A new chapter, at last! Hopefully I'll be quicker on a draw with updates since I'm on a short break from my studies. Thanks for reading!

2011

Becky and Sam lay under the covers, snuggled up despite the lack of a central air conditioner. Love (and love potions, incidentally) make people do nonsensical things like that.

"Tell me a story. What was the worst thing that ever happened to you?" Becky asked, lazily. "Honestly?"

Sam stared at the house's ceiling, his eyes studying the water spots that inched their mildew across the cheap plaster stucco.

"Honestly? It was at Stanford." He admitted, shifting his weight in the bed. Becky was warm, too warm, but she moved with Sam, her arms wrapped tight around him, not letting him move even an inch. A film of sweat held their skin together, sticky and uncomfortable.

"I had this professor my junior year. Dr. Swift. Developmental psychology. I had to take this class to fill hours, to keep my scholarship. I didn't need it to graduate. And she hated me. I don't know why. She just did. But I busted my ass in there and did really well."

"So what's the problem?" Ruby asked, genuinely surprised by his answer. He hadn't mentioned anything predictable, like his mother dying or being chosen by Azazel. He didn't even mention the death of his brother, or his messed up childhood. This thing with the professor had never been in Chuck's books. Becky wondered why.

"She gave me a C for my final grade."

"So?" Becky said. "No, don't make that face. I want to understand. Why is a C so bad? Did you lose your scholarship?"

"No."

"Then what's the big deal?"

"It's stupid."

"Bet it's not."

"It lowered my GPA, okay?" Sam crossed his arms, un-sticking himself from Becky.

"Why does that matter so much?" Becky smiled at him. "You don't need a 4.0 to tell you how smart you are."

"Because." Sam said. "I know it's pathetic and stupid but nothing in this life ever made me happier than maintaining a 4.0 GPA. Until we fell in love, of course." He added, for good measure.

"Why?"

"Because. Because it…no matter what was happening, no matter how screwed up everything was, I always had that little piece of paper that said I was perfect at something. It was proof that I was valuable."

"So people who make C's aren't valuable?" She ruffled his hair, which annoyed him, but he was happy to tolerate it.

"No, it's not that. I just loved being that guy. The one with a 4.0. Because he was smart and perfect and going somewhere."

"You are going somewhere." Becky argued. "Just a different direction than you thought."

"I'm glad." Sam said, with a smile. "It led me to you."

Scene Break

Becky and Castiel sat in her home, with two untouched glasses of iced tea in front of them. Her sunroom was small but cozy, decorated with vintage cushions and lace doilies.

"Your child, you know its gender?" Castiel asked.

"No." Becky replied. "Clive and I want to be surprised."

"Hmm." Castiel considered, and took a sip of the tea, making a face at its syrupy sweetness.

"Do you know what it is?" Becky asked, her interest piqued.

"Yes. But I shall keep it a surprise."

Becky frowned, the temptation nagging at her.

"Now I can't help wondering if I'm having a Declan Scout or a Penelope Willow."

"Those are names you and your husband have chosen?" Castiel asked, seemingly deep in thought.

"Yes…why? Don't you like them?"

"They are very plain. But humans have plain names. Dean. Sam. Becky. I am Castiel, and most humans call me Cas, because it is plain. I was called Steve, for a while. Human names are perplexing."

"Well, if you had a baby, what would you call it?"

"Raizel." Castiel answered.

"It's a bit close to Rachel, I think." Becky said. "No offense."

"None taken."

"If it's a girl," Becky began, the loud ticking of the clock grating on her nerves. "I'll call her Penn, for short, I think. Hey, um, Castiel?" She took special care to pronounce his full name.

"Yes?"

"You're an angel. Can't you just pop into Otherton and find Dean and Waverly?" she traced the condensation on her glass with her fingernail.

"It is not so easy as it would seem, even for an angel. Reapers, or humans who will one day become reapers, slide through the cracks between worlds with no trouble."

"Alan's good at what he does." Becky sighed. "But…I worry, still. I don't know who gets into more trouble: Waverly or Dean. And now they're both together, so who knows what might happen?"

"This…Waverly. The Protector. You care for her?"

"Like my sister." Becky nodded. "We're all very close. And don't you worry about Dean, Castiel. If Waverly is with him, he won't get hurt. Probably."

"I will always worry for Dean." Castiel replied.

Becky sighed.

Scene Break

Alan and Sam had procured an empty booth in the spectral diner, and both had neglected to order anything.

"How long has it been?" Sam asked, glancing at his cell phone screen, which was frustratingly blank.

"Twenty minutes for you and me." Alan explained. "For Dean and Waverly, it may have been five minutes. I may have been days, for all I know. But they should be here with us soon. The only way out is through, and this isn't Wave's first rodeo. And your brother…wow." Alan shook his head in disbelief. "The vibes I pick up off him. Has he really been to Purgatory?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah. After a…after he saved everyone."

Alan understood what Sam meant, even without lengthy communication. "Yeah, I get that. Big brother saves a lot of people, doesn't he? And you right along with him."

"He's never...he's different." Sam admitted. "Ever since he got that mark. It's like he's…" Sam trailed off, confused. "Why am I telling you this?"
"You can't lie here. And this diner we're in. Sometimes people feel a compulsion to spill their guts. Talk out their unfinished business and whatnot. Especially to guys like me. Future reapers." Alan sighed.

"How does that work?" Sam asked. "How does a human become a reaper?"

"We're born that way, the same way someone else is born with red hair or a high IQ. There's just something in us that makes us special. Physics and planewalkers in life become reapers in death. Because nobody else is suited for the job. It's just not part of their make-up."

"But what about free will?" Sam asked.

Alan threw his head back and laughed. "Free will? Like I had a choice to be this, any more than you chose what you are. Tragic past? Mother dying, demon boy king, breaker of the final seal of the apocalypse? Thanks for stopping that, by the way."

"Alright, you're a good psychic. But it's creepy and annoying, you knowing everything."

"I get that a lot. But what I don't get is that teeny sparkle of angelic inside you. Right next to a bit of demonic energy. You…damn it, you've been possessed by everybody and their mother, haven't you?"

"Okay, I'm done with this conversation." Sam said, getting irritated with his new acquaintance.

"Fair enough." Alan shrugged. "You hungry? Delphine, the cook here, makes an amazing chicken fried steak. Just amazing. Hey, Delphine!" Alan waved his hand. "Two chicken fried steak plates, please!"

"So…" Sam stared at his hands, feeling restless. He hadn't anticipated how dull this rescue mission was turning out to be. "I didn't get a chance to really talk with Waverly about her mark. I want her to help my brother, if she can. She seems to be in control of it pretty well."

Alan rolled his eyes. "It would seem so, yes. But in a lot of ways, she's still her mark's bitch. She's changed a lot, since she got it. Part of that could just be that she grew up. Part of it could be the fact that superpowers aren't fantastic for somebody's ego.

They feel invincible, way more so than a human ought to feel. Waverly, she…the power she has. It's incredible, but it's also terrifying how lost she can get in it. There's a fine line between a hero and a villain, if you let that sort of power really get to you."

"You keep her grounded, don't you?" Sam asked. "You keep her human."

"She does the same for me." Alan admitted. "And Becky, she helps with things I can't. Girl things. Feelings and stuff. Margot, Heinrich, Elspeth. We're not perfect, but we're a family. And we all keep each other human, as best we can."

Sam nodded. "So you think the best thing for Dean is to…"

"The best thing for your brother would be to lose the mark, if he can." Alan answered, honestly. "But if he can't, then the only way to keep him grounded, in my experience, is through love. That's the only difference between the Waverly you've seen and the avenging monster she could turn into."

"Oh my Dad. You've solved it." A voice interrupted them. Gabriel, with a giant smile on his face, had appeared next to their table. All other motion and activity in the small diner ceased. Only the three men remained unfrozen.

"An angel?" Alan asked, confused. "You feel like an angel. What are you doing here?"

"I run this place, buddy." Gabriel said. "Caddo Ayi, pleased to meet you."

"You're supposed to be dead!" Sam exclaimed, confused.

"So sorry to disappoint you." Gabriel said, taking a seat on Sam's side of the booth. "I have your brother. And Waverly. Don't fret; they're safe. For now."

"What did you do to them?" Alan demanded. "And what are you?"

"I'm Gabriel, the archangel." He said, rolling his eyes. "Keep up. I'm here to tell the two of you what to expect when you next see your little buddies. They'll be different, but new and improved."

"Improved how?" Sam demanded. "Let Dean go."

Gabriel grinned and cracked his knuckles. "That's the key, right? Love? Well, I was around this rock for the first bearer of the Mark of Cain to mess shit up. And frankly, the world can't afford another episode like that. So I did your brother a favor."

"Oh, I'm sure." Sam snapped. "Like the time you murdered him?"

"Which time?" Gabriel snarked, gleefully. Sam scowled at him.

"Oh, come on. That was a little bit funny. Anyhoo, your darling duo is almost out of the woods. Thought I'd let you know."

Alan reached over the table and grabbed Gabriel by his shirt collar. "You listen to me, you incorporeal chucklefuck, if you've hurt her…"

"Why on earth would I hurt my Protector? My champion. I did her a favor. Could you watch the upholstery? Take your grubbies off me."

"What kind of favor?" Alan asked dubiously, and relinquished his grip from the amused archangel.

"I found her her soulmate." Gabriel said. "Pretty fun, huh? The problem with types like Waverly, though, is that hero work can make you so jaded. They don't want to let their gaurds down. Sometimes they need a little push in the right direction."

"Soulmates aren't real." Alan argued.

"They are. And Dean Winchester is Waverly's. What stopped Cain from ending the world in a bloody rampage? The love of a good woman kept him in line. And who can keep the guy with Lucifer's mark in line better than the girl with Gabriel's?"

"What did you do?" Sam asked, putting his head in his hands. "What did you do to my brother?"

"I didn't do anything to him." Gabriel asserted. "I may have put some memories from the other timeline into their heads, to help them fall in love, but they're not under a spell."

"Other timeline?" Alan asked, in disbelief.

"In love?" Sam asked, in a tone very much like Alan's.

"You got it." Gabriel replied. "And don't you two morons go messing it up. It took me five years to get those idiots together."

"They've been gone a few hours." Sam argued.

"Or have they?" Gabriel quirked an eyebrow, mysteriously. "Look, Sam. You finding that newspaper article that brought you here wasn't a mistake. I needed the brothers Winchester to come to Vesper and meet Waverly. So they could fall in love, like in the other timeline."

"What other timeline?" Sam asked, exasperated.

"It's not important." Gabriel shrugged. "What's important is, everybody gets what they want. Even you, Sam. You're no longer the apple of big brother's eye. He's got something to live for besides you. Isn't that what you wanted?"

Sam didn't reply, choosing instead to awkwardly examine his own cuticles.

"You didn't mess with their heads? They're making their own choices?" Alan clarified, frowning.

Gabriel nodded. "And now you've got a great team for taking down Abbadouche and Magical Mister Mephistopheles. They'll keep each other human. You're welcome."

With a wink, Gabriel vanished, and activity in the small diner resumed as time began again.

Alan and Sam were silent for a moment, speechless.

"What just happened?" Alan managed.

"I have no idea." Sam slowly replied, getting a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. His gaze was caught by the door of the diner swinging open. "But we're about to find out. Look who just got here."

Okay, that was a plot twist even I didn't see coming. Please review for me to let me know that people are still interested in my wonky little yarn. I'll continue with a sensible explanation to that bombshell I just dropped. Until then, thanks for your continued support!