Big thanks to all 3 of my reviewers: Gryffindor'sSlytherinPrincess, ocnarf, & as always, the lovely Rachet :) And thank you to everyone who has favorited/watched this story. We're half way done!

Takes place from the beginning of 'Yellow Fever' through the end of 'It's the Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester'. (S04E06-07)

12. The One

Yellow Fever – Rock Ridge, Colorado

They dropped her off at the Bluebird Motel and went in search of the morgue.

Chloe was doing a little research on the town when Cas made his surprise appearance. Chloe watched him carefully as he seemed to look all around the room at everything except her.

Chloe sighed and put her laptop aside. "Cas, It's okay."

Castiel glanced over at her and away quickly. Chloe laughed softly. "It's okay. Dean and I aren't…you know."

Castiel rubbed at his eyebrows as if he wanted to respond but couldn't. Chloe scooted to the edge of the bed. Sam and Dean chose that moment to come in.

Sam took off his suit coat and looked over at Cas, "Uh."

He halted mid-step and then Dean came in, ignored the awkward silence and stripped off his coat and tie. His dress shirt went next, leaving his plain undershirt on and sprawling across the bed beside Chloe. "So we watched O'Brien's autopsy. No major blockage, although," He glanced over at Sam and asked with a sly grin, "Did that spleen taste a little funny to you?"

Sam groaned and shook his head. "That's messed up man." He pulled a chair from the table and straddled it, working his tie loose and eyeballing the angel that was staring out the picture window. "Frank didn't have a heart attack," Sam informed her. Chloe looked confused and pulled her laptop closer. He added, "And he had a wedding band tan."

Dean then said, "And we talked to the sheriff. Did you know that Gamecocks are majestic animals?" He hopped up off the bed and went over to the window then scooted back quickly. "Wow. We are really high up."

Chloe looked from Dean to Sam, "Uh, okay."

Dean backed up a little more and passed a worried look to Sam. "Don't you think we're up really high?"

Chloe shook her head and pulled up Frank O'Brien's records. "Well, Frankie was married about 20 years ago."

"Maybe we should switch to a lower floor."

Chloe shut her laptop and watched as Dean started itching his arm. "Dean?"

"Yeah?" He looked over at her, his brows furrowed in concentration and nodded when she patted the bed beside her. As he passed the nightstand Chloe heard the EMF detector she had shoved in there go off and jerked her head around. She retrieved the detector from the drawer and got off the bed. The closer she got to Dean the louder it got.

Dean sucked in a sharp breath and looked from Sam to Chloe. "What does that mean? Am I haunted?" he asked incredulously.

After a long speaker phone conversation between them and Bobby and they switched their room to the ground floor, Chloe looked up everything she could on ghost sickness.

Dean chugged a beer and paced. "I'm going to die in 24 hours. I'm going to have a heart attack and die."

Chloe looked up when he jerked to a stop suddenly. His eyes were wide with worry when he said, "What if I'm taking a crap and I have a heart attack?"

Castiel, who had been silent up until now, even through their floor change added, "Just like Elvis."

Sam groaned and shot the angel an exasperated look.

Dean pointed at Cas and then his brother. "Did he just say Elvis is dead?"

Chloe giggled before she could stop. Dean was in a panic.

"Elvis is dead? What about the conspiracies? What about the sightings, man?" His voice rose an octave with each question until he threw his arms up and turned to Chloe, a dejected look on his face. "The King of Rock 'n Roll actually died on the toilet."

Chloe bit her lip and nodded solemnly. "It's okay, Dean. We aren't going to let you go out that way."

Dean sighed and shot a glare at Castiel. He opened his mouth to lay into him again but instead started coughing and he felt something come up his throat. He made it to the sink just in time to vomit up a wood chip. Chloe was leaning forward between the two brothers at the sink to get a look at the piece of wood.

Sam snatched it out of Dean's hand after he rinsed it off. "I think we've been ignoring our biggest clue."

Chloe was left once again as the boys went to investigate. Castiel had disappeared shortly after, still not able to look her in the eye. She didn't exactly mind being left behind. Sure she missed doing the legwork but her time in Smallville, investigating weirdness, had sated a large part of her investigative itch. She was more content now to be the brains behind the operation and do her investigating from the safety of her computer.

It wasn't long before Sam and Dean were returning to the room and she studied both brothers. Sam looked like he was ready to take a swing at Dean and Chloe decided she should intervene. "I called Bobby. I figured Dean wasn't going to be much help once the sickness got serious."

Sam interrupted with, "Oh, it's gotten serious. He bailed on me in the middle of a ghost attack. And he screams like a little girl!"

Dean shot Chloe a pleading look, "It was awful."

The knock on the door brought all their heads around. "And that should be Bobby."

Sam opened the door and welcomed him with a hug, "Finally."

Dean made a face at Sam and then plopped down on the bed.

After catching everyone up on the situation Bobby and Sam went back to the lumber mill. Bobby had told Chloe that under no circumstances was she allowed to leave Dean alone. Normally Chloe would have been more than fine with that. As it was, Dean was being really obnoxious and she was just as tempted to smack him around as Sam had been.

"Why me," Dean asked, "Why didn't Sam catch the sickness?"

Chloe had her head in a book and shrugged. "Don't know. I'd say it seems to attach itself to guys that weren't very friendly though."

Dean scowled at her, "I'm friendly."

Chloe raised her eyebrows at him. "Okay."

She smiled as he huffed and stacked pillows behind his head.

Not long after Dean started to hallucinate. One after another Chloe could only stand back and watch in shock as Dean was threatened by demons and ghosts only he could see. As Dean crouched on the linoleum in the kitchenette and hyperventilated, Chloe spoke low and soothing words. And as his eyes widened in fear and he clutched at his chest, laboring for breath, Chloe cried and repeated his name, trying to make him focus on her.

It was while Chloe's lips lay against his and she breathed his name, hoping to shock him out of his misery that she felt him take one last breath and then shudder. His eyes fell close and his heart slammed to a stop under the hand she had pressed against his chest.

Chloe pulled back and screamed, her voice cracking on his name. Within seconds Dean sucked in a breath and she was pressing her lips to his again, her relief palpable and he was clutching her just as tight as she held him.

It wasn't until Sam and Bobby were back at the motel with them that Chloe voiced her concern.

"I didn't die."

Dean had been wondering the same thing and he pulled her a little closer where they sat on the couch, running a hand over her hair. "Maybe the bond is weakening."

Sam looked over at Chloe, "Did you feel any of his symptoms?"

Chloe shook her head against Dean's chest. She'd almost lost him. She couldn't forget that. To hell with Castiel's rulebook of morals. She wasn't going to let go of Dean ever again.

The Witches – Coolidge, AZ

Sam shifted in the backseat and tried to get comfortable. Chloe was up front, snuggled against Dean's side. He watched as she turned her head and pressed her lips to his throat. Dean's right arm that was wrapped around her tightened imperceptibly, pulling her closer.

They had been like this for the last 800 or so miles on their trip from Colorado to Arizona. Sam understood that Chloe was afraid she'd lose Dean again. Meanwhile, Dean was afraid of what Chloe would do if she lost him again. They had all seen the wild look she'd gotten on her face in their motel room at the Bluebird.

Sam had likened it to her pure base instincts. Cas hadn't shown up lately and while Dean and Chloe worried about each other, Sam worried about the angel.

"Up ahead on the left."

Dean's eyes rose to the rearview and he nodded at Sam, "Moonlight Motel it is."

Chloe turned the music down and turned to look back at Sam. "So the girl drowned bobbing for apples?"

"Yeah. With third degree burns in a bucket of room temperature water."

Chloe made a face and shuffled through some papers. "Halloween, this could be fun."

After checking into the motel Chloe got comfortable. She sent the boys off to investigate but first she pulled Dean to her and held his face in her hands, memorizing the way his eyes darkened right before he leaned his forehead against hers. "I'll be careful."

Chloe's smile bloomed slowly and then she was rubbing her lips against his. "Come back to me in one piece. I have plans for this body of yours."

Dean's face was comical as his mind churned through the possibilities and Sam basically grabbed him by the collar and dragged him out.

It wasn't long before there was a knock on the door of their motel room. Chloe pulled open the door and looked down at the kid standing there. "Trick or treat."

Chloe winced and held out her hands, "I'm sorry, kid. I don't have any candy."

The little boy shot her a glare through the clear dome over his head and Chloe jerked back. "It's Halloween. You should have candy."

Chloe thought about the bags of candy Dean had eaten on their drive here. "Okay. But only because astronauts are badass." Chloe rummaged through her purse and came up with a dollar bill. She handed it over with a smile and the kid raised his eyebrows at her. "You could buy candy with it."

The kid shrugged and walked away. Chloe rolled her eyes and shut the door muttering, "Who dresses up as an astronaut anyways? They aren't even scary." She turned and smacked right into Castiel's chest. "Holy sh-ucks." At Cas's look Chloe threw her hands up, "Give me a break here." She moved around him and sat in a plush chair. Castiel looked ready to finally talk to her and Chloe was ready to give him her undivided attention.

Castiel stared down at her for an uncomfortable moment before he said, "God is lost."

Chloe tilted her head to the side. Sometimes Cas spoke in riddles and she was trying to figure out if she was supposed to decipher that sentence. "What do you mean by "lost"?"

Castiel sat down on the edge of the bed across from her chair, his hands placed squarely on his knees. "There's a story that goes back to the beginning of creation. Before God made man he had us. Before us, he had his original creation. It was a golden light of pure energy. Pure love. It was made in the eyes of God and it was created as Him."

Chloe's brow wrinkled as she thought back to anything she might have heard about that. She had done a lot of research on all things theology over the summer months that she had waited for Dean. She remembered a vague story about a ball of light that contained all the wonders of the world. `Echadh or "The One". There wasn't much written about it and Chloe hadn't really had time to brush up on her Hebrew. "I remember bits and pieces of it. What does that have to do with God taking a vacation though?"

Castiel settled in to tell her the story. It was the least he owed her.

Chloe placed a hand against her churning stomach as Cas regaled her with stories of a time long before the human race.

"God's original creation, `Echadh, was a ball of light. Pure love and energy. God shared the secrets of life and the wisdom of all he had known with this One. He carried it with him, inside of him, for ages. He refused to let this pure form be tainted by his children and so he only released this light when he was truly alone."

Chloe swallowed convulsively as she clutched a fist against her abdomen. She knew before he could finish telling her.

"I'm the light."

Castiel nodded slowly. "Yes. You are Echadh. That is not all though."

Chloe's eyes filled with tears of wonder as he continued.

"God created `Echadh for a purpose. Everything He does is with purpose. You see, there is no human vessel that can hold His spirit. He would burn through the host too quickly."

Chloe gasped and pressed her hand to her mouth.

"Yes, Chloe. I believe that The One was created to hold His soul. And I believe He is not aware of where he is."

"He's inside me."

Castiel nodded once at her whispered words. "Yes. Before you were born God sought out the perfect host and He found your parents. While you were still in the womb He merged the light with your soul, binding you forever. And when your soul matured enough He hitched a ride."

Chloe got off the chair and came over to kneel in front of Castiel. She put her hands over his and searched his eyes as he looked down on her. "You were worried about my purity because you believe that God is using me as His vessel."

Castiel moved his right hand out from under hers and placed it against her cheek. She leaned into the loving touch and closed her eyes. "He's in there, Chloe. I can feel Him."

Chloe let the tears come then and didn't know how to stop the feelings overwhelming her. "This is why you chose me for Dean. As his Savior?"

Castiel shook his head. "No. I chose your soul as compatible for Dean. I believe that God came unto your body afterwards when Dean stepped off the rack and chose to break the first seal. He knew the outcome. I believe you are His failsafe."

Chloe laughed without humor. "I'm a pawn." She shook her head and laughed again. "Just like Dean is Michael's vessel. Just like Sam is Lucifer's. Only I am God's vessel."

"You are not to tell anyone else about this, Chloe. If any of the angels or demons found out-"

She nodded sharply, "Of course. I would never do anything to endanger Him."

Castiel studied her solemnly. "I am sorry, Chloe. More than you can possibly know."

Chloe looked away from him and wiped her cheeks dry with her free hand. "I believe you."

Not long afterwards Dean and Sam were back at the motel and Chloe was subdued as she listened to their tale of Samhain being freed.

"It was awesome."

"It was far from awesome."

"He's a freaking God, Sammy."

Sam rolled his eyes at Dean and looked Chloe over carefully. "You okay?"

Chloe nodded and waved the question away. "I'm fine. And I'm glad you two are fine." She walked past Sam and dropped a kiss on his head before she moved to Dean and settled onto his lap where he sat against the headboard. She curled in close and rested her head against the curve of his shoulder and neck.

Dean put his arms around her and shot Sam a worried look. "Are you sure you're okay?" He rubbed his hands up and down her spine and played with the ends of her hair as she nodded against him.

"I'm better than okay." She pressed her lips against his jugular in a kiss and then pulled back and smiled up at his worried eyes. "I'm great, Dean. I promise."

Dean smiled back down at her and ran a hand through her blonde locks, pushing her hair back from her face. Her eyes closed as she reveled in his touch and Dean couldn't help but raise his eyes to Sam's. He didn't know what was going on with her, but something had changed while they were out. Finding out what, though, was going to be the real challenge.

TBC