Castiel's eyes narrowed at the sight of Dean. After learning what he had, he didn't want the older hunter anywhere near Krystal. His behaviour was disgusting and for a moment, it ashamed Castiel to know that he considered this man a friend. He glared at Dean defiantly, as if daring the man to say something else. Dean looked down in shame. Good. He deserved that at least. Instinctively, his hand grabbed Krystal's wrist and pulled her closer to him, as if to protect her and froze. He sucked in a deep breath and turned to look at her warily. He half expected her to panic again and run away again but thankfully, she didn't. Her eyes were on his hand, her expression almost unreadable. Almost. He was about to let go when he felt a hand touch his. He looked down. He looked back up to her face and his eyes softened. Dean paused, looking between the two. His eyes widened at the sight and he fought the urge to throw up, disgust filling him. This was Ruby all over again, he was sure of it. Only this time, instead of Sam it was Cas. He knew Cas was right about what he had said and he should just lay off but he couldn't help it. His instincts were telling him to kill her before something else happened. He was a hunter, she was a Demon, everyone knew how the story went. Instead of openingly venting out his anger, he glowered at them. He couldn't stop the bitterness from rising. Krystal gazed into Castiel's eyes, unable to look away even if she wanted to. She had to admit, the vessel he was using was perfect for him. He was beautiful in every way and not just his vessel but himself. The Angel within. She smiled shyly at him, happy when he returned it. "Thank you," she whispered.
He responded by stroking her cheek. Her eyes closed at his gentle touch. It had been so long since she'd been touched like this and she didn't realize until that moment just how much she had been craving it. His touch was nothing like theirs. Their touch was cold and cruel, their intentions were to hurt as much as they possibly could. His touch soothed her broken, mangled soul. Suddenly, he let go and gripped her chin. Her eyes snapped open to look at him. His eyes darkened in frustration, sending shivers down her spine. He pulled her closer to him so that they were almost touching with their bodies. "What did I tell you?" His voice deeper than usual. "Your soul is not mangled nor is it dark. You are stronger than you think, whether you realize it or not. Most people would go insane from the things you've had to endure. Stop putting yourself down!" She didn't know how to respond to that so she looked down at her feet. His eyes softened and he sighed. "I'm sorry. I just couldn't bare to listen to your thoughts anymore."
"I'm sorry," she said sadly.
He shook his head. "Don't apologize."
Dean let out a cough. The sickingly sweet moment between them was making him sick. "Okay, if you two are done with this, there are more important things we could be doing," he sneered. If looks could kill, Dean would be dead. Sam shot Dean a dark glare but said nothing. Unlike his brother, Sam understood. Cas's intentions were always pure just like his were supposed to be. No one ever said that the best intentions were always going to go down the right path. He knew that better than anyone. He could also see the relationship between Angel and Demon were developing. While he wasn't entirely happy it was with a Demon because it reminded him of Ruby, he was happy for them. Her saving him and getting rid of his insanity was yet another tick in his book for her. After all, she didn't have to save him.
He pulled the tablet out of the bag and handed it to Castiel. Castiel's eyes lit up in understanding. "This is the writing of Metatron," he told them.
"You're saying a transformer wrote this?"
"No, that's Megatron," Dean corrected.
"What?"
"The transformer? That's Megatron."
"What?"
"Anyway," Castiel said, clearing his throat. "Metatron. He's an Angel. He's the scribe of God. He took down dictation when Creation was being formed."
"And that's the Word of God?"
"One of them, yes."
"Uh...well, what's it say, then?"
"I don't know. I can't read it, it wasn't meant for Angels."
Dean rolled his eyes in irritation.
"Okay, this all sounds bad. What are you two jackasses doing with the Word of God? Let me see that thing." Meg moved towards Castiel.
"Back off, Meg!" Dean snapped rudely.
"Come on, it's my ass, too."
"Back off!"
"Damn it! Enough of this Demons are second-class citizens crap!" Meg snapped.
"Enough!" Castiel barked. "Stop arguing. Now's not the time for it." He walked out of the room.
"What are you guys caught up in now?" Meg asked. "I deserve to know, Sam." Sam ignored her. "Okay, fine. I'll hit the road, then. Let me just go get Krystal and her Angel."
She walked out of the room. Sam followed her. "Meg, what are you talking about? Stop."
Meg turned to face him and smirked. "If I go, Krystal comes with me and if Krystal comes with me, who do you think will follow? Hmm? See, during his time here, it seems that Castiel has taken quite a liking to her. He follows her everywhere like a lost little puppy."
"What about us? What about what he owes us?"
"I'm sure Krystal will work on him a little. Maybe he'll start crushing on you too, hot stuff."
Sam was about to retort when they heard a noise from Krystal's room. "What the hell?" When they got there, the tablet was gone. Meg's eyes turned black and she ran outside. Sam followed just in time to see her tackling a kid.
"Not a Demon nor a chomper. What the hell are you?"
"I'm a...K-Kevin Tran. I'm in advanced placement. P-p-please don't kill me." He whimpered.
"I'm not gonna kill you."
"I'm sorry."
Sam tried to take the bag but Kevin held on. "I-I'm sorry. I...I don't – I don't know why, but I can't let go of this. All I know is, this is – it's for me. I'm supposed to keep it."
"Good luck." Meg muttered.
"But you don't know what it is? Open it."
Kevin unzipped the bag and picked up the tablet. A flash of light emitted from the tablet.
Back in the hospital, Dean turned to Castiel, who was watching Krystal play with Simba, a fond expression on his face. "Cas? Where can we find this, uh, Metatron? Is he still alive?"
"I don't know," he shrugged.
"Great. Anything you do know?" He sneered.
Castiel looked away. "I'm sorry, Dean."
"No. You're playing sorry!" Dean snapped, his anger getting the better of him.
Castiel flinched at his anger. He didn't know what to say. Dean had a right to be pissed with him for what he did.
"It's writing." Kevin said, examining the tablet carefully.
"Yeah. Yeah, we get that." Sam dismissed.
"What's Leviathan?"
Sam stared at him in amazement. "Wait, You can read it? Is that what it says?"
"Sort of. It hurts a little. Like looking through somebody else's glasses, but I think it...it's about Leviathan, how it came to be. God locked them up far away, right? Like in jail...because they're so...they're...they're real, aren't they?"
Sam gave him a sad, sympathetic look. "Yeah, Kevin. They – they are. And they're here. Does it say anything about how to kill them? Cause that's – that's kind of been a problem."
"I don't know. It's not like reading reading. It – it's hard to focus on it too long."
"Sam. Something's up." Meg said suddenly, her eyes turning black.
"What?"
Kevin looked at Meg and screamed. He scrambled back in an effort to get away. "Kevin, hey, hey, hey. Kevin!"
The lights broke and a blonde woman appeared in the doorway. "Demon," she hissed, waving her hand, sending Meg flying into a wall.
In the day room, Castiel looked up, his eyes flashed in worry and concern. "What?"
"It's Sam. He's talking to Angels." Castiel grabbed Krystal's hand and they disappeared.
Back in Krystal's room, the Angel sneered at them in disgust. "A Demon whore and a Winchester...again." Sam took a step towards Kevin. "Step away from the Prophet!" She barked.
"Who, me?" Kevin squeaked in fear.
"Sole keeper of the word on earth, we are here to take you."
"What do you mean, "take"?"
"Kill the demon and her lover." The Angel commanded to the other Angel.
"That's not how it...we're not–" Sam protested.
The male Angel held out an arm, giving Meg an opportunity to slash at it with an Angel blade. Light poured from his wound and the blonde Angels eyes hardened in fury. "Where did you get that?!" She screeched.
There was a rustling of wings and they all turned to see Castiel holding onto Krystal. "Castiel?" The male Angel asked.
"Hello."
"You're alive?"
"You!" The blonde said.
"Hello, Hester."
"You smote thousands in Heaven. You gave a big, scary speech. Then you were gone. What the hell was that?!"
Castiel looked down in shame but didn't answer.
"Where have you been?"
The blonde's eyes narrowed and her gaze turned to Krystal. She snarled and pointed at the broken Demon. "He's been here, looking after a Demon of all things!" She yelled. She waved her hand, throwing Krystal against the door. Castiel's eyes widened and he glared at the blonde. "Leave her alone," he commanded darkly, helping Krystal to her feet.
She looked at him incrediously. "You are not serious. She is a Demon! Have you forgotten what you are? There was a time you killed Demons with no hesitation. Now you're protecting them! Look at yourself."
Before Castiel could respond, a voice called out, "Heads up, Sunshine." Dean slammed his hand on the banishing sigil he'd drawn while they were distracted. Light filled the room forcing the Angel's to vanish. Including Castiel and Krystal. "All Angels blown back to their corners. We got like three, four hours tops."
Sam pointed to the blade Meg was holding. "Meg, where did you get that?"
"A lot of Angels died this year." She shrugged as if it were obvious.
"What's happening?! What's happening?!"
"Who is that?"
"It's, uh...Kevin Tran. He's, uh, in advanced placement."
Castiel woke up to Krystal looking down at him. She held out her hand and he took it, allowing her to pull him to his feet. He looked at her sheepishly. "I'm sorry about that," he mumured. She looked around and began to panic. "What? What's wrong?" He asked quickly, hoping she wasn't experienced any more bad memories from her past.
"Simba! Where is he?" Castiel's eyebrows forrowed and he grabbed her hand. They landed back at the hospital. "Simba!" She called. A small head popped out from a corner and she sighed with relief. She bent down and picked the tiny kitten up. He purred happily in her arms, making her giggle.
"Let's go. We need to find the others."
Krystal pulled out a phone from her pocket and dialed. "Meg! Where are you?" She asked when Meg answered.
"We're on highway 94, north of St. Cloud, Minnesota, just passing mile marker 79." Meg stopped talking whe Castiel transported them inside the car.
"Aah!" Kevin cried.
"Kevin, this is Castiel and Krystal...and Simba."
"You're one of the Angels?"
"Yes. Meg, are you hurt?" He asked.
"Shut up."
"Cas, what happened back there? Who were those guys?" Dean asked.
"They're from the Garrison – my old Garrison. Looks like Hester's taken over. We were assigned to watch the earth. Often, it was boring. The wars were very boring and the sex, you know, the repetition. Anyway, I was, uh...I was their captain." Castiel explained.
"Cas, why are they pissed at us now?"
"Because of the Prophet, I assume. They're only following protocol. If the Word of God is revealed, a keeper of the Word will awaken. Garrison code dictates you take the keeper to the desert to learn the Word away from men."
"What kind of sense does that make? He has to tell us so that we can use it."
"I can't live in the desert. I-I'm applying to Princeton!"
"Okay, you know what? Screw the Garrison. We need the tablet to end Roman's Soylent Us crap."
"If you want the Word, you'll have to duck Hester and her soldiers."
"Yeah, you're in our corner, right, Cas?"
"Yes, I'm with you."
It was late at night and Castiel was busy drawing symbols on the walls in chalk. "Let's leave off Angel-proofing sigils or I'll be expelled, too."
"As long as we're invisible to your Garrison buddies, it works for me." Sam said. He hesitated before glancing at the Angel.
"What is it, Sam?"
"Um, I'm just worried."
"About?"
"About Krystal. About you."
Castiel looked up, startled. "What about me?"
"You were gonna take away my insanity."
"And yet, I didn't." Castiel pointed out bitterly.
"That's cause Kris beat you to it," Sam chuckled lightly.
"Kris?" That was twice he had heard that nickname now.
"Yeah...I heard Meg call her that before."
Neither noticed Meg leave the cabin.
"Don't worry, Cas. We'll help her. We'll help her get better."
Outside, Meg stopped in the middle of a road. Two truckers approached her. Their eyes turned black. "See? I'm here, just like I said."
"You'd better start talking, skank. Tell me again why I'm not just hauling you off to the king's cash window."
"Come on, Rosco. I told you. I've got something way better. You know how Crowley likes presents."
"He's not gonna care if we bring in the Winchesters. Yesterday's news." The Demon dismissed.
"Not the Winchesters. I've got the Angel who double-crossed him. I've got Castiel."
"Nah. Castiel – he's dead."
"Right, cause you're in that loop." Meg sneered.
"Where is he, then?"
"First, I want to know how many of you jerks I have to cut in."
"You think we're stupid? We didn't tell anybody."
Meg smirked. "I love Demons." Meg stabbed the Demon in the chest. An orange glow lit up his vessel and he collapsed to the ground, dead. The other Demon, Rosco, lunged at Meg. They fought but altimately, Meg was able to get the upper hand and she stabbed him. Light flashed through his body and he collapsed. Meg looked down at the bodies, panting before turning her back and walking away. When Meg entered the cabin, she found herself trapped and unable to move. She growled angrily and the lights turned on, revealing the Winchester's, Castiel and Krystal all staring at her.
"Didn't expect to see you back." Sam commented dryly.
"Yeah, not without the King's army." He gestured to the knife. "Knife."
She sighed irritably but handed the knife over anyway. "Typical. I save our bacon, and you're sitting here, waiting by a devil's trap. Seriously, I just killed two of Crowley's men. I could have gone the other way on that."
"It's true, incidentally. There's other Demon's blood on that blade." Castiel mumured.
"Look, I'm simpler than you think. I've figured one thing out about this world – just one, pretty much. You find a cause, and you serve it. Give yourself over, and it orders your life. Lucifer and Yellow Eyes – their mission was it for me."
"So, what? We should trust you because you wanted to free Satan from Hell?"
Meg rolled her eyes. "I'm talking cause, douchebag, as in reason to get up in the morning. Obviously, these things shift over time. We learn, we grow. Now, for me currently, the cause is bringing down the King. And I know we'll need help to do it."
"Crowley ain't the problem this year."
"When are you gonna get it?! Crowley's always the problem. He's just waiting for the right moment to strike. I know what I'm supposed to do. And it isn't screw with Sam and Dean or lose the only Angel that's attached himself to my friend."
Sam leaned forward, breaking the trap with his foot.
"Now our only problem is Hester." Castiel pointed out, making the others look at him in alarm.
"What?"
"Well, here, we're hidden from the Garrison, but when you killed a Demon, you put out a pretty clear beacon."
"We need better Angel-proofing now!"
But it was too late. The door to the cabin burst open and the Angels from before entered.
"You took the Prophet from us?!" No one said anything. "You have fallen in every way imaginable."
"Please, Castiel. We have to follow the code. Help us do our work." The male Angel begged.
"He can't help you. He can't help anybody." Dean said spitefully.
"We don't need his help...or his permission." She nodded at the male Angel who disappeared then reappeared behind Kevin. "The Keeper goes to the desert tonight."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Back off. We're actually trying to clean up one of your Angels messes! You know that."
"He's right," Castiel mumured shamefully. "They warned me not to do it but I didn't listen."
"Look, just give us some time, okay? We will take care of your Prophet."
"Why should we give you anything...after everything you have taken from us? The very touch of you corrupts. When Castiel first laid a hand on you in Hell, he was lost! For that, you're going to pay."
To everyone's surprise, it was Krystal that blocked her path. "No. You will stop!" She commanded darkly. They were left stunned at how quickly her voice changed. Her child-like eyes and demeaner were now cold and dark as she turned from insane and playful to dark warrior. "You will not harm him."
Hester's eyes narrowed as she stared down Krystal. "How are you going to stop me, Demon?" She taunted.
Luckily, Krystal didn't rise to the bait. She stood in between Dean and Hester. "Quite easily," Krystal sneered back. Hester snarled in rage and lunged at her, her Angel blade drawn. Everyone watched in anticipation and nervousness. They weren't sure how things would go considering Krystal's condition. Meg and Castiel watched carefully, ready to intervene when they deemed necessary. But there was no need. Krystal ducked Hester's blow and grabbed her arm, twisting it and forcing the Angel to let go of her blade. She brought her foot up and kicked the Angel in the face. Hester fell backwards but got up relatively quickly. Hester circled Krystal slowly, eyeing the brunette up and down carefully. She smirked maliciously. "I can't see what Castiel sees in you. You're nothing special, there's not even much to you. You're just a Demon whore. You think he actually cares for you? He'll kill you the second he's done doing whatever the hell it is that he's doing."
Krystal didn't react outwardly but inwardly, her heart sank. Was he really just using her? Like those sick, twisted men had? Could she really trust him? Could she go through that again? She pushed those questions out of her mind and focused on the fight. "Ya know, I'm glad that blonde hair isn't contagious or I'd have to kill myself. What's the matter, bitch? Your daddy didn't hug you enough?" She taunted back.
Rage filled Hester's eyes at her comment. "You bitch!" She yelled.
Krystal smirked. "Gee, who lit the fuse on your tampon?" Krystal grinned as she heard laughter and chuckles behind her. She held out her hand to no one in particular and said, "Blade!" Someone threw the blade and she caught it. She waited until Hester lunged forwards and at the last second, ducked so she could stab her in the chest. Hester grunted as the blade buried itself in her body. "I like your approach. Now let's see your departure," she said as Hester died. She pulled the blade from Hester's corpse and turned to the other Angel who was looking at her in awe. "You wanna turn?" She asked him. He shook his head. She turned to the others who stared at her.
"What was that, Kris?" Sam asked.
"Kris?"
"Oh, yeah. I heard Meg call you that. You don't mind do you?"
"No. And she was gonna hurt you. I only stepped in, no big deal."
"I like your approach. Let's see your departure?" Meg repeated, eyebrow raised.
Krystal blushed and shrugged.
"I can't believe half the crap you said to her," Meg sniggered.
"She deserved it. Shouldn't have been such a stuck up bitch."
Meg frowned. "Hey, what about you?"
Krystal looked away. "What about me?"
"You seem...sane."
Everyone looked at her hopefully.
"Yeah well, it seems danger is enough to restore my sanity for a little while."
"What do you mean a little while?"
"I mean that it's probably not gonna last that long. It's...hard to focus. Hard to remember who I am."
"Damnit."
Sam walked past Krystal and picked up Simba. "He's cute," he commented.
Krystal smiled. "Yes he is." He handed the kitten to her and she took him gently.
Castiel watched her, stunned at what just happened and the fact that she had restored some of her sanity. This was his chance! Maybe, if he were to spend some time with her he could help her through it. It was worth a try anyway. "Krystal," he called, gruffly. She turned to look at him. He gave her a 'come here' gesture to which she obeyed. He grabbed her hand and paused to look into her eyes. "Is this okay?" He asked hesitantly.
"Yes," she replied softly.
"Hey, where's Meg?" Dean asked suddenly.
They turned to look at the spot the Demoness had been standing but it was empty. Krystal smiled a knowing smile. "Meg likes laying low. She's probably hiding somewhere," she explained. While the others were doing their own thing, Castiel walked over to Inias, who was much more willing to nagotiate than Hester was. He pulled Krystal along with him, unwilling to let go of her hand even for a second.
"These are strange times." Inias commented.
"I think they've always been."
"I wish you'd come with us." Inias said, his hand on Castiel's shoulder.
But Castiel shook his head. "I'm not part of the Garrison anymore, Inias. I'm sorry."
They walked over to Kevin who looked relieved to be finally going home. He gave Sam a notebook of his translations which Sam took gratefully. "Thanks, Kevin. Not a lot of people could have handled this."
"You doing all right there, chosen one?" Dean asked.
"Yeah."
"Are you ready, Kevin Tran?" Inias asked politely.
Kevin nodded. Two male Angels appeared and placed their hands on his shoulders. "Bring the Keeper to his home. We can watch over him there." Inias commanded. The Angels and Kevin disappeared.
Dean turned to Krystal. "So, what about you?"
She looked thoughtful. "Well," she said holding Simba in her arms. "I'm not sure. Think I'll go exploring or something. Unless you need help or something."
Dean shook his head. "We don't need anything. But uh, be safe out there," he said awkwardly.
"Don't worry Winchester. I'll be fine."
She was about to vanish but Castiel stopped her. "Wait a few moments," he said, pulling her back. She looked at him questioningly but did as he asked.
"Here. Leviathan cannot be slain but by a bone of a righteous mortal washed in the three bloods of the fallen. Uh...It says we need to start with the blood of a fallen Angel."
Castiel sighed and held out a small bottle. "You know me," he said as the bottle magically filled with his blood. "Always happy to bleed for the Winchester's."
They took the bottle from him. "What are you gonna do, Cas?" Dean asked.
"I intend to help a certain someone," he replied.
"Who?"
He nodded subtly towards Krystal and their eyes widened in understanding. "Let's go," he said, looking down at her. They disappeared.
"Well, let's get to work."
What no one realized was that the Leviathans had found Kevin and the Angels and that the Angels protecting him were now dead, leaving Kevin and his mum at their mercy.
