Alex should have called Castiel for help before this demon caught her. He was high on Azazel's chain of command and was supposed to bring Alex back to his boss. Wilfred, the demon, had a slight change of plan before he took her back.

"I know your daddy said not to hurt you," Wilfred taunted as he gently stroked her cheek with the tip of his knife. "But after what you did to my boys, I can't help myself."

"You do what you have to, Wilf," Alex spit blood into his face before starting to chant the exorcism. Wilfred shoved a dirty rag into her mouth to stop her words.

"I don't think so, missy." Wilfred clucked his tongue. "I'm going to take my time with you."

True to his word, the demon carved the lives Alex had taken out of her ass for weeks, probably days. She didn't keep track. She bit down on the dirty rag to prevent herself from letting the pain through her bond. Not even when Wilfred took a pipe to her leg, breaking it, did she call for help. The bone snapping caused her to black out for a minute but when she woke back up, a kind face was staring at her while he untied her.

"Name's Rufus." He said, pulling the gag out of her mouth. "Can you walk?"

Alex shook her head weakly, her mouth felt like it was full of cotton. Rufus gingerly picked her up in his arms and carried her out to his truck, driving to the nearest hospital. He disappeared after giving a false story to the nurses. Alex drifted in and out of consciousness but when a doctor set the broken bone, she screamed loudly and the pain flooded through her bond with Castiel. The pain hit the angel like a white hot flame and a fraction of a millisecond later, he was outside of Alex's hospital room.

"I'm sorry, sir. You can't come in here right now." A nurse said, her hand on his chest.

Castiel glared at her for a moment before Alex called out for him. His attention turned to his hurt mate and he pushed his way into her room, much to the displeasure of the staff. He stared at her bloody and bruised body, cursing himself for not protecting her. Alex's hair had blood matted in it, her arms were mostly open wounds, and her leg lay at an awkward angle. The doctor cursed under his breath when he realized that her broken bone hadn't set properly and he had to do it again. Alex shrieked again and two nurses held her arms down while tears flowed down her cheeks.

"Sir, I'm sorry but you have to go now. You can wait in the front lobby." The same nurse said. Castiel was so taken aback by Alex's wounds that he let the nurse push him out into the hall.

"Cas!" Alex whimpered. "Where's Cas?"

"You're here alone, sweetheart." A nurse stroked her hair. "Who's Cas?"

"An angel. My angel." Alex started to fall asleep, thanks to a syringe full of medicine pushed through her I.V. "My Castiel."

Castiel was under strict orders not to make his angelic state known to humans. This prevented him from flying Alex home or healing her, as she was under almost constant supervision. The doctors watched her wounds carefully and made sure that they wouldn't get infected. Castiel was allowed to sit with her in her room and he didn't leave her side. The doctors kept Alex sedated so her wounds could heal faster. Wilfred had managed to take several large chunks of flesh out of her arms and torso, so moving would have caused her to hurt herself worse. When the nurse was distracted for a moment, Castiel took Alex in his arms and took her to her motel room. He laid her gently on the bed before healing her. She still slept for a while, whispering Castiel's name in her sleep and he stroked her hair with promises that he was watching over her.

When Alex did wake up, she felt stiff and sat up, being careful of her aching head. She was alone but saw that her clothes were covered in blood, so she stripped them off and headed for the bathroom. Alex turned on the hot water and brushed her hair while waiting for it to warm up. When she stepped under the hot spray, she let out a deep breath and let the pulsing water work out the ache in her muscles. She stood there longer than she realized when the water turned ice cold, causing her to shout at the unexpected temperature change.

Castiel had left to find food and something to drink for Alex. When he returned, he found her bloodied clothes and heard her shout from the bathroom. Not pausing to think, Castiel burst through the bathroom door and came face to face with a startled—and naked—Alex. The angel wasn't ashamed when his gaze roamed over her body and he noticed that when she blushed, she blushed everywhere. Alex grabbed a towel and draped it over herself.

"Cas, what are you doing?" She asked, still flustered at him bursting in.

"I heard you shout." Castiel said after he cleared his throat. "I wanted to make sure you were alright."

"I'm fine." Alex assured him. "Thanks for taking care of me, Cas."

Castiel kissed her forehead and offered a smile. "I will always take care of you."

"I should get dressed." Alex said awkwardly. "I'll come out when I'm ready."

Castiel didn't see the need for her to get dressed but exited the bathroom anyway. Alex joined him when she had dressed and tried to kiss him. Castiel gently nudged her toward the bed and insisted that she rest a bit longer.

"Stay with me?" Alex requested, pushing the blankets aside so Castiel could lie down next to her. With a kind smile, he pulled her close and Alex rested her head on his chest.

He watched her sleep for a long while, waiting until she was sound asleep before saying the words that he hadn't been able to say to her before. "I love you."

Alex moved in her sleep and moved her hand over his heart. Castiel took her hand in his own and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. He didn't need to sleep so he was awake when she started to have a nightmare. He knew it was about her sister because that was all she dreamed about. Holding her closer so she wouldn't thrash around, Castiel sang to her in Enochian until she calmed down.

Castiel was unwilling to leave her alone for the next few weeks, afraid that someone would try to hurt her again. Hunts were easier and safer with him along and Alex had more free time than she knew what to do with. She and Castiel spent a lot of nights talking or staring at the stars holding hands. Every morning she woke up with Castiel watching over her and she wished that it would never end because nobody could ever take his place.

"I bet Samuel's library would have something about Eve." Sam offered while they poured over Bobby's books. The group had been reading all night and so far had come up with nothing. The book they had stolen from the dragons wasn't any help at all.

"Why don't you three go and I'll stay here and keep reading?" Alex said when she stood up to stretch.

"Are you sure?" Sam and Dean asked together.

"Yeah." Alex nodded. "I can run the phones for a few days. Give Bobby a break."

A little while later Alex was alone, her iPod plugged into the speakers that she had convinced Bobby to install with his stereo. Izzie had added a lot of music to her iPod before she died and Alex didn't have the heart to change any of the music on it. 7 Things I Hate About You started to play and Alex was slightly surprised to find that it fit her and Castiel fairly well. When Castiel showed up to ask for her help, Alex was singing to herself while she read.

"I need you." Castiel said over the music.

Alex looked up and turned off her music. "What's wrong?"

"The war in Heaven is not going well. I need your help." Castiel now stood next to her.

"I haven't used my abilities in almost a year, Cas. I don't know if I'd be any help." Alex said.

"Regardless, I need your help." Castiel grabbed her arm.

"Can I at least leave a note for Sam?" When Castiel nodded, Alex jotted a quick note assuring the boys she'd be fine then she was in Heaven.

She had a fraction of a second to take in her surroundings before one of Raphael's angels attacked her. Alex grabbed him as he tackled her to the ground and with hardly any effort on her part, she pulled the angel apart. Standing quickly, she saw an angel attacking Castiel and something inside of her burned angrily. No one would hurt Castiel if she could help it. Letting her power take over, Alex stalked toward the angel that had a blade almost to Castiel's chest. She picked up an angel blade from the grass and shoved it into the angel's back.

"Thank you." Castiel said before throwing an angel blade behind Alex, hardly giving her time to duck. The blade landed in another of Raphael's soldiers.

"I guess it's my turn to thank you." Alex smiled, her now black eyes gleaming. Her power had been dormant for a while but now the power was almost intoxicating.

Dozens of Raphael's angels ambushed Castiel's dwindling army and it was getting smaller by the second. Thankful for her fighting skills, Alex threw—and landed- several punches on the attacking angels before she felt an angel blade sink into her chest. It hurt but she pulled it out, much to her attacker's astonishment.

"Try again, douchebag." Alex taunted before slamming the blade into his chest. The rest of Raphael's army got scared at this point and focused their efforts on Alex, hacking and stabbing with their blades. It didn't kill her but she did lose enough blood to be dizzy and weak. She saw Castiel a few yards away and in a last attempt to buy them some time, Alex shouted an incantation in Enochian. When Raphael's army realized what she was trying to do, they fled, leaving Castiel's army panting for breath.

"What did you do?" Castiel asked as he walked over to Alex, whose clothes were mostly bloodied and ripped to shreds.

"It was a spell to kill the angels." Alex spit blood onto the ground, clutching her angel blade in her fist.

"You could have killed us all!" Castiel shouted.

"I knew they would leave. I bought us time that we didn't have before!" Alex shouted back. "Have your army heal themselves."

A female angel, Rachel, approached them as Dean called for Castiel. "I can handle it, Castiel."

She disappeared and Castiel turned his attention back to Alex. "You're stronger than we realized."

Alex shrugged. "Somebody has to save your feathered ass."

Castiel couldn't help the small smile that spread on his face and Alex chuckled before pulling her hair into a ponytail. The angel heard Rachel insulting Dean and Sam so he took Alex's hand and went to the boys.

"Alex!" Sam was alarmed when he saw his wife covered in blood. "What the hell happened to you?"

"If you think this is bad, you should see the other guy." Alex winked at Sam then assured him that she was fine. Castiel dismissed Rachel and Dean told the angel their plan.

"Phoenix ashes will kill Eve?" Alex asked in disbelief when they were back at Bobby's. When Sam nodded she continued. "So you read in Samuel Colt's journal that his gun killed one in 1861 and you're going to go back in time to find it?"

"It's the best plan we got." Bobby said, cleaning his gun.

"It's crazy." Alex said. "What if you can't find him?"

"We will." Sam assured her with a kiss.

"Um, about your plan." Castiel interrupted. "You only have 24 hours."

"What?" Sam asked in surprise. "Why?"

"The further back I send you, the harder it is to retrieve you." Castiel explained. "If you're gone longer than 24 hours, you'll be lost to me."

"Then we better get you a watch." Dean entered carrying several paper bags from a wild west store. After a little protesting from Sam, they were both dressed in cowboy gear. Dean was more into the wild west and cowboy movies so in addition to his shirt and leather vest, he wore a blanket.

"Serape." Dean corrected Alex.

"It's a blanket." Alex quipped.

"This is stupid." Sam grumbled. "I look stupid."

"Yeah, you do." Alex teased him before standing on her tiptoes to kiss him. "But looking stupid has never looked better."

Bobby was finishing putting the gold from the dragon's lair into Dean's duffel bag. He explained to the boys that where they were going, they couldn't use plastic.

"I'll send you back to March 4." Castiel said. "That should give you time to find the phoenix and get its ashes."

"Be careful." Alex told Sam. Castiel had told them he could only send two this far back and he needed Alex's help so the boys were going alone. Then the boys were gone.

"I have to go." Castiel said.

"What about getting the boys back?" Bobby asked.

"Pray for me in 24 hours and I'll return." Castiel replied.

"I'll pray for all of us." Bobby turned to set his timer and when he looked back, Castiel was gone.

"What now?" Alex asked Bobby.

"We gotta find the Mother now." Bobby said, handing her another book. Groaning inwardly, Alex slid off the desk and claimed the window seat.

They had been reading for hours when Bobby got a call for backup from a hunter hours away. Alex was still healing from her earlier fight with Castiel's army so Bobby left to handle it. They had 4 hours left until the boys would come back when Alex heard a thud in the kitchen. She picked up her gun and ran in to find Castiel crawling to the refrigerator.

"Cas?" Alex said, silencing herself when he motioned for her to be quiet. Reaching into his shirt, he drew a sigil on the refrigerator in his blood. When he tried to stand it became obvious he was weak. "Are we running or fighting?"

"We're..." Castiel managed two weak steps before he collapsed into her arms. Alex was barely able to hold him up.

"Crap!" Alex's voice was strained under the extra weight of the angel but she managed to get him to the window seat. She propped him up on pillows and her gaze fell to the blood staining his shirt. Being careful not to wake him, Alex untied his tie, pulling it from around his neck before unbuttoning his shirt. Spreading it open she saw the wound in his side, too close to his heart for her comfort. Looking at his sleeping face she said softly, "Oh, Cas. What happened to you?"

She gathered some water and a rag and cleaned his wound. If Castiel was weak enough to fall unconscious then he wasn't strong enough to heal himself. With that in mind, Alex poured alcohol on the wound and bandaged it. Her fingers lingered on the muscles of his chest and stomach, tracing the pattern lightly. Clearing her throat, she stood up and left his shirt open so she could change his bandage if she needed to. Alex was in the process of changing his bandage for the second time when he bolted up right, panting for breath. He seemed startled at Alex was kneeling in front of him with his shirt open.

"What are you doing?" The angel asked, sitting up.

"You were hurt and not healing so I bandaged you up." Alex stammered under the intense gaze of the angel. "What happened to you?"

"I was...betrayed." Castiel sighed. "Rachel...Raphael turned her against me."

"That bitch." Alex muttered under her breath as she stood.

"She's dead. I was wounded and I needed safety." Castiel tried to stand up but grunted and started to cough before falling back on the cushions.

"Hey." Alex said softly, kneeling next to him again and rubbing his back. She spoke in Enochian. "Take it easy, Cas. What did you draw on the fridge?"

"It's a warding symbol against angels." Castiel said, pressing his hand to his wound.

"How bad does it hurt?" Alex asked. Castiel stared into her emerald eyes and saw a glimpse of his Alex looking back at him.

"I'll heal." He assured her and she smiled.

"Good. We have less than an hour before you have to pick up the boys." Alex cleaned up the bandage wrappers.

"I can't." Castiel said.

"What?"

"This fight drained me." Castiel explained.

"If you can't do it, call another angel who can." Alex said.

"I can't."

"There has to be something that can give you the juice you need." Alex ran a hand through her hair. "A spell or something."

"There is one thing that might work but it's extremely dangerous." Castiel admitted.

"Aren't they always?" Alex said. "What is it?"

"It's your soul." Castiel was quiet. "I need you to let me touch it."

"Touch it?" Alex repeated.

"The human soul is pure energy. If I can...siphon some of that off it may be enough to bring Sam and Dean back." Castiel said.

"I'm only half human, though."

"You still have a soul."

"What's the catch?" Alex asked. "You said it was dangerous."

"Doing this is like putting your hand in a nuclear reactor. I have to do it very gingerly."

"Or..." Alex waited for him to finish the sentence.

After a moment of reluctance Castiel said, "Or you'll explode."

"I guess be careful then." Alex took a deep breath. "Let's do this."

Alex stood against the wall in Bobby's library.

"You should sit down." Castiel advised, rolling his sleeve up.

"If I do, I'll just bolt back up when you reach in." Alex said nervously. "I don't want to mess this up."

"Very well." Castiel pressed one hand against the wall to steady himself. "Are you sure?"

"We can't just leave them there, can we?" Alex said.

"The risks..."

"Just don't blow me up." Alex offered a half smile to Castiel, clutching handfuls of his trench coat. "I trust you."

Castiel nodded and Alex clenched her teeth when he reached inside of her, trying hard not to scream. Alex didn't mean to pull him close and slam her lips against his but it happened, almost like a reflex. Castiel was stunned but in addition to touching her soul, his Grace was strengthened by the intimate contact with his mate. He returned the kiss and retracted his arm, wrapping it around her waist. His other hand moved behind her neck and held her face there while his tongue danced against hers. Castiel had enough power to bring the boys back but he had to stop kissing Alex to do it. She was panting and staring at Castiel in disbelief when the boys came running into the room.

Alex slumped to the floor while Dean stared at the empty jar they had failed to get the phoenix ash in. Sam helped Alex to a chair and Castiel sat across from her, both of them still weak.

"You have to send us back." Dean pleaded with Castiel, who just stared at him.

"Dean, look at him." Sam said. "He's fried. We'll have to find another way. Are you okay, Alex?"

"I'll be fine." Alex didn't have the energy to smile at him so she let her head rest on the desk.

"We screwed the pooch." Dean said, fingering his cowboy hat in his hands. "I'm sorry, Alex."

Someone knocked on the door and Sam went to answer it, returning with a box.

"What is it?" Alex propped her head on her hand.

Sam opened the box and found his broken cell phone and a letter from none other than Samuel Colt.

"Dear Sam, I got this date and address from your thingajig and thought the enclosed might come in handy. Regards, Samuel Colt." Sam read and picked up a bottle full of black ash.

"Is that what I think it is?" Alex asked.

"Ashes of a phoenix." Dean confirmed. "You know what this means?"

"Yeah. I didn't get a soulonsocopy for nothing." Alex muttered.

"Yeah. And we take the fight to her." Dean said.

Sam had insisted that Alex lie down and she slept for a few hours. When she woke up, it was dark and Sam was asleep next to her, snoring softly. Alex smiled and got up quietly, dressing quickly and going downstairs. Castiel had stayed to rest as well since he had warded the house against angels. He was resting on the window seat and Alex tiptoed past him, closing the front door behind her. She walked out to the Impala and climbed on the hood, leaning back on the windshield to stare at the stars. The wind chilled her and she shivered, wishing that she had brought her coat or blanket with her.

Footsteps crunched on the gravel and Alex propped herself up on her elbows so she could see who it was. Castiel was walking toward her.

"How are you feeling?" He asked her, climbing next to her.

"Much better." Alex admitted and laid back down on the windshield. The wind caused her to shiver again and Castiel pulled off his trench coat and covered Alex's body with it, catching a glimpse of his wings inked onto her hip. "Thanks, Cas."

"Of course." Castiel leaned back so he could gaze at the stars with her. Neither one of them mentioned the kiss. He knew that he should go back inside where he was safe but Castiel didn't want to leave Alex's company. She fell asleep listening to Castiel tell her stories of the different constellations in the sky. As he always did, Castiel watched over her until she woke up.

A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. As always a giant thank you to my followers, reviewers, and those of you who have added my story to your favorites list. Reviews are always welcome! xo