Sam was dragged into an empty office and thrown roughly against the desk. He righted himself just as two more, either angels or demons, he couldn't be certain, came in to restrain him.
Charlotte came in once he was sufficiently helpless.
"Okay. You want to tell me where those little brats are and get this over with?"
Sam looked her straight in the eyes. "Those little brats are my family, and if you want them, you'd better kill me first. You get anywhere near them, I'm going to come down on you so hard, even Lucifer himself will be telling me to calm down."
Charlotte nodded to another person in the room, who came forward with a taser, going straight to Sam's neck.
Sam shook and screamed as fire shot through him.
"Go on, big boy, tell me again how bad I'm going to get it." She backhanded Sam across the face.
Sam slowly raised his head, and started to laugh.
Charlotte looked rattled. "Out."
The other dissenters left the room closing the door.
"What is it? What do you want?" Charlotte asked, her voice different.
"Nothing from you, creep." Sam said.
"Is that right?" Charlotte pulled out a small knife. "We've all heard of your little addiction. What would it take, exactly? One hit? Two? Then leave you hanging for a couple of days, just until you're desperate?"
Sam shook his head hard. "You don't want to do that."
"Oh yeah? Maybe I do. Hand feed you, make you my little lap dog..." Charlotte cut into her palm, and put it over Sam's mouth. "C'mon, how hard is it, really?"
Sam kept his lips clamped shut. He was not about to go through this again. The smell of her blood was certainly making it difficult.
After a few moments, she spoke again, calling out to one of the henchmen outside the door. "Get his mouth open. I don't care if you break his jaw to do it."
Sam shook his head, "No, don't do this!"
Somewhere nearby, there was a deafening explosion.
Castiel came to on the floor. The faintest trace of grace was left in his body, and it was fading.
The volatile grace must have overwhelmed the vial, and blown Sariel and his blade back, throwing Castiel, his wound still open, to the floor, breaking the chair at the same time.
He stood, shaken, and reached for Sariel's blade, realizing as he did, the other angel was dead. Traces of grace were everywhere.
Castiel knew he didn't have much time left. He moved quickly to the door downstairs where he'd last seem them throw Lita through the door.
He barely managed the lock, slipping to his knees as it swung open.
"Cas!" Dean ran forward. "What was that, what happened?"
"I can't... my grace..." Dean saw the open wound on Castiel's neck as he crumpled to the floor.
"Where's Sam? Cas?" he tried checking for a pulse, but found none.
Dean dragged Castiel's body further into the room.
He stepped over the angel, and went slowly, listening for any sign of his brother.
One of the large bay doors on the side of the building was wide open. He couldn't be certain who was angel or demon, but several people ran scurrying trying to sort out the source of the explosion. About four of them stood around the bay door.
He headed for a nearby set of stairs, listening intently, but soon, all he could hear was a growing roar. He was half way up the stairs when he caught sight of a large red motorcycle coming through the bay door.
The rider took off their helmet and swung it hard at the head of the closest person, knocking them back. Dean noted the hair. But it couldn't be.
She lay the bike down, sliding wheels first into two more dissenters, pinning them to a wall.
Dean stopped in his tracks as she got up safely from the floor. "Melissa?"
Melissa unzipped her jacket half way, pulling out a rather large barreled revolver, and tearing open the trunk of the motorcycle's touring pack. She grabbed a bag, and ran toward him, tossing the bag to him.
"Where are they?" She asked loudly.
"Who?"
"Sam and Castiel."
"I'm looking for Sam, Cas is... he's in that room. I don't think he's alive."
Melissa looked up at him, her face a mix of emotions. She threw the gun to him and took off running.
Dean ran after her, unsure of what to do next.
Melissa stopped in the doorway. Dean came up right behind her as she looked down at Castiel's lifeless form.
"I might be able to get him back." she said, turning around. "You have to help me."
"Whatever you need." Dean replied.
"It might kill me, Dean." She said, turning to look at him. "In fact, it probably will. Swear to me you'll stay the hell away from my kids unless their lives are in danger."
Dean shook his head, "Okay, I swear. Anything."
"Sit him up."
Dean moved around to pull Castiel's body into a sitting position as Melissa threw off the jacket she wore.
She stood over Castiel's legs and dropped to her knees. "When this is over... don't let me rot, okay? Get me out fast?"
Dean nodded. "As fast as possible."
Her eyes closed, her breath steadied, and she slipped into an unresponsive state. She was vaguely aware of Dean asking her a question, but she was sinking into the darkest recesses of her mind. The colors, the power, flowing through her body... and it began to burn.
A thought floated through her mind, wondering what cremation felt like. She let it go.
Her thoughts settled on an old hymn, and she wondered which hymn she'd been singing in her sleep the morning she woke to find Castiel holding her.
Her throat chakra pulsed and nearly convulsed in painful burning waves. She felt a disconnect between where she existed in her trance, and her physical body, but she was able to reach Castiel's face, part his lips, and bring his mouth closer to her throat.
Dean held Castiel as upright as he could manage, thoughts still on Sam.
He wasn't sure what was happening, and a twinge of a feeling of inappropriateness went through him as Melissa pulled Castiel closer, but he wasn't sure how any of this worked.
Thin strands of white light seeped from the front of Melissa's neck and worked their way into Castiel's mouth. Dean couldn't help staring. Melissa began to sway, and fell over, a glow still present in her throat.
"Cas?... Buddy, please, please wake up. We need your help." Dean pleaded. He slowly lowered Castiel's body back to the floor, noting the wound in his throat as it seemed to close on it's own. "Cas...?"
Nothing. Dean slammed his fist down on his friend's chest. "Dammit, Cas! Wake up!"
Castiel sat bolt upright. He pulled Melissa to him, going straight for her throat, pulling the rest of the grace from her throat.
Dean went back to Lita, checking on the still unconscious girl, half because he wasn't sure if his sister was dead, or what Castiel was doing.
Castiel closed his mouth on Melissa's throat, as he reached up to her forehead with one hand, healing her. She came around in his arms, grace completely tapped, and immediately shoved him away.
Castiel looked hurt, but Melissa grabbed her padded jacket and headed back to the door, slowly and in obvious pain, shrugging into it as she peeked out, looking at where the angels and demons were headed.
Castiel got to his feet, spotted Dean, and motioned for him to follow, and bring Lita. He walked out the door, following Melissa. Dean gathered Lita up, and brought up the rear.
"I think Sam is on the second floor. I'll get him." Castiel said quietly.
"Where's my gun?" Melissa asked, turning to Dean.
He indicated his jacket pocket, and she fished it out. "What is that, anyway?"
"A judge," she muttered. "Fires shotgun rounds, does a lot of damage."
"How did you get one so fast?" Dean asked as they headed for the door.
"I know who to bribe."
Dean could have sworn it was going to be a straight shot to the car, but as they got to the now unguarded bay door, Crowley came around the corner.
Dean stopped abruptly. Melissa bumped into him.
Charlotte came out of an upstairs doorway, hands bloody, eyes burnt out, stumbling over the railing and landing hard. Castiel emerged a moment later, Sam leaning on him heavily.
Dean turned back to Crowley. "Looks like you get to keep your throne another day.
Castiel and Sam came closer, slowly, Melissa still watching for any danger approaching them.
Crowley began to smirk. "They aren't done with you, darling."
Dean stepped next to Melissa, in an attempt to remind her she wasn't alone.
"They will continue to track you, and your sweet little children to the ends of the earth. But I can make that all go away." Crowley purred.
"Don't." Dean said, still facing Crowley, but quiet enough only Melissa could hear him. "Don't listen to him."
Far away, sirens could be heard. Likely due to the large explosion that had rattled the place.
"What do you want from me?" Melissa asked.
Crowley nodded toward the unconscious college girl in Dean's arms. "Kill her."
"Why? You could just do that yourself." Dean argued.
Castiel let go of Sam, leaving him standing as he quickly came up behind them.
"I could." Crowley answered. "But I want her to do it. One quick, painless pull of the trigger, and the danger to yourself, the children, and the whole world, all of it, it goes away."
"Melissa, drop the gun, right now." Dean whispered. He didn't hear the clatter he'd expected. The sirens were growing louder.
Dean turned to Melissa to tell her once again to drop the gun, just in time to see her face as Castiel's arm appeared in front of her shoulders and his blade emerged tip first from her chest.
Dean started, not fully understanding what he was seeing. He could hear Sam screaming at Castiel, but he couldn't make out the words.
The sirens had stopped at the other side of the building.
"We have go. Now." Castiel said, retrieving his blade, lowering Melissa to the floor.
Dean was about to protest leaving his sister, but Sam and Castiel were rushing him past the place where Crowley no longer stood.