Author's Note:
I'm so sorry to leave you guys hanging! I meant to have a new chapter out a few days ago, and it just didn't happen. Sorry about that! Most of you have been very complimentary, and your support is amazingly helpful, so thank you!
Thanks to LordOfTheSuperwhomerlockians, FireChildSlytherin5, jojospn, Nyx Ro, Le'letha, True Love's Kis5, keacdragon, Akira, Pheonix Autmn, Jesyca12, violeterin, and one guest for their reviews on chapter 19!
Chapter 20 - With Order And Light
"So, Cas, Gabriel apparently already knew how to drive. Does that mean you've got that rattling around in your brain somewhere?" Dean asked hopefully, his nervous gaze flickering between Castiel and the steering wheel the former angel was seated behind.
"Gabriel has been a resident of Earth for far longer than I," Castiel reminded him. "He probably learned for the sake of amusement. I inherited quite a bit of Earthly knowledge from my vessel in the beginning, but not that kind of information."
Dean had no idea what Castiel had learned from Jimmy Novak, given how clueless the former angel had always seemed about humanity in general. That hadn't changed since he had become human himself, although he had begun to adapt rather well. "Okay, so no driving experience. Great. Do you know anything about this car?"
"This is Baby," Castiel replied immediately.
Dean broke into a full out grin, relaxing slightly. "Heh, sure is. I guess I talk about her a lot."
"This was your father's car, and has been your home for your entire life," Castiel continued, looking around as though observing the car for the first time.
His expression more solemn, Dean nodded. "Yeah, you wouldn't believe some of what this car's been through, but I always build her back up."
"You do that, I've noticed." Castiel noted casually, still examining the car's interior.
"Do what?" Dean asked.
"Demonstrate a faith in things that are broken, that they can be repaired," Castiel explained mildly.
Dean made a derisive noise. "I'm not exactly a man of faith, Cas."
"I did not mean faith in God," Castiel informed him. "I was referring to myself, actually. Sam as well. Both of us have been broken, and both believed we could not be built back up. You disagreed."
"Huh." Dean's thoughtful noise didn't sound like he was entirely in agreement, but he was looking at Castiel with something akin to wonder. "I guess that's one way to look at it."
"In any case, Dean, I promise I will not damage Baby," Castiel told him solemnly. "Not on purpose, and hopefully not accidentally either."
Dean managed to laugh at that, and he clapped a hand on Castiel's shoulder. "Trust me, Cas, I'll take the wheel before you can crash. The car's not the only thing I might lose in that scenario. Let's move on, okay? Do you know anything about the car itself, like what any of this stuff," he gestured to the wheel and the pedals, "is called?"
"This is a wheel," Castiel indicated, tapping it lightly. He pointed at the radio, "That is where the music comes from. You do not react well when Sam changes it."
"That's cause driver picks the music," Dean explained. "That's not important right now. Okay, see the pedals on the floor?" When Castiel nodded, he continued with, "So the one on the left is the brake, and the one on the right is the gas."
"Stop and go," Castiel added, smiling slightly when Dean nodded approvingly.
"Exactly. This thing here shifts you out of park into reverse or drive, which are the only two positions you need to know about right now. Reverse is exactly what it sounds like - you go backwards. Drive is the opposite - you go forwards. Park is just that, park. You use that when you're done driving and need to get out of the car." Dean pointed at each individual element as he explained it, conscious of Castiel's powerful gaze on him.
"I believe I understand," Castiel acknowledged. "How do I start the vehicle?"
"Okay, first make sure your left leg is out of the way," Dean instructed. "You won't use it. Next, use your right foot to hold down the brake pedal and turn the key in the ignition. Turn it away from you, not towards you." He watched as Castiel did the movements he'd explained, and grinned when the car came to life with a rumble. "See? It's not too hard."
"I believe I may indeed be capable of this," Castiel agreed. "Before we determine that, however, we should see if I can go any distance without causing harm."
Dean chuckled and nodded. "Good plan. We're on a clear straightaway right now, so go ahead and put her in drive. Keep a good grip on the wheel. Steering should be pretty natural." He'd parked the car on an abandoned stretch of straight road in the middle of nowhere before letting Castiel get behind the wheel, so he was reasonably sure that nothing too terrible would happen.
Following instructions, Castiel shifted the car into drive. He frowned when the car did not move, and turned to Dean, concerned.
Laughing out loud, Dean pointed to his foot. "Dude, get off the brake first."
Nodding with understanding, Castiel moved his foot off the brake, jumping slightly when the car began to move. He held onto the steering wheel with a death grip, staring at the road as if it was about to burst into flames. The car crept forward, drifting, but not properly moving.
"Give it some gas," Dean urged. "You're not going to hit anything."
Castiel gave him a nervous look, then slowly applied his foot to the gas pedal. The car immediately jerked forward, causing Castiel to remove his foot again.
"More smoothly," Dean clarified. "You'll get used to it."
Trying again, Castiel managed to build up a modicum of speed without causing the car to jerk, and brought them back to a stop without too much whiplash. Looking pleased, he turned to Dean for approval.
Dean was grinning. "See? We'll get you into NASCAR one of these days!"
Castiel's brow furrowed. "I don't understand -"
"That reference, Cas, I know. I'll sit you down in front of a race on tv or something another day. For now, let's focus on this car. Want to see if you can go more than fifteen miles per hour this time?" Dean raised an eyebrow and smiled mischievously at the nervousness on his friend's face. He'd never really been all that patient as a teacher - that was more Sam's deal - but he was enjoying this immensely. He figured it had more to do with the company.
Sam shoved Charlie in front of him, out of sight of any demons who might come back into the main hallway, and confirmed for himself that they weren't in immediate danger before allowing himself to breathe again. He gestured for her to keep moving, and they quickly made their way down the new hallway, away from the blaring music coming from Sam's cell phone.
They both flinched when the music suddenly cut off, and Sam glared at the back of Charlie's head. "You owe me a new phone," he whispered.
"I'll set you up when we get back," Charlie promised.
Sam pushed away his immediate reaction of concern for the legality of however Charlie acquired technology in light of where they were. Supposedly they should be close to Abaddon's office, but close was a relative term in Hell. He knew they were looking for an antique door though, courtesy of the demon at the entry gate.
"So, can I ask you something?" Charlie asked quietly, still moving quickly down the clear hallway.
"Shoot," Sam replied, glancing behind him to confirm that they were still safe.
Charlie almost tripped, but she righted herself before she continued talking. "Okay, so in the Supernatural books -"
"God, Charlie," Sam moaned, cutting her off. "I don't even want to know."
"No, this isn't something weird!" Charlie defended herself quickly. "I swear, no freaky questions about your sex life or Dean's emotionally stunted growth or anything like that."
Sam's lips twitched in spite of himself and he nodded. "All right, fine. What's your question? Hey, turn left there."
Charlie ducked around the corner and breathed a sigh of relief when no demons appeared. "Well, in the books, Hell was always this big scary thing, right?"
Sam snorted. "Don't let the office building deceive you, Charlie. This place is about as dark and scary as it gets."
"No, I get that," Charlie assured him, "but it always seemed to me like getting into Hell was this hugely complicated thing. I mean, there was a ton of stuff that had to happen to get that one Hell gate open after you died."
Flinching at the memory, Sam shrugged in response. "I see what you mean. As far as the gates go, the one we used is totally different from the one Azazel opened through Jake. That was kind of like a giant portal more than anything else. Think of Hell as a really big house. The gate that you read about was like if someone took the roof off the house to let people get in and out. The gate we used is more like the back door. Less used, and less noticeable. Obviously we haven't been flooded be demons, because most of them probably don't even realize we came in."
"What about the way you said you came in before?" Charlie asked.
Sam pursed his lips, considering how to add that to his analogy. "Snuck in through the basement?" He offered.
Charlie chuckled. "Okay, that makes sense, I guess."
"Glad I could clarify it for you," Sam said wryly.
She made a face at him, but laughed. "Hey, I'm a novice, okay? I'm allowed to be curious."
"I'll give you that. Come on, let's keep moving. I'm starting to get a little antsy about how quiet it is." Sam moved forward, taking Charlie by the hand and increasing their speed.
They made several more turns, accompanied by even worse time displacement, before Sam slowed down again. He had no idea how long they'd been walking, but it felt weird to him that they hadn't been attacked. Rounding another corner, Sam came to a sudden stop.
Two demons were directly ahead.
Taking a deep breath, Sam carefully unscrewed a water bottle, indicating for Charlie to do the same. He could handle two demons. He glanced to the left and inhaled sharply when he saw what they were guarding. An antique wooden door. "Found you," he murmured.
Either sound carried ridiculously well in Hell, or Sam was louder than he thought, because both sets of black eyes immediately flashed to the side, spotting the two intruders.
"Dammit. Now, Charlie!" Sam hurled himself forward, whipping the bottle of water in front of him to spray both demons.
Charlie copied his motion, her own movements more jerky and panicked than his. She slashed the water bottle forward like it was a sword, spraying the demons at odd intervals with random amounts of holy water.
It may not have been a normal hunting technique, but it did the job. Charlie was sufficiently distracting for Sam to slit both throats of the demons, leaving him breathing hard and Charlie quivering slightly.
"You okay?" He asked quietly.
"I'm..." She paused, wanting to answer the question honestly. "Yeah, Sam, I'm good."
"Good." Sam patted her shoulder comfortingly until she was able to stand still, then turned to the doorway. "Let's see what's behind door number one," he muttered.
Charlie huffed a soft laugh, and stood behind him as he tried the handle, peeking around her large friend to see what he was doing.
With a deep breath, Sam turned the heavy door handle and pushed, the door opening easily under his hand. The room seemed like a generic office at first glance, and he stepped in cautiously.
"Hello, Sam," Abaddon greeted him pleasantly. "Who is this lovely young thing you've brought along?"
The door slammed shut behind them, and Sam and Charlie were both immediately held in place, forced to take in the rest of the room without moving.
Directly in front of them stood Abaddon, dressed for a cocktail party and looking two parts lovely, two parts sexy, and six parts wicked. Behind her was an office chair, with a slumped over and bloodied man chained to it.
Crowley.