One moment Castiel had been staring at the flaring brightness of the torch illuminating Kensi and Deeks, and the next, he was standing on a vast, empty plain. Nothing moved; it was completely quiet, completely still, and the only source of light was the pale glow of the sky.

He was not alone, however. Some distance away, impossible to tell how far in this featureless place, stood a breathtakingly beautiful woman. She towered over him, perhaps three times the height of his current, vessel-clad form. Her eyes held the same glow as the sky, and tendrils of her long, blonde hair floated about her shoulders, riding on wisps of power.

She spoke in a resonant blend of at least three distinct voices, young, middle-aged, and old. 'Welcome, Castiel.'

'Hecate, I presume.' He could sense her power, its vastness like a glimpse of eternity. He almost shuddered at the feel of it brushing up against his Grace, a sensation both familiar and alien. He'd held power akin to this once, but had not been constructed to contain such; he'd lost himself for a time. This being did not share his weakness though. This was a god, but she was not his god.

'Indeed. I am pleased with your offering. It has been long since I was so well entertained. And you, yourself,' she paused, and seemed to be looking at something beyond the visible. He felt her power sift through all that he was, as her hair lifted and danced. Arms outstretched, she spread her fingers as though she held her hands beneath the cool rushing liquid of a waterfall.

Her head fell back, and she actually laughed. 'Hmm, Castiel, how I would love to bathe in the cascade of all your possibilities! You and your two companions have walked at the center of a mighty storm, shaping reality to your will, defying prophesy and forging paths unforseen. You have rebelled against heaven, rejected godhood, forsaken the comfort of your own kind, and cleaved unto the brilliance and beauty of a single human soul. Oh Castiel, how you love!' She winked at him, leaving him a little stunned. 'And yet, not as well as you may.'

He really didn't know what to make of her, or understand what she expected of him. His head cocked in the way it so often did when Dean baffled him, and her laughter rang out anew.

'Yes, you are a delight. I am happy to grant you your request. Tell me, Castiel, what is it you wish of me?'

He felt words rush to his tongue, but before he could speak, he hesitated, unsure. It felt like he was forgetting something.

Hecate frowned at him, then waved a hand. 'You may choose freely here, Castiel. I will tolerate no outside influence in this my realm.'

And Castiel's thoughts were suddenly crystal clear, his mind freed of fetters he hadn't known were there. He still wanted what he'd almost asked for, to send the Leviathan back to Purgatory, but he also wanted to right another wrong. He couched his request in careful words, 'I wish to return all those I mistakenly removed to the place from which I took them.'

A kind, almost motherly smile hovered on Hecate's lips. 'As you wish, so mote it be.'

Kensi blinked, shock holding her immobile. They were back where they'd started, in the car, on stakeout. God, hadn't she just... she put her hands to her cheeks, expecting to find them stiff with dried tears. But her skin was soft and warm, her eyes unswollen. Swamped by a vast sense of confusion and unreality, she was grateful to be sitting down. Her gaze cut to the left, to Deeks, when he coughed once, sharply, then took a deep, relieved breath. He had the look of a man suddenly released from great pain.

'Hello, you guys there?', came Nell's voice over the com. Kensi put a hand to her ear, surprised to find her earbud in place. She looked down to find herself wearing the same clothes she'd had on before they'd been abducted. So did Deeks, she noted. He even still had a soda, though it was safely in the cup holder.

Bemused, Kensi responded automatically, 'Yes, we're here Nell.'

'You cut out for a minute,' Nell replied. 'Is everything okay?'

'We're good,' Deeks stated, but looked at her as if it were a question. His eyes were as wide and confused as hers. Had any of that really happened? Then, movement caught his eye. 'Whoops, our perps are on the move. We're on it.' He started the car, and prepared to follow.

On the radio, Nickelback sang, '...I'm holding on to heaven...', and as one, their fingers stabbed out to change the station.

Sam and Dean staggered back as they awoke to the reality of the cemetary. The pedestal they'd been standing on had disappeared, along with the artifact itself. They looked at each other in a state of shock, then Dean choked out, 'Sammy' and they were hugging, hard.

Castiel didn't know what the brothers had experienced during Hecate's trials, but it had clearly been traumatic. He wondered at himself, that he'd ever chosen a course of action that would put them through something like that, but couldn't clearly remember the reasons he'd had at the time. He frowned, his memory had always been impeccable, why...?

A large, warm head butting against his hip broke him from his thoughts. Castiel looked down at the big dog beside him, which was pushing its head up under his hand, demanding that he pet it. He stroked the broad head, and ran his hand down its back. Its tongue lolled out, and it gave a sudden, happy bark.

Dean sprang back from his brother, once again automatically reaching for a weapon. Crowley chuckled, delighted, 'Don't get your panties in a twist, Deanie. Not all dogs chase squirrels.'

Dean scowled, unamused. 'Crowley. When did you get here?'

'You think I'd miss the show? Not on your life.' He looked around, noting that while the NCIS teams were gone, the Leviathan remained. Had that blasted angel somehow managed to screw this up, too? 'Castiel, what have you done?'

'Worry not, demon. The Leviathan are once more confined to Purgatory.' Castiel looked over at the Leviathan that had offended Hecate, 'All but that one, which is to be punished for all eternity, forced to take the place it temporarily usurped.'

Both the dog next to Castiel and the one standing by Crowley left their places, and approached the now alarmed Leviathan. They lowered their heads and growled menacingly, and he clutched at his head, moaning in sudden pain. Then he morphed into the form of a Rottweiler himself, though a pathetic, drooping, shaky one.

One of the dogs darted in and ripped at his ear, and he stared, stunned, as red drops of blood splattered on the ground. He shook his head and whined, clearly feeling the pain of the torn flesh. The other two lunged at him in tandem, and galvanized, he took off, closely chased by the snarling hounds. The three of them disappeared into the darkness.

'Ha! Run, you bastard,' Crowley called after them. 'I hope the pack rips you to shreds every night for the next thousand years, before you learn your place!' Well satisfied with the night's events, Crowley also took his leave.

Sam, Dean, and Castiel stood alone in the once-more quiet night, surrounded by a ring of flickering torches. 'What the hell happened, Cas?', Dean asked. 'Where are the others? Did they get to ask Hecate to send them home?'

'I spoke with the goddess on their behalf. I asked that she return all those I had mistakenly taken from their place.'

Dean gasped with horror, 'Holy crap, Cas! She might have put me back in hell!'

'No, Dean. I made no mistake when I raised you from perdition. It was the single best thing I have done in all of my existence.' He strode right up to Dean, well within his personal space, and stared him straight in the eye. 'And if she had done so, I would have followed you down, and done everything in my power to free you once again.' He paused, making sure he had Dean's full attention. 'I will always come for you, Dean.'

Castiel disappeared, leaving Dean standing gape-mouthed. Sam looked at the dumbfounded expression on his brother's face and rolled his eyes. Great, the damned angel had done it again. Honestly, nothing threw Dean emotionally more, or more often, than Castiel. And now Dean was going to be as broody as a 16-year-old girl for the foreseeable future.

Sam gave him a friendly punch on the shoulder, and turned to head back to the parking lot. 'Come on, Princess. You can moon over your boyfriend on your own time.' That earned him a glare, and a bitch-slap to the back of the head, but he couldn't help but grin. He was just so damn glad his brother was still alive.

When they reached the car, they found it to be the only one in the lot. It seemed that all evidence of the NCIS teams having ever been there had been erased. But, they would not soon be forgotten.

Dean slid behind the wheel of the Impala. 'I'm too wired to sleep. You got any leads on our next hunt?'

'Ah, yeah. Garth mentioned that he could use some help when we were done here; head south, to Texas. Um, do you suppose...?'

'What?'

'Well, you always hear about wishes coming in threes, and we know that's Hecate's number. Do you think there are still two more wishes available for the asking?'

'Huh, good point. I guess we can ask Cas, next time he shows up.'

As Dean drove, Sam started looking for a decent radio station. He stopped when he came across a Nine Inch Nails song.

'...I don't believe it, I had to see it, I came back haunted, I came back haunted, I said goodbye, but I, I had to try, I came back haunted, c-c-came back haunted...'

'Dude,' Dean complained, 'kill that techno crap.'

Sam smiled, recognizing a bratty little brother opportunity. He settled comfortably into his seat, and prepared to wind his brother up. 'Come on, Dean. Trent Reznor is a musical genius. He even won an Oscar!'

And the argument was on...

AN: So, that concludes my first attempt at a full-length story, as well as my first foray into the Supernatural world. I hope you've enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. My most sincere thanks to those who've commented and encouraged me along the way.

You'll note that I didn't write any follow-up to Sam and Callen's experience during the trials. I figured that Sam, being secure in his warrior identity, would have been able to cope with his choice. Callen would be in for some soul-searching, but I don't think he'd share what he went through with Sam.

I'm leaving it up to the readers to decide if Callen, Sam, Kensi and Deeks ever choose to discuss their adventures with Dean and Sam, amongst themselves. Or if Dean and Sam ever tell each another about what they went through during Hecate's test.

For those who aren't familiar with NCIS L.A., there are two episodes of Season 4 that follow the point in time in which this story takes place. In the first, Parley, Kensi is forced to cope with jealousy when Deeks goes undercover, and gets far too close for her comfort to another woman. Then, in the season finale, Deeks bites the bullet and makes his move. He kisses Kensi! But then he promptly gets himself captured by Sidorov, and is being tortured when last we see him. I am waiting with bated breath for the Season 5 premiere on Tuesday, to find out what happens!

Oh, and as to what Sam and Dean get up to after this? Well, they try to close the Gates of Hell, which requires a different set of trials. The first entails killing a hellhound, and yup, Crowley is pissed!

I won't mark this story complete just yet. As the Latin term for a place where three roads meet is trivia (tri + via), and Hecate's Roman counterpart is the goddess Trivia, I thought it would be appropriate to add a chapter detailing the literary, TV, movie, and song references I used. In due time, of course, I'll first have to review what I wrote, and compile the data. And, I'd also now like to take some time, and read some of the wonderful fanfiction stories other people have written. Hopefully, the muse will visit me again someday. Until then, adieu. :-)