The Light's Place

I can't hold it.

Yes, you can.

I can't.

Listen to my voice. Focus on that.

Yeah, listen to my voice, Angela thought as her awareness was starting to return. That was her usual go to when soothing raw or wild power or people and creatures. There was something about her voice that most people and things found soothing and it calmed them. It worked in part with her empath ability but she hardly tapped into it unless it was necessary. Like when she soothed Sam when he was particularly freaked out and to Dean when he was really beating himself up. Jack was different.

She had been missing Jack since he left but she knew he was okay. If it had bene otherwise, they would have known. She had marked Jack though unintentionally. She just wanted to give him anti-possession and other warding to protect him and the traditional means didn't work. It was more of that past history that she had no memory of; the history of actually once being an angel and one she wished could just go away. It made things strange since Sam was her soul twin hinting that he was once an angel too. It made her feel like she did when she learned what the cherubs did in terms of their job but it never dispelled Sam and she was certain of her love for him.

In the end, that small part helped in relating to Jack when he came into their lives. She acted normal and more like a welcoming parent. She actually didn't care about his abilities at the time. She saw a scared little boy even though he was more adult in his physical form and her protective instincts took ahold and the motherly side of her was already in high gear since she became a mother. And it hurt terribly when Jack left because he took an innocent life and he didn't know how to deal with it and the fact that he was so powerful.

Finding Jack again… The first thing she did was grab him in a hug and felt her heart seem to jump for joy when he returned it. She didn't want to let him out of her sight but she wanted to find out and help him with what he was doing. And that was finding the door to the other world. The world that led to Mary.

Angela never lost hope that Mary was still alive. The boys were in that state of not betting on that horse and Sam was trying to be optimistic like her. Jack showed them that Mary was still alive and revealed that he was trying to find the door to that place. That was when he explained about dream walkers and their ability to see other worlds. It had her excited and fascinated. Not really the perfect timing for it but sometimes these things had a way of popping up and they did find the most powerful dream walker there was and she wasn't big on helping them.

It didn't help that Dean drew a gun. Angela had the business end of weapons pointed in her direction but never from someone that was family to her. Her usual reaction would have been to take out the threat but this time she gave a look at Dean and was aware that a rumble came from her and her eyes vamped out. It was one of the few times that there had been tension between her and Dean that was almost violent. The last time it had bene particularly violent was when Dean was a demon. In the end, the girl helped them but it didn't help that they were being chased by angels.

Being a protector was something she had done for as long as she could remember. She protected those that couldn't do it for themselves or taught them how to do it. And she knew a thing or two about fighting angels. She managed to set up the defenses while Sam laid down the wards but that didn't keep them out. That was when Kaia told them that she would help them out. Jack helped but it was clear that he needed a stabilizer and she offered.

Pam the psychic once called her a conduit. At the time she didn't fully see it or appreciate it. Now, she could see how she was like the pendant that was still around that teddy bear she still had. Even though she was a fighter, she always helped someone. Well she certainly helped in this case with Kaia.

The last thing she heard was Kaia making rhythmic screaming. She also remembered telling Kaia to calm down and to remain steady but even she could see that Kaia couldn't hold it. The girl didn't have the practice needed to sustain her concentration but it was impressive for someone who used drugs because of the nightmares of the bad place. It was enough for Jake to open the door but Kaia lost it at the critical point and here she was feeling like the time she and the Winchesters had been sent back in time to the Medieval Ages.

This place reminded her of the war torn areas she had been in. She could see the desolation of the place and thought that what Sam and Dean described couldn't do justice to what she was seeing. The building she was in looked like something out of those slasher flicks where the place looked old and abandoned with a few holes for good measure. And it didn't help that there was the feeling of torture that was present.

She looked around and found Jack was here. But there was no one else. No Sam, Dean or Kaia. Not even their dogs were there. Something had happened and she was thinking how they had been separated when they had their Quantum Leap adventure in the Medieval Ages. Something was terribly wrong. She got the sense of it and she was sensing Sam's discomfort. It had her frown since she couldn't see him anywhere and…

Angie, where are you…

Angela hissed under her breath as she lifted herself and looked around. She could hear Sam in her head but it sounded faint, like he was far away. Or he wasn't in that other world, meaning he didn't make it through. That meant that he was dealing with the angels with Dean and… She hoped that the angels didn't do anything to them or there would be hell to pay. But that didn't tell her where they were at.

"Mother."

Angela turned to look and found Jack pushing himself up and looking around. He looked confused a bit but he was okay. He also looked relieved that she was there. She patted his shoulder and said in a low timbre, "It's okay Jack. I think… I think you got us here."

"Angie?"

Angela recognized that voice. She knew it from anywhere. She never thought that she would hear it ever again. Her breath came out in shuddering breath of relief. She was relieved but now she had to have the moment of truth. Slowly, she turned in the direction of the voice. Her breaths were coming out in slight pants.

Mary Winchester was there and alive. Angela held out hope but to see it for real… it was a relief. She glanced at Jack and then up at Mary. Her old friend was in one of those contraptions she thought should be relegated to museums since they were the kind of things barbarians used. She pushed herself to her knees and looked at Mary. She breathed, "Mary."

Mary looked at her with a dulled set of eyes. Angela had seen that look before with prisoners that could only look forward to torment from their captors and death. It had her wondering what the time difference was in this world. It was a minor thing but in the back of her mind she knew that it was going to have some bearing while they were there. Right now, she had to figure out how to get Mary out of that thing. She looked at Jack.

Jack was looking confused but he realized where he was at. He saw Mary and got to his knees and slowly got to his feet. He looked pleased with himself that he got them there but Angela knew that he had yet to understand that the situation could easily get them way over their heads. They had to get Mary out but she also had to be what she had always been. She had to be their protector. She was a warrior and that was her place in the world but she chose what she made of that role. She just hoped that they would be able to get out of there and find their way home.

A/N: Angie gets through the door with the Winchesters and Jack but it seems that they all don't end up in the same place but she is where she and Jack end up where they were looking for. Tag to The Bad Place.