A.N.- So I'm not dead. Whoo-hoo. But someone's gonna be.

Wayward, Ch. 10

Jolene's head was pounding. She wasn't sure what poison the Questing Beast had injected her with; but she was feeling the aftereffects. Crowley was still silent, and Jo left him that way. She sat in the back of the Impala with her head resting on Castiel's shoulder. Every few miles, Sam or Dean would turn around in their seats to check on them, and Castiel would give them a reassuring look.

Gabriel, on the other hand, sat against the other side of the back seat and snored. He was obviously recovering well from whatever Lucifer had done. They'd made it halfway through Idaho when Sam checked his phone and frowned.

"Demonic possession in Bozeman, Montana. We can take a one day detour and-"

"Sammy, do you see that sky?" Dean pointed through the windshield at the shy, which had been constantly boiling with dark and angry clouds for the last few days.

"It's because we're nearing Lucifer." Castiel observed, "He must be bringing more monsters."

"And we have no army." Jolene murmured against his shoulder. Dean made a dissatisfactory noise and jerked the wheel. Gabriel fell against Jolene and Cas as the Impala fishtailed in the middle of the empty highway and peeled off to head East. "We'll have to see what we can find." He growled.

"Let's make this quick," Gabriel groaned. "I want to get it over with."

. . .

"Alright, what's the briefing Sammy?" Dean asked, gently putting the Impala into park in the parking lot of a gas station.

"Just a normal haunted house. It's right down the street. Nothing too big, we can get this done and be back on the road by tomorrow night." Sam said, scrolling through the text on his phone.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Dean said, kicking the door open and heading to the trunk for weapons. Castiel climbed out of the car and Jolene rolled out after him.

"What's the plan, though? Are we going in as FBI, exterminators, relatives… what?" Jolene pressed.

"We're going in as soon as the sun goes down." Dean said, "Then we're going to gank whatever's in that house and get back on the road."

"Wow, breaking and entering sounds good." Sam commented sarcastically. Dean looked up from the salt shells he was loading into the shotgun.

"You got a better idea?" He retorted. "We need to get back on the road; but I agree we can't just drive by and ignore someone who needs us. And it's not like we've seen any other Hunters out here anyway."

"Still breaking and entering." Gabriel grumbled.

"You know what? For that comment, you don't get a gun." Dean snapped. "Have fun throwing shards at the demon." Gabriel made an obscene gesture, and Castiel grimaced at his brother's lewdness.

. . .

"Dean, this may be bigger than one demon." Sam said, "Look." He leaned over to show his brother the EMF reader, and Jolene could hear it ticking and squeaking at a high frequency.

"Well shit. We don't have time to rethink this." Dean said. "We've got all four of us, and we're all armed; so as long as we're careful we'll be fine." Jo almost thought about mentioning Crowley to bring the body count to five, but she realized that she hadn't heard from him in hours.

"Crowley?" She asked gently. She felt him there, sulking; but no amount of prodding could get a response. She sighed and strained her ears to try and gather her surroundings. Dean wedged open a window in the rear of the house and climbed through first, then Sam boosted Jolene through (after ignoring Gabriel's offer) and was followed by Cas and the other angel.

"Let's split up," Sam whispered, "And remember that there are still people here and this is more than one entity here."

"Because splitting up isn't how all bad things happen." Gabriel griped. Jolene stepped purposefully on his heel, and he hissed profanities at her under his breath. Jolene threaded her finger through one of the belt loops on Castiel's trench coat and let him lead her around, clicking only when the angel forgot to turn a corner widely and accidentally bumped her into things. Eventually she let go of him and followed the sound of his footsteps. She could hear that Sam and Gabriel had wandered to another part of the house, and Dean's footsteps had vanished almost instantly.

Jolene heard something creak above her and stopped cold. She quietly zoned in on the sound, but realized that it was only the house settling or one of the others moving around upstairs. Jo took a second to compose herself and slow her breathing, and once she could hear over the pounding in her ears, she started moving forward again. After a few seconds of groping ahead of her, Jolene realized that she was alone.

"Cas." She whispered, "Cas, I lost you."

A hand closed on her upper arm and Jolene jerked away. She immediately slid her feet apart and brought her hands to her sides to stabilize and defend herself.

"Hey, sorry." Someone whispered, she recognized Dean's voice and relaxed. "You're tense." He observed.

"Well, having someone grab you when you can't see it coming is startling. Especially when I can't hear someone reaching over." Jolene explained. Dean made the soft exhaling sound that he did when he smiled. Jo actually enjoyed the sound, he hadn't smiled in a while.

"So you wouldn't feel it if Sam or I just-"He snapped both of his hands onto her shoulders, but Jolene was smug she didn't do more than flinch.

"I was expecting it this time." She told him. Dean made a disappointed sound and she smiled.

"Nice try, Dean. Maybe next time; but try not to make it a game or habit." Jolene said seriously, making sure he understood before turning to another subject.

"Do you have the EMF reader?" She asked. Dean shook his head.

"I gave it to Sammy," He said. Jolene rolled her eyes towards the ceiling.

"Don't you think Gabriel would be able to sense a demon without the EMF machine, though?" She asked. Dean was silent only for a moment.

"Shit."

"Yeah."

"Well… you've got Crowley, right?" Dean asked. Jolene pursed her lips.

"He's not speaking to me. I think he's embarrassed that he let us get bit by the Questing Beast in Wyoming." She theorized. Dean snorted.

"He does have one hell of an ego. How are you feeling after that, anyway? We probably should've checked before bringing you in here." He asked gently.

"I'm alright, it's just a minor headache." Jo reassured him. "Thanks for your concern, though." She pressed forward a few more steps before turning and almost bumping into Dean directly behind her. "By the way, Dean: I think Cas would-"An unholy roar rattled the foundations of the house, making both of them jump.

"Are you kidding!" Dean snapped, hoisting the shotgun to his shoulder. "Jo, follow me!" He snatched Jolene's wrist and dragged her after him. She could hear Sam's shotgun firing upstairs and pulled away from Dean, frantically clicking until she found a stairway with a thick bannister and carpeted steps.

"Sam!" She shouted. She heard a whoosh behind her as Castiel appeared on the steps and zoomed past her in a blur. Jo could hear Dean shouting behind her and feel his footsteps thud up the stairs. Another roar shook the house, and Jo heard small voices screaming.

"Mommy!"

"Mom, help!"

When she reached the top of the stairs, Jolene immediately turned to the right as Sam's shotgun echoed another shot from the left.

"Jo what are you doing?" Dean shouted, "They're this way!" He stumbled for a second as the house shook underneath his feet.

"There are kids over here!" She screamed back. Dean hesitated for a moment, then took off after her.

"Cas, protect Sam!" He shouted into thin air, shoving shells into the gun as he ran down the hall. Jo kept running, straining for the young voices as the house rumbled again. The floor moved again, but not like it had before. It was like someone had cracked a whip at the end of the hallway, and the entire floor undulated with the shockwave. It was more than enough to knock Jo off her feet, but she didn't stay down long. She sprang back onto her feet and could hear Dean trying to right himself on the floor behind her.

"Mom! What's happening?" Jolene didn't hesitate to kick at the door blocking her from the voices. It crumpled under her heel, and she rushed forward only to be greeted by screams. A boy and girl, one twelve, one eight, sat huddled on a bed as the ceiling shook and plaster rained down on them. Jo turned to them and did her best to make her eyes look focused and less unnerving.

"It's okay, guys; it's okay!" She shouted, trying to sound as reassuring as she could. "We're going to get you guys out of here, okay? I need you to follow me." The boy willingly hopped off the bed; but his younger sister pulled farther away from Jolene's outstretched hand.

"What about my mommy?" She cried, "Don't want to go without her!"

"Hun, your mommy will be outside," Jo reassured her. "She's already out, so I need you to come with me so you can see her." Jolene couldn't see; but the little girl's silent whimpering proved that she wasn't going anywhere. Jo sighed heavily. "Okay, honey, c'mere." She lunged forward and scooped the little girl into her arms. She was by no means light, and she did not like to be held. She punched and kicked and scratched like a feral cat, but Jolene spun on her heel and half-hustled-half-dragged her to the door. Jolene was about to cross the threshold with the little boy on her heels when the door slammed shut in her face and a force threw her back against the wall. Jo hugged the little girl to her chest and took the brunt of the hit with her back. She lay there for a moment, stunned, while the girl wriggled out of her arms and ran to her brother. The house tilted suddenly, like it'd been flipped on its side; but the change was only temporary. The rooms immediately flipped back to normal, and the siblings slid against the wall on the far side of the room while Jolene rolled across the floor.

"Jo!" She could hear Dean on the other side of the door, banging on it and cursing like a sailor. It sounded like he was either kicking the door or firing his shotgun at it, she couldn't tell. Her head was pounding too hard to think straight, and she could taste blood running into her mouth. One of the kids screamed again, and Jolene did her best to rouse herself. She was able to get onto her hands and knees before the same force slammed her from behind and pinned her to the floor. The children were shrieking, and Dean was snarling at the door, and she could hear Gabriel and Castiel's angel shards ringing over the sound of Sam's shotgun and the house groaning. Jolene spat the blood out of her mouth and strained against whatever was holding her down.

"Retro Satana." She gasped, feeling the pressure release only a little. She repeated the phrase again, and again, until she was screaming Latin at the top of her lungs and could move. Jo jumped to her feet and grabbed the girl again, still muttering protective wards. She grabbed the boy by his collar and dragged him with her to the door.

"Apertus!" Jo shrieked. The door flew open, almost hitting Dean. She quickly transferred the wailing little girl to Dean's arms and took off down the hallway. "Get them outside!" She ordered over her shoulder. Dean's cursing followed her down the hall, but she ignored it. Jo listened for the ring of the angel shards, and swung into the room with the loudest sound. As soon as she entered, she was almost knocked to the ground again by the furniture and books flying around the room.

"Jolene, retreat!" Castiel ordered, trying to shove her back into the hallway with his powers. Jolene instead dodged him and crept forward. A woman was suspended in the middle of the room, with her hair whipping around her face and her arms outstretched. Her mouth gaped open in an eternal howl; but no sound came from between her lips.

Sam and Gabriel stood on either side of her, trying to edge closer through the maelstrom of furniture and knickknacks hurtling through the air. Gabriel effortlessly waived the items aside, but Sam had to bat them away with the stock of his rifle.

"Retro Satana!" Jolene shouted. The words were ripped from her mouth by the wind as soon as she said them; but she repeated the phrase over and over until the whirlwind slowed. The mother slowly descended, and all the books and furniture dropped to the floor. Cas had to jerk Jolene out of the path of a falling sofa as the mother smirked.

"So nice to have you all in one place." She said in a gravelly voice, "But where's the short one with daddy issues?"

"Oh, hey Lucifer." Gabriel said flatly. Jolene felt Castiel's grip on her shoulder intensify, and Sam instinctively took a step back.

"We would have known if you were here." Cas denied, "I felt nothing when we drove through this area before." The mother smiled and spread her perfectly manicured hands.

"Well surprise, bro. I had a minor demon inhabiting this house, but when you idiots decided to turn around and play the hero, I decided to step in and greet you myself." Lucifer said. Jolene couldn't see him, but she could almost picture the sickly sweet smirk on his face. In the back of her mind, she felt Crowley stir. Lucifer cocked his head.

"Crowley, why'd you pick a blind girl?" He chuckled, "You must not have had much to choose from." Jolene opened her mouth to angrily retort; but Crowley took control from her.

"How dare you speak to me, you worm," He snarled. "I can't imagine the amount of arse kissing and ball fondling you had to do in order to crawl your way out of your perfect little prison; but let me tell you this-"Crowley shook off Castiel's hand and stormed forward until Jolene's nose almost touched the mother's. "-Hell is rightfully mine, and I'll damn well kill you or anyone who gets in my way." Lucifer paused for a second, then started howling with laughter.

"You're so cute, Crowley; but I just can't take you seriously with a vessel like that. You don't even have full control over it, how could you possibly rule Hell?" He tweaked Jolene's nose arrogantly, and she could feel Crowley seething with venomous rage.

"I was Lilith's right hand man, and Hell automatically goes to me!" He roared.

"Just because it's yours by right doesn't mean you know how to use it." Lucifer said condescendingly. Crowley raised Jolene's fist to throw a punch; but Castiel caught him by the arm and jerked him backwards. Jolene made a note to thank him.

"Thank you, Cas. I wouldn't have wanted to accidentally break him." Lucifer sniveled. He turned quickly and shoved Gabriel backwards, throwing the angel shards from his hands and thwarting the silent attack his brother was trying to mount.

"Now really, Gabe. Behind the back?" Lucifer scolded, grabbing Sam's shotgun, whacking him in the chest with it, and bending the barrel into a pretzel. Gabriel came at him again, but Lucifer got him by the neck and threw him straight downwards through the floor. Crowley was so shocked that he accidentally let go of the controls, giving a direct route to Jolene's mouth.

"Gabriel!" She screamed. Lucifer grinned at the shocked look on Sam's face, then leapt down to the lower level. Only to be blown back by a salt round to the chest.

"Surprise, bitch." Dean quipped. Lucifer stumbled for a second, then grinned and shook the salt out of his hair. He lifted his hand quickly and tossed Dean up through the ceiling, the opposite of what he'd done to Gabriel.

"Dean!" Sam and Cas shouted in unison. When Lucifer turned back around, Gabriel was ready to face him. He brandished his repaired angel blade between them. Lucifer scoffed.

"Gabe, I don't want to hurt you. But if I did, that little scrap can't help you." He taunted. Jolene knelt at the edge of the hole in the floor, Crowley was so angry that he couldn't regain proper control. All she could see were blips of vision and color. She could see Lucifer approaching Gabriel slowly; but couldn't find enough power between her and Crowley to speak. Cas had left her side to tend to Dean, and Sam was crouched over his brother's unconscious body.

"I let you go after that scene in Vermont," Lucifer warned, "But for some reason you want to keep trying my patience and mercy, and I'll tell you, Gabe- I'm not the angel of mercy."

"Oh I know." Gabriel agreed. "The issue is, you've appointed yourself as the angel of death. And last time I thought about it, that's not your gig, bro." Lucifer shrugged.

"So why not agree to disagree? You can go your own way, and I'll kill the Winchesters and Crowley once and for all. If you even take our baby brother with us, I'll spare him, too." He suggested. Gabriel spun the blade in his hands experimentally.

"Yeah… normally I'd be all for that. Except you want to destroy the world and all of that good shit, blah, blah, blah. Basically, if you have your way with the world- pun intended- I won't have any more hangouts. No bars, no whorehouses, and no Winchesters to mess with." He said. "Not to mention the fact that there are two little kids out there crying on their lawn because you're tearing up their house and possessing their mother. On a scale of one to ten, this is a stage eleven party foul, bro." Lucifer's smile faded into a grimace.

"You've got to be kidding me. You're feeling sorry for humans? Maybe I should just kill them first to remove all your distractions." He smiled at the ceiling, "Then I'll move onto the Winchesters." Gabriel chuckled.

"That's cute, bro; but I don't think so." He waved his hand and smirked as a filmy bubble expanded over him and his brother. Lucifer tried to attack the barrier, but it threw him back. "You're not getting to those kids or the Winchesters." Gabriel said solemnly, "Not without going through me." Crowley still hadn't composed himself enough to regulate control; and the flickering vision was starting to make Jolene sick. She could see some kind of barrier erecting itself around the two angels; but she couldn't hear what they were saying. Sirens were wailing in the distance, and Sam and Cas were still trying to shake Dean back to consciousness. He bolted upright, and Cas helped him to his feet. They all gathered around the side of the hole, and Castiel tried to pound his way through the barrier. Gabriel looked up and smiled sadly at his brother, then turned back to Lucifer.

"And then Dad brought the new baby home and you couldn't help but get jealous. Jelly Luci, remember that? What a great name." Gabriel taunted. "The Winchesters will do some good in the world- more than you or I, that's for sure. I actually think they have a fighting-" Jolene heard the sword as it slid into Gabriel's gut. She could hear the soft and strangled "oh" that left his mouth as he looked down for his blade and saw it in Lucifer's hands.

"This was avoidable," Lucifer whispered. "I told you before, but you chose the wrong side." He jerked the sword out of Gabriel sharply and flicked it to shake off the dark red blood clinging to the tip. His brother staggered backwards with his hand wrapped over the wound. It didn't bleed too heavily, but the damage was evident. Gabriel didn't even have time to make a remark or a witty retort before he dissolved into a pile of pale blue dust without another sound. The silvery barrier around them dissipated.

"Gabriel," Jolene whispered. "He killed Gabriel." Sam held a finger to his lips, not bothering to hide his horrified expression, then put a cautionary hand on her shoulder when he remembered she couldn't see him. Dean clenched his hands and tensed his muscles, ready to drop through the hole and grab Lucifer by the throat. The fallen angel scuffed his shoe through Gabriel's ashes, scattering them in blue puffs.

"As you were, Winchesters." He said to the empty room. "I'll see you soon." Lucifer turned and left, twirling the rust-tinted sword and whistling merrily. Jolene stayed frozen with Sam's hand still on her shoulder.

"Are we going after him?" She whispered.

"What do you think?" Dean asked, he stood up and beckoned for Jolene and Sam to follow. Sam led Jolene down the stairs and through the door only to stop short and gag. Jolene's senses were automatically overpowered with the sour smell of vomit and the rich coppery smell of blood mixed with the night air.

"No." Dean whispered, "No, no, no, no." Sam only made it a few steps before he vomited; but Dean took about five. Jolene stood rigidly beside Castiel as he sadly looked at the bloody carnage on the front lawn. Tufts and locks of hair were scattered throughout the grass, with bone fragments littering the driveway and curb. Jo reached out and blindly grabbed for Castiel's sleeve.

"Please don't tell me…"

"It's the children." Crowley intoned bitterly, "What did you expect?"

"Oh my God." Jo whispered, "Lucifer…"

"Like I said: what did you expect."

A.N.- There we go. First update for a while. I will say that I feel accomplished: two jobs and college and I'm not 18 yet. I've got life by the balls…. And it has me by the hair.