Ruby. She studied with an almost robotic look to her face. Her eyes were glittering with her power. Suddenly the glow around her hand died. "You're right. It's not me." She leaned in close and gave a tentative sniff as she whispered in the demon's ear, "The only reason you are still alive is because I trust Sam's judgment. But the minute that it changes, the game changes. Until then, be careful since the truce doesn't preclude a bruise or two."

To add insult to injury, Angela gave a kiss to Ruby's cheek. She stood back slowly still giving a smile. Her eyes returned to normal as she stepped back. "I'm still in the game Ruby. You forget that I learned a few things especially from my stint in the pit."

Ruby stared at Angela. Apparently she didn't need to come. There were some things that weren't going to change but it seemed that some had. She wasn't sure if she liked this new Absolution and wondered if it would change things drastically. She knew one thing though and that she wasn't going to stick around. She was gone in a flash leaving Angela in the room.

The place looked like it was filling up. People who hadn't come before now were filling up seats. Apparently they heard of the Incredible Jay and his escape feat from the Table of Death. They wanted to see him perform the Executioner and Angela was going to see it.

As she came in, she spotted Sam waiting. She approached slowly and bumped him gently but kept her head down. It was just a move to let him know that she was there and willing to help from her angle. She didn't expect him to grasp her arm in return so she stopped and said, "Hey."

"Hey," Sam replied. His thoughts were on everything that had occurred from the time Ruby paid him a visit to his getting the call from Dean and then seeing her leave before him. Mostly it was on what Ruby said about his being the only one that could stop Lilith.

It was an ego boosting turn of phrase but Sam knew he wasn't the only one with abilities. Angela had them too. In his opinion, she was capable of actually doing it; killing Lilith and stopping the Apocalypse. She was capable but it seemed that she wasn't willing to. He dismissed that thought but it was a nagging one. He had seen her abilities when pushed to the extremes and it was scary. The capabilities of her abilities were scary.

Angela looked at Sam's hand grasping her elbow gently. She teased him, "Watch the jacket. Dry clean only."

"Sorry."

"Sam, I was just teasing." Angela studied Sam's expression. He looked troubled, like he was in a deep internal debate with himself. "What's wrong?" She put a hand on the sleeve of his jacket but then thought better of it and removed it and looked down. Slowly she started to move away.

Sam looked and noticed that Angela was starting to move away. "Angie," he called to her to get her to stop. "I'm sorry. I just have a lot on my mind."

It's not your fault Sam. Out loud she said, "You have nothing to apologize for. Not for anything that you need to think about." She looked at her hands and played with her fingers. "I just wanted to let you know that I was here and keeping an eye out on things. I may not have been acting serious earlier but… I take every job seriously. The short term and the long term."

Sam looked at Angela. She looked rather pretty in the jacket she was wearing. It went well with her coloring and he recognized the sigils from her leather gauntlets on the collar/lapel and the cuffs. It was cut like a man's coat but fitted for a woman. He took in her countenance as she studied her hands and listened to what she was saying. "Do you have anything planned for the long term?"

"Not immediately," she replied. She continued to look at her hands. She tapped the tips together. "But you are free to do what you think should be done."

Sam blinked as he looked at her. She was not looking at him and it made him feel that they were back at square one when they officially all back together. She avoided looking at him directly or used whatever she was working on as a buffer.

Listening to what she had said, he replied, "We have a job here."

"And I aim to finish it." Angela finally looked up at Sam. "Just because the long term is dire, it doesn't mean that you stop with the short term. But that is just me." She gave a slight smile of reassurance.

Sam sighed at that but it wasn't one of exasperation. He gave a slight smile in response and looked down, "So… would it be so bad if…" He looked at her as he made a slight motion with his shoulders.

"As I said before, I hardly see the difference between you and me regarding that," Angela replied. This was getting repetitive but she could see where Sam was coming from with it. She knew that Dean was hardly supportive and the whole double standards crap had her in a less than cheery mood if she happened to be reminded of it by a chucklehead like Uriel. "The idea is fine. The means, up to you. In this case Frost applies in that there are two roads but you can only pick one. Just remember to weigh the choice carefully."

"You're serious?"

Angela pulled out a deck of cards. It was her tarot deck and she shuffled them. She pulled up the first card for her. It was the Hierophant. She held it up and said, "For me it has always been the bigger picture and to quote Spock from Star Trek, the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. I've always served for the greater good."

"Not always though," Sam replied frowning. It was a little shocking to see Angela with a tarot deck but judging from the look of the deck, she had it for a long time. "You've done things for yourself and also the greater good but your own way."

Angela pulled Death next. She showed it to Sam. "Yes and things happened. I don't know what is going to happen. The unknown is a scary thing and often times I try to cheat it by anticipating. Most people do that anyway but in the end, maybe it is left to fate or what have you. It doesn't necessarily mean the end but change."

Putting the cards back together in the deck, she held them in her hands before putting the deck back in her jacket pocket. "I asked you to trust me. I am telling you that I trust you. I know Ruby must have brought up the you know what otherwise you wouldn't be looking so deep in thought and you wouldn't be asking me about it suggestively."

"I guess I'm lousy."

"No. Just tending to over emphasize." Angela gave a pensive smile. "But I mean it Sam. As much as I would hate to admit it, but I can say that Ruby has a point that the long term is bad with the seals. It is your choice."

"And I said no."

"But you are thinking of it," Angela pointed out. "That's why you asked me again about it. My answer hasn't changed. I trust you." Noticing the crowd and spotting Vernon and Charlie and looked at Sam, "Now if you'll excuse me, I'll go be the eager student."

Sam watched as she left to go talk with the older magicians. She greeted them with the customary kisses to the cheek and they gave her one in return. Normally he would be watching like a hawk and ready to spring on the guy if they got cute with her but this was different. Sure he had been taught not to take things for granted, even an old guy but this time was an exception.

Perhaps it was the fact that she said directly that she trusted him. He wasn't sure exactly but it was the underlying thought as he watched her interact with the elderly magicians. It did have him thinking about all the times that they had worked their hustling scams. Gradually his thoughts drifted back to that conversation he had with Ruby and the one he had with Angela later…

Sam was sitting at his computer, trying to find out anything in connection with the case. The tarot card was lying on top of a planner book when the knock came. He went to take a look through the peephole. Upon seeing who it was, he sighed and opened the door. "What are you doing here Ruby?"

"I should be asking you the same thing."

"I'm working a job."

"The whole world's about to be engulfed in hell fire and you're in Magic Town, USA?"

The conversation continued a bit with Ruby telling him that thirty-four seals had been broken. That was little more than half. It reminded Sam of the two for sure that he knew had been broken. The one that involved the release of Samhain and then the one regarding the wolves of Ragnarok. Then it seemed only two and now there were thirty-four broken. It sounded bad.

"So step up and kill the little bitch."

Sam felt his temper rise slightly. "Oh, I'm game, believe me. It's not the psychic thing I got a problem with."

"Yeah I know what you got a problem with but tough. It's the only way."

Sam knew what Ruby was referring to. He knew and at that moment it wasn't Dean or even his own feelings he was thinking of. "No."

Ruby looked at him with a look of exasperation. "You know this would all be so much easier if you just admit to yourself that you like it. That feeling that it gives you."

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh I don't, huh? Maybe we should ask someone who knows the same feeling but is too far on the road of protect the Winchesters to admit it," Ruby countered. "You know who I'm talking about. You've seen it and lived with it."

"You don't know anything."

"I know that the one who travels with you, the one everyone knows as Absolution… she knows that feeling well. It's just more noble in terms of what she uses it for. Remember Sam, it's simple. Lucifer rises, the apocalypse starts. You think that you have demons on your hands now? People are going to die Sam. Oceans of people and in that crossfire is Absolution. It's no secret that she's involved and she won't refuse. You know it and I know it."

Sam just stared at Ruby, not giving the satisfaction of an answer. So Ruby just said, "So you let me know when you're ready," and she was gone…

Sam looked at Angela as she talked and smiled. He didn't mention what Ruby said about her involvement with the Apocalypse nor the implications she implied. Granted that it was guaranteed to probably be the cause of a fight between them like what he did over the summer… he didn't because he was certain that she knew and maybe… Maybe he might be able to help her out.

"Find anything interesting?"

Sam diverted his attention to his brother and gave his report, sketchy as it was. "What? Uh. No. You?"

"Nothing I wanna talk about or think about ever again."

A/N: Looks like Ruby has made an entrance and really pushed a few buttons for Sam and looks like Angie is letting him run with it. Where does it lead? Keep watchign for more Do You Believe in Magic?...