A/N: So my schoolwork has lightened up for me this week so I had more time to write this chapter. I'm hoping to get the next one up this weekend. I am so glad you all liked the previous chapter! And I am happy to see how anxious you are about what Death was talking about. There shall be more hints dropped throughout the rest of this story and into the next one. I really can't wait to start writing out this story arch for Natalie and I am pretty sure the result is something you guys won't expect...or maybe you do expect it...I don't know. We shall see!
Also this is the longest chapter I have written in all three stories! ACCOMPLISHMENT! Also, five more days until season 10! Are you guys excited?! I know I am!
I once again dedicate this chapter to Ladysunshine6
Let's get on with the chapter shall we!
Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural
Natalie stood in the middle of the sidewalk, her eyes scanning around the town that she was in. She was already beginning to have some doubts about doing this, not so much about what might happen to her, but, she couldn't stop thinking about the possible outcomes of Sam getting his soul back. Would the wall even be strong enough to hold back his memories? Or will Death just sell her out and put a faulty dam in Sam's mind? Thinking things like that, really isn't a great way to start off the day you have to play 'Death'.
With the ring in her hands, she began to idly fumble with it, trying to put up whatever guard she needed in order to get through this as clean as possible. "Here goes nothing." Natalie slowly slid the ring onto her finger and looked in front of her, thinking there would be a major difference...there wasn't.
"Guess they're just going to let anyone be Death these days, aren't they?"
Natalie turned to see Tessa walking towards her. "Yeah, it's good to see you to Tessa."
"Let's get one thing straight. I don't like this. And I just feel like you're going to screw up some how."
Natalie cringed slightly at the slight harshness in Tessa's words. "You're going a little bitter there. Plus, it was Death's idea...not mine."
"Then let's just be clear on one thing so we can get through this. You are going to stick to the rules. All right?"
Natalie shrugged giving Tessa an obvious look. "That's the plan."
"Which means you will kill everyone whose time is up. Got it?"
"Okay. But, how will I know who I need to kill?"
"You don't have to worry about that." Tessa said, folding her arms over her chest. "I have a list. You touch them, they die and then I reap them. That's all. Stick with those basic rules and you should be able to win this deal, no problem."
Natalie gave an less-than-optimistic shrug, feeling like she was starting to not want to do this. "Natalie, now is not the time for this unsure attitude. You take off the ring and you lose the bet. Sam doesn't get his soul back. So you need to stay focus. Don't mess it up."
Natalie took Tessa's words into her consideration and nodded in agreement. The quicker they got onto the task of killing and reaping, Sam will get his soul. "Okay. I got it."
"Good." Tessa walked past Natalie, nudging her arm to follow her. "Oh also, when people die, they might have questions for you."
Natalie nodded her head once and then looked over at Tessa. "Questions like..."
"Like 'what does me dying all mean?' "
Natalie gave a confused shake of the head. "Are you going to give me something to say?"
"No."
"Well, then what the hell am I supposed to do? Try and come up with a powerful meaning right on the spot?"
Tessa gave Natalie an eye roll. "Just suck it up and do your best. It's part of the job."
"Maybe I'll just throw some Gandalf quotes at them. Those usually have some philosophical meaning to them." Natalie commented, which earned a small laugh from Tessa.
The entirety of their walk consisted of silence between both of them. No word was really spoken to each other. Natalie had never met Tessa before their little interaction back at the store. That wasn't exactly the best note to go off of.
Before long, Natalie and Tessa came upon a convenience store and Tessa quickly ushered them both in. Once inside, Natalie could hear yelling coming from the cashier counter not to far from them and looking over, she could see that the store was being robbed.
"They can't see you so don't try and stop it." Tessa said to her, walking closer to the scene. "You just need to let it all play out."
Natalie silently walked up along side Tessa, her eyes fixed on the scene and it was then that she noticed the little boy clutching onto the man being robbed, who she could only tell was his father. She felt herself grow heavy at the chances that it might be the boy she would have to take.
"Who am I going to have to take?" Natalie asked, looking over at Tessa when she didn't answer. "Which is it, Tessa?"
"You just need to wait and see."
Natalie scoffed at Tessa's response, not to happy with the answer that she got, but what else was she supposed to do. Instead, she settled for watching the event play out, even though that was the last thing she wanted to do. All the while, she was silently praying that the kid would walk away from this unscathed.
The man, pushes the bag that was sitting on the counter, onto the floor and the robber, annoyingly, bent down to pick it up. The man, who had pushed his son behind him, reached underneath the counter and pulled out a gun. When the robber stood back up to face him, the man fired off a shot that pierced the robber in the chest.
Natalie's eyes widened at the turn of events that just happened and was pushed out of her trance when Tessa nudged her in the side.
"Go ahead. Take him." She stated.
Natalie gave Tessa an unsure look and received a nod for her to get on and do what she needed to do. Taking in a breath, Natalie hesitantly walked over to the bleeding robber and knelt down next to him. As she scanned over the wound, Natalie reached her hand up and gently touched the top of his hand.
Natalie watched as his breathing stopped and his eyes closed and she couldn't help but feel almost kind of sick to her stomach. Standing back up, she turned to find that he was standing next to Tessa.
"Why?" He asked, his eyes never leaving his dead body.
Natalie looked down at his body and then back to him. "You didn't exactly make the best choices. Guess they came back to bite you."
Tessa grabbed hold of his arm, motioning for him to leave with her. Natalie watched silently as Tessa and the robber left the store and she took a moment to grasp what had happened. She had practically killed someone and that didn't sit well with her. Despite the fact that he was a robber, Natalie couldn't help the sickening feeling that was stirring inside of her.
"Hopefully that will be as bad as it gets." Natalie sighed to herself.
Walking down the street, Tessa had taken a notice that Natalie was quiet, a lot more quiet compared to how she was at the beginning. Taking a quick look at Natalie, she could only surmise that maybe this whole, being Death thing, wasn't exactly what she thought it would be. Though, what exactly would a person think being Death would be like? It's certainly not something fun to do.
"That was simple enough for you, wasn't it?" Tessa asked, breaking the silence that was between them.
Though at her words, Natalie gave her a look. "I just took away a human's life...that's not exactly something I'm to fond of right now."
"You were the one who agreed to the deal, Natalie. You should have known it wasn't going to be a walk in the park."
"I knew it wasn't going to be easy." Natalie quickly retorted. "I just didn't expect that it would feel like this."
"What did you think it was going to be like?" Tessa asked.
Natalie gave her a shrug. "I don't know! I just...didn't expect to feel like this. I don't know how else to explain it." Natalie answered, folding her arms over her chest.
"Well, you better get used to it, quick. Because you still have a long way to go before the deal is done." Tessa commented.
Natalie cringed at her words, knowing that she was right. Natalie still had hours left of this whole, be Death for a day, thing. And despite the fact that she wanted to just go back to Bobby's, this deal was something that she had to win. This was now their only chance on getting Sam's soul back.
For some reason though, thinking about all of this, it made Natalie remember what Death told her while they were talking. The whole, 'something is coming your way' speech had actually unnerved her quite a bit. The more she thought about it, the more paranoid she began to feel.
"Tessa?" Natalie asked, deciding to ask her about it.
"What?"
"Those things that Death said to me, back there, about the whole 'something drastic is coming your way' and that I needed to keep an eye out. Do you have any idea what he is talking about?"
Tessa remained silent, keeping her eyes forward so that she wouldn't have to look at Natalie. But, the silence just caused Natalie to become even more suspicious.
"You do know don't you? You know what's going to happen to me?"
"No, I don't." Tessa said, turning to look at her.
Seeing the skeptical look on Natalie's face, Tessa knew she had to press further. "I am telling the truth, Natalie. I have no idea what Death was talking about and actually I don't think Death knows either. He doesn't know what's going to happen...he just knows something will happen. And in all honesty."
Tessa stopped her walking to take a good look at Natalie, then proceeded on their way. "There is something about you. It's almost like there's this...dark aura that surrounds you. I just see pain and death."
Natalie let out a scoff. "Well, I have experienced a lot of death in my life."
"It's more than that Natalie. I just don't know what it is...I can't give you any other explanations. Like Death said, you just have to see through it yourself."
Natalie nodded, still not satisfied with what Tessa had told her. "That's just going to be a whole bunch of fun."
"There's our next person." Tessa said, pointing over to a man sitting on a bench, eating away on a piece of pizza.
Natalie looked over at the guy and furrowed her brows slightly. Though she had to admit that she was happy they found their next person. It would allow her to try and forget what Death had said to her. "Is this one going to be simple to?" Getting another look at him, Natalie pursed her lips together. "I'm guessing this is going to be a heart attack?"
The man sitting on the bench suddenly halted his eating and his hand flew up to his chest as he fell to the ground in front of them.
Natalie stared at him, her mouth slightly agape. "I guess I spoke to soon." She said as she walked over to him and touched him on the arm. Looking back up, she saw the man staring at her.
"Why?"
Natalie bit down on her bottom lip and gazed back down at the unfinished pizza. "Maybe...not enough healthy choices?" She said, giving him an unsure look.
The man's face lightened and he gave a small laugh. "Yeah. It was good though."
Natalie gave him a faint smile. "Well, it's time for you to go."
The man nodded and turned to leave with Tessa, but stopped, and looked back at Natalie. "Will you tell me, at least, what it all means?"
Natalie froze, her eyes widening slightly, due to the fact that she didn't expect to be asked anything further then 'why?'. Her eyes flickered over to Tessa, who gave her an encouraging nod to say something. What am I going to say? Think. Natalie cleared her throat, upon noticing the expectant look on the man's face and she gave him a hesitant smile.
"Death...is just another path...one that we all must take." Natalie finished, feeling a little proud with herself that she remembered this line from Lord of The Rings.
The man nodded in understanding and took her words into consideration. But, his brows furrowed as he recognized the familiarity of those words. "Wait...isn't that from Lord of the Rings?"
"Hmm?" Natalie quickly responded, not thinking that he would catch onto that.
"That quote. That's from Lord of the Rings. Isn't it?"
Natalie gave him a forced exaggerated look and shrugged her shoulders. "I-I don't think so."
The man narrowed his eyes slightly and nodded. "No, I think it is. You pulled that quote right from the movie."
Natalie stared at the man, at lost for how to defend herself and then she settled for a laugh. She looked over at Tessa and silently communicated to get him out of here.
Tessa rolled her eyes and grabbed the man by his arm. "Sorry about that. She's new." As they both turned to walk away, Tessa gave Natalie a look, which was responded by Natalie holding up her arms in a questioning manner.
Once they were out of sight, Natalie let out a sigh and thought back to what she had told him and then hummed to herself. "I thought it was a really good quote for the moment." She said to herself.
Tessa and Natalie walked down a hospital corridor and Natalie was just trying to prepare herself to have to go through this, once again. "Oh by the way, that whole quote thing back there, great job." Tessa commented out of random.
Natalie gave her a look and shrugged. "I told you earlier that I was going to result to quoting Gandalf, I wasn't lying. You put me on the spot like that, I panic. But, in all honesty, I thought the quote worked for the moment."
"Whatever you say Natalie." Tessa came to a stop outside of a hospital room and motioned for Natalie to enter. "After you boss."
Natalie furrowed her brows slightly before looking into the room and she saw a father sitting on the hospital bed, reading a book to his daughter. From hearing bits and pieces of their conversation, Natalie heard that they were talking about a California trip they took when she was younger.
Closing her eyes, Natalie let out a pained sigh and looked over at Tessa. "The dad or the girl?"
"The girl." Tessa replied.
Natalie shook her head and looked over at Tessa. "No, Tessa. How old is she?"
"12."
Natalie turned her head to look at the father and the girl. "Does...does he have any other family?"
"No, not really."
"You have got to be kidding me." Natalie allowed her head to hang.
"What? Did you think it was gonna be robbers and heart attacks all day?"
"Tess, I can't do it! I mean she is only 12 years old!"
"And she has a very serious heart condition."
Natalie looked back at the girl and seeing the two of them together, it only made her think of her and her father. All memories of them together were beginning to flood back into her mind. Natalie had lost to much of her own family, she wasn't going to do it to these two.
"Who is the next person on the list?" Natalie asked, turning to Tessa.
"You have to take her Natalie."
"I'm not taking her. And who says that I have to?"
Tessa gave Natalie a look. "Death."
"Yeah, well, I'm Death. And who tells him then?"
"I don't know. It's just how it is. It's destiny."
Natalie scoffed and shook her head. "Don't give me that destiny crap. I watched destiny being altered during the apocalypse last year. There is always another way. The girl lives."
"Natalie, destiny is very much real. Sometimes it can be bended into different ways. But, everyone has one. That little girl is meant to die. Just like you have your own 'destiny' brewing up in the pot. You can't cheat out of it."
Natalie inched closer to Tessa. "Just watch me. She is living." Natalie said as she brushed past Tessa to walk out into the hallway.
"Natalie, you do realize when you don't abide by what fate has in store...there will be consequences...dire ones."
"I don't care. I'm Death for the day and that girl is off the list. You got it?" Natalie waited for Tessa to respond but all she got was a very faint nod.
"Medically, I can't explain it."
"So her heart just healed?"
"Couple of times in your career, you see something you just got to call a miracle. All I know is I won't have to operate." The doctor finished giving his information to the father before leaving.
Natalie had watched the entire scene, more than pleased at the fact that the young girl was already on the road to recovery. Looking over at Tessa, Natalie saw that she was less than enthusiastic about all of this.
"You see?" Natalie said, peering into the room. "Everything is going to be fine. The girl is getting better...and nothing has happened."
Tessa continued to stare at Natalie, waiting to see if she will finally understand that this wasn't the way that all of this was supposed to turnout. She tried to get Natalie to understand, but she wouldn't listen. If anything, Tessa knew that something bad was going to happen, sooner or later.
"Come on." Tess finally said, turning away and began to walk down the hallway.
Natalie rolled her eyes slightly and followed after her. At first, Natalie thought there were more people she would have to see before leaving, but no, Tessa was already making for the hospital exit. And the whole time, Natalie had been trying to talk with her, only to be met with silence. She's pissed. Natalie knew why and she understood Tessa's reasoning, but that little girl was going to live, nothing bad would come from that.
Reaching the main lobby of the hospital, Natalie and Tessa were making a quick walk towards the exit with Natalie trying to talk with her the whole time.
"Tessa? Hey. What are you just going to be giving me the silent treatment? That's a little childish don't you think?" Natalie questioned.
Tessa suddenly stopped, causing Natalie to do the same. Just then, a team of paramedics came rushing in with a new patient lying on the gurney. "Damn it! I knew this would happen!" Tessa hissed out.
Natalie gave her a confused look. "Wait, what do you mean?"
The two of them walk towards the emergency room, where the nurses were beginning to work on stabilizing the patient. It took several looks for Natalie for her to recognize who it was. She was a nurse who had been in and out of the little girl's room. She was just someone Natalie would see past by, but she knew that face.
"Oh my god...that's..."
"Yeah. You let the girl live. The nurse goes home early, gets in a crash she wouldn't have. And she needs the heart surgeon, and where is he?" Tessa finished, looking over at Natalie.
Natalie kept her eyes on the battered body of the nurse and she shook her head in denial. "No. No, this can't be because of me letting the girl live."
"I knew that you had knocked over a domino somewhere." Tess commented. The heart monitor began to beep, signaling that she was close to flat-lining. Tessa quickly ushered Natalie towards the nurse. "Take her."
Natalie looked back at her, eyes widened. "What?! No! She's not on the list Tessa."
"Like I said before Natalie, everything you do has consequences. Do you want to set off another chain reaction?"
As she looked back at the nurse, Natalie could begin to feel her hands start to shake from her shock and denial. "No. She has nothing to do with this Tessa!"
"Well, too bad, Natalie. You put on the ring. Now do your damn job."
Natalie views the nurses trying to revive her as she hesitantly made her way over to the side of the gurney. Raising her hand, Natalie slowly touched the nurse's arm and the loud flat-lining soon began to resonate through her ears.
"Am I dead?"
Natalie's head turned to the side and she saw the nurse's spirit standing at the end of the bed and soon she could fee herself being eaten away from her guilt.
"I can't be dead. I'm..."
"So young." Tessa finished for her. "Actually, you were supposed to live for many decades. Have kids, grandkids. But, she screwed up." Tessa finished, motioning over to Natalie.
The nurse turned to look at Natalie, her eyes filled with confusion. "You did this to me?"
Natalie was at lost for words. She was the sole reason for this woman dying, when she wasn't supposed to. All those years of blaming herself for what happened to her mom, dad and brother, she had always blamed herself when she wasn't to blame. But now, all of this was on her. And that was what stung the most.
No words she could think of, not that anything was coming to mind, could give this woman any kind of solace for what happened to her. All of this would not have taken place, if Natalie had just stuck with killing the people that needed to die, not to try and alter destinies.
When Natalie said nothing, Tessa gently took hold of the woman's arm. "Come on, Jolene. It's time to go."
"Wait!" Natalie suddenly called out and Jolene stopped to look back at her. "I...I'm sorry."
Once they disappeared, Natalie was only left alone with her guilt ridden thoughts. She honestly had no idea that something like this would happen. Allow one to live only to have some innocent person to take the fall for it. If she had known all of this could have taken place, Natalie wouldn't have let the girl live. Would she really though? Natalie wasn't to sure how much of her own thoughts were the truth. Regardless of how much Natalie could have known before, she didn't know if that would have changed her mind to save the little girl. Maybe, no matter what, this was supposed to happen. Natalie was supposed to slip up and make a mistake...a huge mistake.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the voice of a man, calling out. Looking up, she saw him approaching the room she was still standing in.
"Where's my wife?!"
The look on his face the moment he saw Jolene's lifeless body, was one that Natalie hopes to never see again. Painful denial that was then overcome with tremendous grief. All of those emotions evoked in just a matter of seconds and Natalie was responsible for it.
The man stumbled over to Jolene's side, his hand rested against the side of her cheek, thinking that in some way, she might wake up to it. But, that of course wasn't the case.
Finally building up the courage, Natalie turned around and saw the man clinging onto Jolene's lifeless body, sobbing into her shoulder. Watching the scene unfold, Natalie wanted nothing more than to change what happened. Fix the mistake that she had made. But, no matter what she does from now on, it wasn't going to turn around this outcome.
Her lips pursed together, in an attempt to keep her emotions in line, but standing there watching this, it wasn't making the situation any better. Huffing out a breath, Natalie reluctantly turned away from the room and walked away.
Standing back in the girls room and even though Natalie had been contemplating her mistake, she still couldn't see herself killing her. It just didn't feel right. It had all been going smoothly at the beginning. Natalie mentally berated herself though for thinking that it was just going to be simple robbers or common heart attacks.
"You saw what happened to the nurse Natalie. Go and kill the girl." Tessa finally spoke, breaking the silence that was between them. "She's disrupting the natural order by being alive. Chaos and sadness will follow her for the rest of her life. We tried it your way. Now we have to do this."
Natalie tiredly shook her head and leaned it against the window of the room. Now she was just to tired to put up an argument with Tessa. That didn't mean she was going to oblige by her terms to quickly though. All she wanted was for this to finally be over with. That way she wouldn't have to kill anymore people, She wouldn't have to make any more mistakes.
Down the sidewalk of the street across from the hospital, Natalie could see a man stumbling in his steps. Taking a closer look, she saw that it was Jolene's husband with a drink in his hands and she knew that this wouldn't end well for him.
"Damn." Natalie silently cursed. Turing around, she quickly walked out of the room.
Tessa had quickly gone after and stood halfway out in the middle of the hallway. "Where are you going?"
"Just wait here Tessa." Natalie called back, not turning to look at her and instead, picked up her pace into a run.
Natalie sprinted down the hallway and through the main lobby and didn't stop until she was standing outside the entrance to the hospital. Down the sidewalk across the road from her, Natalie spotted the man continuing his stumbling walk and she saw that he was making his way towards a car.
Natalie quickly ran across the street and reached the car before he did. What am I going to do? Natalie thought frantically to herself. He can't see her and she can't take off the ring or she will lose the bet. Instead, after much debate, she quickly got into the car just as he was.
Placing the bottle between his legs, the man pulled out his keys and struggled to get them in the ignition. Natalie was silently hoping that he would give up or just pass out, but eventually, he got the keys into the ignition and turned on the car.
As he began to drive down the road, Natalie was trying to come up with a plan. He can't see you. Don't take off the ring or you lose. Don't touch him or he's dead. There was literally nothing Natalie could do in her situation, except for one thing...she had to take the ring off and she knew it. There was no way she could help him with the ring on. If Natalie was going to make sure that he didn't kill himself, she was going to have to take the ring off.
"Hey. You need to pull the car over." Natalie said, even though she knew that it wouldn't have any effect. Still, she thought that she would try it. "Come on, you are going to kill yourself! You need to stop the car!"
The man picked up the bottle and took a few huge drinks from it and showing no regard that he could hear Natalie talking next to him.
Natalie closed her eyes and sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I did this to you...and Jolene. But, you need to pull over!"
The man gripped onto the steering wheel tighter and began to speed up and by the looks of him, Natalie knew that his ability to keep up his attention were really starting to dwindle from the alcohol.
Staring down at the ring, Natalie knew that now she was out of options. She was going to have to take it off. "Please don't make me do this." Natalie silently pleaded, knowing that he wasn't going to hear her.
The speed of the car began to accelerate once again and Natalie knew she had no other choice. "Sorry Sam." Natalie grasped the ring and pulled it off of her finger.
"Stop the car!" Natalie called out.
"What the hell?!" The man called out and turned the steering wheel by accident, mostly because Natalie scared the shit out of him. The car turned towards an electrical pole and collided with it.
Natalie felt her body surge forward towards the dashboard, the sound of breaking glass and crunching metal emanated the memories she had of that night she and Andrew were in that car accident. Leaning her head up, Natalie hissed at the throbbing she felt on the side of her head. Looking over, the man was leaned up against the steering wheel and she reached over, pressing her fingers against the side of his neck and was able to feel a pulse.
He's alive.
Natalie turned to the passenger door, which had been severely bent, and tried to open it but ended up having to kick it open. Stepping out with her hand to her head, Natalie looked around, already feeling the defeat of losing the bet.
"Tessa?! I lost! I took off the damn ring." Natalie's voice wavered at the end, causing her to hang her head. "Do you hear me?!" She called out again, only to remember that she had taken off the ring. Natalie sighed and slid the ring back on her finger and saw Tessa standing in front of her.
"I'm sorry you lost the bet." Tessa said. "I know you were just trying to help Sam."
Natalie scoffed, blinking back the tears that had started to form out of her frustration. "Yeah, well, you were right. If I had just listened to you...stuck with the people who needed to die...none of this would have happened."
"You are resilient. I give you that. You did what you thought was right.."
"Yeah, but, I managed to screw up. Jolene was never supposed to get caught up in all of this. And because of my decision..." Natalie stopped and pursed her lips. "We need to get back to the hospital."
Tessa gave Natalie a confused look. "Natalie. We're done. The bet is over."
Natalie shook her head. "No. There's something that I need to do before I leave."
The room was still, the soft breathing coming from both the father and girl and the steady beeping from the heart monitor. In just a matter of minutes, it will all turn to chaos.
Natalie walked over to the side of the bed and knelt down next to the father. Looking at his face, it was easy for her to see the relief that she saw. He was relieved that his daughter was finally getting better and that they would be able to go on those trips he talked about. But, none of that was going to happen and it would be Natalie who would ensure that it wouldn't.
"I'm sorry. I am really...really sorry. But, you might want to wake up. Say your last goodbyes."
Natalie stood back up and touched the girl's hand and walked back over to the foot of the bed upon hearing the heart monitor going off. The little girl was standing next to Natalie, watching the scene of nurses trying to revive her.
"I'm dead?"
Natalie looked down at her sympathetically. "I'm sorry, but you are."
"But...what about my dad? What's going to happen to him?"
Natalie looked over at the father who was trying to be consoled out in the hallway. "He'll be fine. It won't be easy for him...but, he'll get through it."
"But...I can't just leave him. He needs me. This isn't fair!"
Natalie knelt down next to her, so that she was leveled at the same height. "I know. It's not fair to either of you. And I wish it didn't have to be this way. But...there's this thing called the Natural Order...and if it's not in the right...sync...then a lot of bad things happen."
"Natural order is stupid."
Natalie smiled faintly at her resilience. "Yeah. It does."
Tessa placed her hands on the girl's shoulders. "Come on Hilary. It's time to go."
Natalie took a moment and looked back at the scene that was still unfolding in the hospital room. The nurses trying to revive her and the father, starting to break down. She would have given anything for it to not end like this.
Finally, she had decided that it was enough. There was no use in torturing herself by watching all of this any longer. Natalie finally walked out into the hallway and slowly made her way back towards the main lobby.
What am I going to tell them?"
What exactly was Natalie going to say to them? Dean, especially. She knew that Sam was really iffy on getting his soul back, but Dean, he just wanted his brother to be all right. Now Natalie has destroyed really their only chance on helping Sam. How was she supposed to look at Dean and tell them how miserable she failed? Right now, all she wanted was to get back to the car and go to Bobby's. She will figure out what she's going to say on the way there, though she knew it wouldn't be any use.
Parking the car near the garage, Natalie turned off the engine and settled back against her seat. The entire drive was only consisted of Natalie scolding herself. Why didn't you just listen to Tessa?
"Might as well get this over with." Natalie pulled the keys out of the ignition and stepped out of the car.
Though the first thing that caught her attention was that the Impala was nowhere in sight. Dean probably just went out. Natalie thought to herself as she closed the car door.
Walking around the car, she began to make her way up to the front but when she looked up, the door was halfway open. That caused her to stop in her tracks. "What the hell?" Natalie cautiously walked up onto the porch and peered in through the space, though she didn't see anything...and that unnerved her.
Pressing her hand against the door, Natalie pushed it open allowing herself to walk in. "Bobby?!" Natalie called out only to be met with silence. She took a few steps into the house and began to make her way into the kitchen. "Sam?!"
Once in the kitchen, Natalie noticed that there was quite a bit of mess on the floor. As she continued on through the house she came upon one of the closet doors and it had been hacked. Literally, hacked to almost nothing and a little bit away the door that led to the basement was left open. What is going on?
"Bobby?! Sam?!" Natalie called out, this time her voice sounded a little more panicked. Neither of them would just leave doors open like this and what the hell was up with the destroyed closet door?
From outside, Natalie heard the quick but faint sound of one of the garage doors opening and closing. For a second she was relieved at the thought that they were probably just out there. But, what happened in the house?
Natalie made her way over to the front door and looked out onto the lawn, but saw no one. Her body immediately went tense and she reached back for her gun and pulled it out, cocking it in the process. Taking a quick sweep, Natalie then walked off of the porch and began to make her way over to the garage.
Inching closer to the building, she didn't see anything that looked like a struggle, unlike what it looked like back at the house. "Bobby? Sam?" Her voice came through louder than she had anticipated.
Finally reaching one of the doors, Natalie raised her hand to open it when the sound of footsteps came up from behind her. Her hand, consciously tightened its hold on the gun as she spun around. But, she was met with an incredible force that went across the face. Natalie stumbled back against the side of the building, her head throbbing and her vision had blurred from the hit.
Looking up she could see the outline was someone standing in front of her and as her vision began to go in and out of focus, it gave her enough time to see that it was Sam.
Natalie quickly raised a hand out to him and dropped her gun. "Sam...don't..." Natalie was silenced by another punch that Sam had thrown at her. A strong, iron flavor flooded her mouth and a stinging, burning sensation was spreading throughout her face.
Sam grabbed Natalie by the collar jacket and she soon found herself staring up at him. Eyes hard with determination and ruthlessness and she could feel her guilt for not winning dig deeper. This was the Sam she and the others would have to deal with because of her mistake.
"Sam..." Natalie faintly whispered. "...please, don't." Natalie was only praying that she could somehow talk through to him, but as his fist came up again she knew there was no point. With that, Natalie felt another force cut down on her and everything went black.
"Nad. Hey. Come on, wake up."
A gentle tapping against the side of her face woke Natalie up and she let out a hiss as Dean continued his tapping. "D-dean...stop..."
Dean ceased his tapping when he realized it was on the side of her face where the damage was. "Sorry, Nad. You all right?"
Natalie groaned, not able to say much. Her head was still pounding from Sam's hits and she could feel that the blood had dried in and around her mouth.
"Okay." Dean knelt down next to her, wrapped his arm around her back. "I'm going to get you back up on your feet."
Natalie only groaned in response.
"All right." Dean gently stood himself back up, but pulled Natalie along with him, easily.
Natalie then let out a panicked sound. "Dean...s-sam...where..."
"It's okay, Nad. I got here just in time." Dean pulled Natalie closer to him as he began to walk them back to the house. "Bobby and I got him down in the panic room."
Natalie huffed in approval then rested her head against Dean's shoulder.
"It was crazy Nad. He had Bobby tied up in the garage. Doing only god knows what." Dean added as he took the porch steps one at a time to give Natalie time to take the steps herself.
"I'm gonna get you to the bathroom. We gotta get you cleaned up." Dean tightened his hold on Natalie and quickened his pace until they finally reached the bathroom. Walking in, Dean put down the toilet seat with his foot and then brought Natalie around, gently setting her down.
Natalie, upon feeling herself sitting down, allowed her body to slump in its posture. The sound of the faucet going on acted almost like a calming mechanism, something that she could easily fall asleep to, which she could. Her head was still throbbing and sleep sounded like paradise right now.
Dean knelt in front of Natalie and now that they were in a good source of light, he was able to get a better look at her face. Her lip had a deep split that was caked in dried blood and her left cheek was just starting to turn purple. Dean clenched his jaw at the sight and then pressed the rag to her lip which made Natalie hum in pain.
"Sorry." Dean spoke as he began to wipe at the dried blood around her mouth. "So, what happened? Can you tell me?"
Natalie cleared her throat a couple of times. "I came back...saw that you were gone. Uh...went inside saw the house was just wrecked. Went outside and Sam just started wailing on me. That's the shortened version."
Dean turned away to rinse off the rag and then went back to cleaning, this time wiping off the blood and dirt on her cheek. Natalie closed her eyes, relishing in the feeling of the warm rag against her face. "What about the whole thing with being Death?"
Natalie felt her body go tense and her eyes slowly opened. "I screwed up."
Dean's brows creased at her words. "What do you mean?" He asked, finishing up the cleaning.
"I took off the ring."
Dean stared at Natalie, having think for a while to remember what the deal was and his head nodded in realization. He tossed the rag into the sink and then knelt back down in front of her. "What happened?"
Natalie sighed and hissed at the tingling she felt in her cheek. "I messed up Dean...really badly. There was this little girl. Had a bad heart problem. She was one of the people that I was supposed to kill. But...I couldn't. She and her father...they were all they had...it was each other. I couldn't just take that away from them."
Dean nodded in his own agreement.
"So, I told Tessa that she wasn't going to die...I refused to do it. And because of that...this nurse left to go home early...and she got into a car accident. She didn't make it." Natalie paused to see Dean's reaction and his face was just still though sympathetic. "Her husband came in and he saw her...I watched him grieve for his wife who was never supposed to be involved in any of this! But, because of my choices an innocent woman had to lose her life."
Natalie swallowed back the sob that she felt had been stuck in her throat. "Her husband just went downhill. I saw him drinking and he got behind the wheel of his car. Naturally, I went with him but of course since I had the ring on, he couldn't hear or see me and I couldn't touch him or else he would have died. So...I had no other choice...I had to take off the ring. I couldn't just let him kill himself." Natalie slumped over to bury her face in her hands, not caring about whether she was putting up a scene or not.
Dean sighed heavily, his hand rubbed across his forehead. He wasn't angry, god no. If anything, he was upset with what Natalie had to go through. One of the many reasons why he had wished that he had done this, not her. But, he can relate to that kind of guilt that she was feeling.
Dean rested his hand on her back, giving her a few comforting rubs. "You know I can kind of relate to that. When I was in hell...I just, tore souls up like it was nothing. But, I feel that guilt everyday. The fact that I caused so much pain to all of those souls...I'll never get over it. I have to live with. We both now know what that's like."
"It's not just what happened to that nurse." Natalie said into her hands. "I lost the bet. Sam isn't getting his soul back Dean. We have to deal with whatever he is now. And it's all my fault."
Dean braced his hands on the sides of her face, making sure to be careful with her left side then lifted her head up so she was looking at him. "None of this was your fault. You did what I think anyone would do in your case. You're not Death, Natalie. And if you think I'm pissed or I blame you...I don't. We'll figure something else out."
Natalie answered Dean's words with a scoff of skepticism.
"Hey." Dean said. "What have we learned from last year? There is always another way. We learned that quite a few times. So we couldn't get Sam's soul back from Death...we'll find another way. All right?"
Natalie sighed, still doubtful about them finding another way, but Dean's optimism was so sincere. She didn't know whether he to believed it or whether he was just saying it to make her feel better. Either way, Natalie nodded her head which Dean was pleased to see.
Dean leaned forward and pressed his forehead against hers. "It's gonna be okay, Nad."
"Okay." Natalie whispered.
Dean stood back up and cleared his throat. "Just stay up here and relax Nad. I'm gonna go talk to Bobby."
Natalie nodded silently and watched as Dean left the bathroom. Sighing to herself, she stood up from the toilet seat and stood in front of the mirror. What she saw made her suck in a breath. The split in her lip was raw and pink, with new blood appearing but not seeping out and her left cheek. That's what she thought was the worst. It was almost to the point of being dark purple and it was slightly swollen. This was all from Sam.
Natalie shook her head and switched off the bathroom light then walked out. She needed something to drink, try and get her mind off of all that had happened. Reaching the kitchen, she was startled to find Death sitting at the table, eating a hot dog.
"Natalie. Please join me." Death pulls out a hot bog from the go-to box and set it near an empty chair. "These are from a little stand in Los Angeles known for their bacon dogs."
Natalie, without much nervousness or hesitation, walked over to the chair and sat down, but didn't touch the hot dog. Her appetite wasn't exactly at its strongest. "You really like cheap food, don't you?"
"It does help quench the cravings." Death commented before taking another bite. "Thought that I would have one last treat before putting the ring back on."
Natalie pulled the ring out from her pocket and placed it down on the table, not really wanting to hold onto it anymore.
"Heavier than it looks, isn't it? Sometimes, you just want the thing off. But you know that."
"Yeah." Natalie said. "I failed. I lost the bet. It's not easy being you...I don't get how you are able to do it."
"Years and years of practice." Death said. "So tell me, if you could go back, would you kill the little girl right away? No fuss?"
Natalie blinked a couple of times, not sure on the answer. She hadn't really been able to figure it out for herself. "Yeah, I would." She finally said, not sure if she actually believed it.
"Either way, if you mean it or not, I'm glad to hear it."
"But, I would have also saved that nurse." Natalie quickly added.
"Well, I think it's a little more than that. Today, Natalie, you got a hard look behind the curtain. Wrecking the natural order's not quite such fun, especially, when you have to mop up the mess. I know all of this is hard for you. You risk your life to save Sam because you thought it would be easy. But, it wasn't. The human soul is not some rubber ball. It's vulnerable, impermanent, but stronger than you know. So...I'd like to think you learned something today."
"You knew didn't you?" Natalie suddenly asked and looked up at him.
"Knew what?"
"You knew that I would slip up somehow so you rigged the whole damn thing. Didn't you?"
"I have no idea what you are talking about Natalie."
Natalie let out a scoff. "Whatever. Just have the courtesy to tell me the truth."
"You know Natalie most people talk to me with a lot more respect than that."
Natalie shifted in her seat, mentally berating herself for saying that. "I'm sorry..."
"Those are some nasty lacerations you have there." Death said, scanning over her face. "Were those from Sam?"
Natalie remained silent, but moved her gaze away from him.
"That's a shame. Well, it's been a pleasure Natalie." Death said, picking up his. "Now, I'm going to tell to get Sam's soul back."
Natalie's face lightened as she looked back up at him. "What? But, I lost the bet."
"Well don't get to sentimental. You and the Winchesters act as a balance for everything. And you three cause global disruptions. But, the three of you have use. Right now, you three are doing more good than bad. Keep it up."
Natalie sighed in relief, a small smile crossing her lips. "Thank you."
Death went to put on his ring when Natalie stopped him. "Wait, Sam. The wall thing. Will it actually work?"
"I call it 75%." Death answered. "Good luck Natalie." Slipping on his ring Death then disappeared.
Natalie let out a small laugh, still in disbelief over the fact that Death was still going to get Sam's soul. This wasn't something she expected at all. Natalie then turned around and took off towards the basement.
"Dean! Bobby!" She called out once she reached the bottom of the steps and it caused both men to jump. "Open the door!" She yelled out as she walked towards them.
"Wait, what?" Bobby asked.
"Open the door!"
Bobby and Dean share a quick glance before walking over to the panic room door and opened it. The three of them saw Death approaching Sam, who was tied down on the cot."
"No! Get away from me!" Sam called out.
"Now, Sam, I'm gonna put up a barrier inside your mind. It might feel a little...itchy. Do me a favor...don't scratch the wall. Trust me...you're not gonna like what happens."
Sam looked over at the doorway, seeing the three of them watching him. "Please, don't let him do this! Nad. Dean. You have no idea what it will do to me! Please!"
Natalie kept her gaze on Sam, not making any kind of movement and she didn't say anything. Her eyes flickered over to Death, who something out of his bag and it didn't take much to know that it was Sam's soul. Biting down on her lip, Natalie's eyes widened slightly as Death pushed the soul into Sam's chest. Hearing Sam's screams, Natalie for a brief second, could feel herself beginning to doubt that the wall would work. But, as long as Sam didn't poke at it, he would be fine. He had to be.
So! How did you all like it?! So the next chapter Nad and Sam will have a proper reunion and it's about time! I missed writing cute Nad and Sam scenes. Also I was wondering, regarding to what Death told Natalie last chapter and what Tessa said to her, do YOU guys have any predictions as to what might happen to Nad? If you do then post in the review, I'd love to see your ideas!
Until next time! Xx