Dean let him-self fall back against the wall. He let out a long, shaky breath as the enormity of everything Thalia had said sunk in. Quietly he swore to himself. Why had he handled that so terribly? She must hate him even more now. The door swung open and Sam re-entered the room. He stopped to stare at Dean leaning against the wall. At the sight of his brothers grieved expression Sam's own anger at Dean faded. "I screwed up Sammy." Dean confessed and continued to stare straight ahead at nothing.

"What happened?" Sam asked as he approached his big brother.

Sam pried Dean from the wall and half held his brother up right. Dean seemed so out of it that Sam was scared if he fully let go then Dean might collapse. "Thalia poured her heart out to me and I just stood there. I just made everything worse and now she's gunna go back to them. Sammy, we can't let that happen." Looking at his brother Sam thought he caught sight of tears gathering in Deans eyes. They disappeared as quickly as they'd come and Dean snapped out of whatever trance held him. He stood up-right and sprang into action. He knew that as long as he kept his busy he wouldn't have to think too much about it.

"Sam, you call Cas and Bobby and tell'em to get their asses up here pronto," Dean instructed, "we're gunna need some serious back-up to get Thalia and Ethan safely back. While you do that, I'll call Dylan and fill him in on everything." Sam nodded and sprang into action alongside his brother. As Dylan's phone rang Dean thought back to a few moment's ago when his guilt had held in a trance like state. Guilt, was Dean Winchester's biggest flaw, he let it eat him alive. He never forgot the people he couldn't save and he had a feeling, just a very small feeling, but a feeling none the less, that if he didn't save Thalia then the guilt would finally overcome him.

Thalia and he were so much alike in the struggles they'd faced, but she clearly wasn't strong enough to pull through on her own. Dean felt as if in someway she represented him and that if he didn't save her then he didn't deserve redemption for all of those people he hadn't saved. Dean didn't always know how to work in the real world either. That's why a part of him responded so well when he was in hell and purgatory: he finally had a definitive purpose to his life. Out here everything was more obscure. You're emotions dragged you down and forced you to feel, they affected your choices catastrophically and the blurred the lines between right and wrong. But in those places, there were no lines to blur. There was just survival.

Jamie answered the door almost immediately after Thalia knocked. His face said it all: she was a mess. After a few seconds of staring at her Jamie stepped to the side and ushered her into his apartment. "What the hell happened?" He asked as he took her coat and hung it on a peg. She bent down to stroke Grim who'd come bounding into the hallway at the sound of the door being opened.

"I um, walked here. Sorry, the wind outside is crazy." Thalia apologised monotone, standing back up. "Look we really need to talk and I haven't got much time." Thalia felt immensely uncomfortable and all she wanted to do was leave. The fight with Dean had really shaken her. She didn't want to deal with Jamie right now, but she had to. This was her last chance to see him before it was all over.

"Alright," Jamie said, concerned by Thalia's unexpected appearance and strange behavior.

"Jamie-" Thalia paused. She was going to dump him, she really was but she couldn't bear to confirm worry in his blue eyes. Screw it, Thalia thought. "You know I travel a lot for work, well I have to go away." She said sadly. It was partly true, she was going away.

"Oh, for how long?" He asked sounding half relieved and still half worried.

"That's the thing, it's indefinite." Thalia explained guiltily. She decided that she'd get Maisy to tell him that she'd been in a car accident or something.

"Where does that leave us?" Jamie said, sensing the morbid tone.

"Call you when I get back?" She offered, knowing full well that she wasn't coming back.

He nodded halfheartedly. He knew this was the end, but as Thalia turned to leave he found himself grabbing her wrist and calling out "Wait"

Jamie was so wrapped up in his own feelings that he didn't notice the way Thalia's whole body froze up, even if it was only for a fragment of a second. Thalia let out a calming breath, she was unbelievably thankful that he'd spoken as he grabbed her, at least it gave her some warning. She still reacted badly to being surprised like that. Yesterday she'd broken Dylan's nose when he'd made her jump. They'd spent all evening in A&E.

"Thalia," Jamie said as she turned back around, "I really, really like you. I don't just like you, I'm falling for you. I just wanted you to know that before... you leave." He sighed at how pathetic he sounded. He was probably already just another memory, a girl like Thalia must break one hundred hearts a day, he thought that he was just another drop in the ocean.

Despite it all Thalia felt a warm flutter of glee in her chest. Jamie really liked her. It was nice feeling, knowing that someone felt that way about you. Thalia spared him a smile, "I really like you too." She admitted. Thalia enjoyed Jamie's company, he was sweet and he could make her laugh; more importantly he made her feel normal. Thalia was always surrounded by hunters, they were a constant reminder of everything she hated and feared most about the world: monsters. Jamie could make her forget it all, even if only for a moment.

She wondered if she could be in love? She'd ask Maisy what love felt like when she got home. Then Thalia remembered that it didn't matter, she wasn't coming back. She knelt down and picked up Grim, who wiggled and tried to lick her face. "I'm going to miss you Grimmy, look after Jamie while I'm gone. I'll try and be back soon." She smiled, catching Jamie's eye.

As Thalia left Jamie's apartment she pulled up Dean's contact icon on her phone. She was about to consent to his plan and she had a feeling Dean was a bad winner, despite it she smiled and pressed dial.

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