RATING: M

AN: Ok, so is being pissy and wouldn't let me update, so hopefully this works. Also, I'd like to thank everyone who commented and didn't kill me for the last chapter. I appreciate it! Hopefully you are happy with this chapter. :D


'The End, Is The Beginning'

Jo was startled awake by a shrill ringing in her ears. She tried to open her heavy eyes and was blinded by yellow light. She raised her hands to her face, the motion slow and almost sluggish.

"Joanna, open your eyes. I am here with you."

The familiar male voiced soothed her sensitive ears, and she squinted through her fingers. The light faded slowly, and her eyes adjusted enough for her to lower her hands. She felt a strong, cool hand soothe her hair back from her face, and she sighed his name, "Castiel."

"You are safe now."

She blinked slowly, trying to resist the urge to sleep, but the ground beneath her was so soft and sponge like, that she wanted nothing more than to close her eyes. Castiel leaned towards her, and pressed a small kiss to her forehead. His scent floated over her gently, and she was filled with memories of springtime in the meadow behind the Roadhouse. She smiled softly, feeling the soft edges of warmth wrap around her body. "Is it over?" she asked dreamily.

"Almost," he whispered pulling back from her. "I will take you home where you will be safe and at peace."

"But the demons will win," she complained softly. She reached up to smooth away the frown that had creased his pale features.

He seemed startled by her touch, and remained very still until she lowered her hand. His eyes dropped close for a moment, and when he opened them, his expression was tender. "Yes," he confirmed gently.

"What will happen to everybody?"

"You do not need to worry anymore Joanna, you can rest now if you like." He seemed to hesitate, and glanced over his shoulder briefly. Jo didn't know what he was looking at. All she could see was soft yellow light surrounding them. She knew this should frighten her, but she couldn't find it in her heart to care. It was warm and safe, and Castiel was with her. She couldn't explain why she trusted him, only that when he kissed her forehead, she experienced the kind of affection she associated with her long dead father. "Joanna?"

"Hmm?" She asked distracted by the light around them. It called to her gently, and she wanted to wrap herself in its warmth and forget.

"Would you like to rest now?" His eyes looking at her imploringly, and she found that the soft light around them suddenly sharpened and dissolved. Pain replaced the fog in her mind, and her stomach burned. She tried to look down at her body, but the pain exploded like fireworks in her skull and she closed her eyes.

"It hurts," she moaned.

"I can make it stop," he promised her, and she opened her eyes. The light had returned, and was almost mist like. Beyond the yellow mist she could just make out chipped wood, and chunks of plasterboard above her.

"He killed me," she realised, and Castiel nodded slowly. He ran his hand through her hair again, and the pain ebbed away slowly. She narrowed her eyes at him. "The demon was waiting for me. It was a trap."

"It was," Castiel confirmed and glanced behind his shoulder again. If Jo didn't know any better, she was sure there was someone standing behind him, calling out to him. The pain flared again, and Jo gritted her teeth trying to ignore it. The yellow light started to fill the room again, and she sighed happily as the pain receded. "Joanna, look at me."

She turned her head to look at him, and was startled by the intensity in Castiel's eyes. She squinted at him, the light faded again. The pain returned. Confused, she tried to move her head, but his hand stopped her. "What is happening to me?" she demanded, fear possessing her body.

"You are being given a choice, Joanna," he told her quietly. He cupped her face in his large hands, and his cool touch soothed the burning pain for a moment. "God is giving you a choice."

"What?" she breathed, surprised by his words.

He lowered his voice to a whisper, and glanced over his shoulder nervously. When he turned back to her she could tell that something was wrong. "You have been chosen, Joanna. We have been watching you, and we know that you are the one who will help us."

"You've been watching me?"

His eyes softened, and he lent towards her again. "I can take the pain away Joanna, and we can leave this all behind you, and you can join us in Heaven." Jo felt the yellow light return before she could see it, and she almost sighed at the smell of wildflowers floating past her nose. "Or," he paused and the light disappeared, and the pain overwhelmed her. She closed her eyes. "I can restore you, and you can fulfil your destiny."

"My destiny?" she asked suspiciously.

Castiel glanced over his shoulder again, leaning towards her until his lips were inches from her face. His voice was barely above a whisper. "There is little time Joanna, you need to make a choice. You can choose to come with me, or I can send you back and you can help us."

"I don't understand," she said, and the pain distracted her from his piercing gaze.

His hand sliding through the hair caused her to open her eyes, and focus on his face again. "Will you help us stop the demons from claiming the earth as their own? Will you help us save humanity?"

Jo narrowed her eyes at him. "Stop the demons? How? What do you want me to do?"

"There is a prophecy Joanna, I can not tell you what it is right now – someone might be listening," he hissed. "If I send you back it wont be easy, but you are strong Joanna and we believe that you can help us."

Jo felt the gravity of his words, and gripped on to the devotion washing through her. She knew her mind had been made as soon as he mentioned the demons. How could she deny something so powerful and so wonderful, when she knew she could help defeat evil? She had no doubt that whatever Castiel had in mind for her wouldn't be easy. But hadn't she been working her whole life towards this? She closed her eyes and prepared herself. "Send me back."

His breath whispered across her and she opened her eyes. A sad smile barely grazed his lips, and his eyes searched her face, looking for doubt or concern. "You must understand that this is no simple task. What we will ask of you is complete devotion and allegiance to the Lord, and that in reflection, death would have been the easier alternative."

Jo nodded.

"If I send you back it will not be like before. You can not return to your normal life."

"I had a normal life?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. He seemed to hesitate while he stared down at her. Jo placed her hand to his face, and gave him a reassuring smile. "I'm ready."

"No one will think less of you if you refuse," he rushed to assure her. Jo didn't understand his hesitation. Deep inside her chest her heart flickered with fear - what ever they had planned for her she knew it was going to be bad, but she didn't care. All that mattered was that she was going to help them stop evil; no matter the consequences, it was worth it. "God will love you regardless of your decision, Joanna."

"Send me back, Castiel."

He nodded. "Close your eyes." She did as she was instructed, and felt the lightest of touches on her stomach. She took a deep breath, and his large hand pressed down forcefully on her stomach. The pain ripped through her with the speed and force of lightning. Jo was forced to bite down on her lip to stop from screaming in pain.

The pressure on her stomach intensified, and she could feel fire licking through every vein in her body. Her back arched at it's own accord, and a scream broke through her mouth. Her lungs tightened, her mouth gasped for air. The last thing she saw before the world turned black was Castiel's hand above her eyes.

Jo came to life screaming. Her eyes flew open, and she sat up clutching her chest. Sucking in sweet cool air, she discovered she was sitting in the middle of a field. Her hands fell to her stomach. Despite the dried blood on her shirt, there wasn't a tear or mark in her shirt.

"You have been completely healed."

Jo looked up startled, and saw Castiel standing several feet away from her looking towards the horizon. Jo realised the sun was setting. Slowly, she climbed to her feet, her legs stiff and tingling. When she was confident she could walk without falling over, she moved to join him. They stood side by side on a hill overlooking farmland.

In the distance, she could just make out red and blue flashes of lightning amongst a circle of trees. As if reading her thoughts Castiel explained, "The police have discovered your body in the house."

"What?" Jo asked glancing down at her own body.

"A duplicate was made to convince them of your death," he answered, a frown staining his chiselled features. "Sam Winchester has just identified you're body."

"What?" Jo repeated. "But I thought-"

Castiel turned to her. "You were given a second chance Joanna, but no one must know of your existence. You are to disappear and the world is to be convinced that you were murdered."

"But my mom-"

"I explained that it would be difficult," He turned back to the horizon. Jo noticed with some trepidation that Castiel held himself differently now. While his presence had brought her comfort and love earlier, it now portrayed indifference. He was almost… cold. "The world must not know of your presence," he pressed, interrupting her thoughts. "If the demons were to find out that we sent you back it would put you in immediate danger. You would become a target."

"Why… how…? I…"

"You must use your skills as a hunter - now more than ever. You know how to remain unseen," he reminded her. "You've had experience in dealing with stolen identities."

Jo blushed, looking down at her feet guilty. "But…" She tried to make sense of his instructions, tried to read between the lines. She was overwhelmed and full of questions he didn't seem likely to answer. "Why? How am I supposed to help-"

He ignored her question, and turned back to the horizon. "As soon as the sun sets you must leave this place quickly. Do you understand? No one is to know that you are alive."

"Castiel, what am I supposed to do?"

"Remain hidden," He turned back to her, his eyes emphasised the seriousness of his words. His gaze hardened, and Jo knew better than to argue with him. "I will send someone to you that will help you fulfil your destiny. Together you can stop the demons from ruling this world."

"Castiel, I don't understand...?"

"Have faith, Joanna." His expression changed swiftly, and he looked sympathetic. He gently pulled the necklace free from her shirt, and ran a finger over the cross. She felt the chain tingle in response. "I will return when it is time," he whispered.

She opened her mouth to respond, when he suddenly disappeared from her sight. Jo whirled around looking for any sign of him, but he was long gone. Sighing, she squinted at the tiny cars and farmhouse.

Twenty minutes later the sun set.

***

"Oh my God." Bobby felt his knees start to buckle as he confirmed what Sam had told him over the phone. "Not her. Please, not her," he moaned in disbelief.

Jo's cold body lay stretched out before him on a steel table, her eyes white and filmy, stared up at the ceiling. He ran a shaking hand over her eyes, and slid them shut.

Bobby tore his eyes away from her body painfully, and looked up at Sam. The younger Winchester stood, gazing at the gaping hole in her stomach. Bobby had never seen Sam so still. "What's in your hand?" Bobby asked pointing to his left arm.

Sam looked at Bobby confused, before realising that Bobby had asked him a question. He lifted his hand, and showed him the mother of pearl-handed knife inside of an evidence bag. The initials 'DW' glinted under the neon lights in the coroner's office. "They found it next to… the body."

Bobby took the offered bag, and he examined it. The blade was still covered in dried blood. Bobby bit down on his bottom lip. He knew without a blood test that it was Jo's blood. "Those evil son's of bitches got her with her own knife," Bobby cursed and covered his mouth with his shaking hand. He turned away from her body and tried to calm himself. "I can't do this again, Sam. I can't burry another one of you kids."

He closed his eyes as he heard Sam cover Jo's body back up with the sheet. He took the body release papers, and tucked it inside the bag with Jo's remaining possessions. "The cops said they still haven't found her truck," Sam spoke up.

Bobby growled. "The demon probably took off with it," he stated. "It'll turn up abandoned in a week or so."

"Does Ellen know yet?"

Bobby sighed, tears stinging his eyes. It had taken two hours, and a bottle of whiskey for him to drum up the nerve to call her. She had broken down, as he had anticipated, and Ernie had to take the phone from her when she went catatonic. Ernie promised to take care of her while Bobby organised for Jo's body to be brought home.

Louie, however, had taken to alerting the hunting community that Jo had been murdered, and anyone who knew anything about the demon responsible was to report to him. Bobby knew he meant well, but the last thing he needed to deal with was a bunch of hunters going off half-cocked with revenge in their eyes. No doubt some innocent would be caught in the crossfire. "Yeah," Bobby answered Sam eventually. "She knows."

Sam nodded, and handed the bag of possessions to Bobby. "Tell Ellen I'm sorry."

Bobby looked up at Sam startled. "You're not coming with me?"

"I… can't," Sam apologised softly. He avoided Bobby's gaze, and made to leave for the door.

"You can't be serious, Sam!" Bobby called after him, suddenly angry. "I need your help!"

"You're better off without me," Sam said and opened the door. "But don't worry, I'll find who did this."

"Sam, wait!" Bobby shouted after him.

Sam ignored him, and slipped into the corridor. Bobby stared at the now closed door incredulously. He couldn't believe that Sam had left. A part of him was terrified of leaving the depressed Winchester alone, but another part of him was furious that Sam didn't have the balls to help him burry her.

He turned back to where Jo lay, and let the salty tears escape his tired eyes. "It's okay sweetie, I'll take you home," he whispered, and quickly left the room before he broke down.

***

"Sam, will you please slow down!" Ruby cried out, grasping the dashboard as Sam swept violently round a sharp corner. The Impala growled furiously down the dirt road, rocks flying up and hitting the windscreen with fierce cracks. Ruby glared at Sam, who hadn't spoken since leaving the county morgue, and tried to hold on. "Sam!"

"We have to find who did this, Ruby," Sam snapped. His eyes narrowed and his top lip curled into a snarl. "I'm going to rip it limb from limb," he vowed.

"Sam, will you just stop for a moment?" Ruby grasped his forearm, and he flung it off. "Sam!" She shouted and tried again, this time placing both of her hands on his arm. "Please, just stop for one second. You can't kill the demon if we're wrapped around a pole."

Her words filtered through his angry haze, and he reduced his speed slightly. He glanced at her quickly, and she was struck by the guilt staining his eyes. "I have to find it, Ruby," he insisted. "I promised Bobby I would find Jo's killer."

"Ok." Ruby straightened in her seat, and kept a nervous eye on the surroundings streaking past them. "I get that this is important," she acknowledged. "But there are a lot of demons out and about Sam, and it's going to take some time to track down the right-"

"I'll just kill all of them until we find the right one."

"Sam!" Ruby cried out frustrated and threw her hands up in the air. "Pull over," she ordered. When Sam didn't comply, she gripped the steering wheel and pulled down. The Impala skidded, and Sam pushed her hands away, and quickly tried to steer the car back onto the road. The tree line approached them rapidly and Sam hit the brakes. The car fishtailed. Ruby held on to her seatbelt, and waited for the car to come to a fierce stop.

"Are you fucking crazy?!?!" Sam roared once he had the car under control. He pulled up the handbrake and turned the car off. His heart was racing and he was almost sick from the adrenaline. "What did you do that for?"

"I had to get you to stop," Ruby explained calmly and took off her seatbelt. She turned to him and placed a soothing hand to his shoulder. "Sam, I know you're upset-"

Sam huffed in response.

"But you need to stop and think for a moment." When it was clear that Sam wasn't about to start the car and speed off again, she let out a deep breath. "Let's just try to look at this calmly, Ok?"

"Fine."

Ruby rolled her eyes and withdrew her hand from his shoulder. "Jo is dead," she stated and ignored Sam's murderous glare. "There was sulphur everywhere and signs of struggle. You said yourself there was no calling card or markings of any kind, so we don't know which demon killed her."

"Right," Sam agreed.

"Ok. Let's think, you're a demon and you have a brand new set of wheels and you've just successfully killed a hunter. Where do you go next?" Ruby waited for her words to settle. Sam's eyes narrowed and she could practically see the wheels in his brain turning. He bit his lip in deep concentration, eventually his eyes widened in realisation.

"How far is it to the nearest bar?"

"I saw a strip club two hours from here," Ruby answered with a knowing smile. Sam let out a deep sigh and sat back in his car seat. "You ready to go now, Steve McQueen?" she asked with an amused smirk.

Sam nodded and turned the car back onto the road. Ruby noted that his speed matched the legal limits in the area and she leant back in her seat satisfied.

Half an hour later Sam spoke up, "Thanks, Ruby."

"Your welcome, Sammy."

"Don't-" he warned thickly, his eyes not leaving the road.

Ruby grimaced. "Sorry, I forgot," she apologised. Attempting to ease the tension, she switched on Sam's ipod and pushed play. Dance music filled the car and she let out a happy sigh.

Sam ignored her and continued to formulate a plan while driving. In the back of his mind he knew that even if he managed to find the demon and kill it, it wouldn't bring her back. Guilt dwelled in the back of his throat, and he knew without a doubt he had already betrayed his brother's wishes. Sam had done what Dean had tried so hard to avoid; he had Jo's blood on his hands.


Feedback is always appreciated! Would love to hear your thoughts!