Chapter 37

Training Day

That night, the dreams started again.

It was as though Andie was watching a movie of her own life. She was eight years old, creeping down the hallway after hearing a crash of glass on the bathroom tiles. Her mother had disappeared into that room after she'd tucked Andie in, kissing her goodnight and telling her she loved her. They had had a good day, a rarity for them. Even at nine Andie and her mother didn't get along; but today was different. Today was fun. Still, young Andie couldn't ignore the worrying feeling within her stomach that made her heart race as she padded towards the slightly open bathroom door. She could see the flickering lights of a spread of candles tracing the rim of the bathtub and her mother's damp hair limply hanging over the edge of the tub.

Then something else caught her eye; the candlelight glinted against the water, but the water wasn't transparent. It was red. Andie wasn't sure how she knew it was blood; but it was. "Mum?" she called out hopefully to the silent frame of her mother's body. Her wrist was dangling off the side of the bath; scarlet liquid trickling down in a sickly motion to a widening puddle on the floor. "Mummy!"

With a gasp, Andie woke up from the nightmare. Cool beads of sweat were racing down her face and her t-shirt was sticking to her chest. She quickly sat up and took a few deep breaths. At least I didn't scream... she thought, remembering when she used to have nightmares with Cassidy and her friend would be shaking her awake with bleary eyes; but Dean was still sleeping beside her. One of the good things about staying at Bobby's for awhile was that they got their own room; so Andie didn't have to worry about waking Sam. What she didn't expect was a late night visitor.

"Did I wake you?" Castiel asked from the doorway.

"No, I, just...ah..." Andie pulled her damp hair off the back of her neck and up into a ponytail. "Bad dream. What are you doing here?"

"You need to come with me."

Andie stayed put; the last time Castiel had popped up like this she'd wound up in the future with two daughters. "I'm not going anywhere unless you tell me what you want."

"It's not about what I want," Castiel replied. "It's about what you want. You want Cassidy back; you need to learn how to do that."

Andie glanced over at Dean, wondering if she should wake him, but then decided it was best for her to figure this out herself. It was what she wanted after all, like Castiel said. Quickly tossing on a pair of jeans over her boxer shorts, Andie followed Castiel downstairs and outside to the back of Bobby's junkyard. "What are we doing out here?" She asked, curious as to how this would help her locate Cassidy's soul.

"You didn't know where your powers came from," Castiel explained. "So you've never used them to their full potential. Now, you know the truth so you need to learn just how powerful you are."

Andie narrowed her eyes at him. "You're going to, what, train me?"

"In a manner of speaking." Castiel replied vaguely. "Sit down."

Not even bothering to complain about sitting on the dirt, Andie just sighed and sat cross legged on the spot.

"Sit up straight. Close your eyes." Castiel instructed taking a few steps back.

Puzzled, Andie did as he said, sneaking quick peeks at him in case he tried to do something to her. Wow, am I on edge, she thought, I'm suspicious of an angel... "What exactly do you want me to do?"

"I want you to lift up everything in this area." Castiel informed her.

Andie opened her eyes wide, unsure of what she'd heard. "Are you drunk?"

"Use your telekinesis," Castiel explained calmly. "Everything in this area," He gestured to the scrap metal and piles of tyres in various states of disorder. "Lift it up."

"I..." Andie scoffed a laugh. "I can't. I mean, I can barely move more than one thing at a time; you want me to mess around with all of this junk?"

"If you focus; you can do it." Castiel assured her. "Close your eyes."

With a complacent exhale, Andie shut her eyes again and rested her hands on her knees. She wasn't sure what to think of that would help this situation. Channelling her power had always been a bit tricky for her; her method of just tossing her hand and various things worked well in the past; but of late she had been trying to extend the ability.

"Visualize what you're trying to do." Castiel coached her.

Andie noticed his voice sounded further away, almost echoed like a voice in a dream, but she did as he said. She pictured the junkyard and all the random items around her floating a foot or so above the ground. Her mind cleared a little and she was able to concentrate better and even out her breathing.

"Focus better, Andie!" Castiel's voice called out.

Put off by the suddenly firm tone in his voice, Andie opened her eyes and screamed. She was floating off the ground staring down at Castiel. The second she let out that cry; she lost her concentration and fell heavily back to earth. "Ooof!" She grunted as her backside hit the dirt. "Well; that'll leave a mark..." She grumbled rubbing her back. "What the hell was that?" She directed at Castiel who was immediately at her side helping her to her feet.

"A first attempt." He replied. "You need to shift your focus; you're channelling your power inward."

"Well, I don't know how to do it any other way." Andie retorted. "No one ever taught me how to do this, ok? And anyway, how is using telekinesis meant to help me find Cass's soul?"

"Your powers all stem from the same place; you have to learn to exercise them all."

Grumbling, Andie continued to rub her sore butt. "You still haven't told me how I'm supposed to find Cass's soul."

"Once you're better equipped it'll be easier to explain," Castiel replied. "But you'll be able to see her soul, and call it back into her body."

Andie gave him the strangest look. "Right... "call to her soul"... you're sure you're not drunk?"

Castiel wasn't amused. "That's enough for tonight." He muttered.

"No, come on, I'll be serious. Promise."

"No, it's not a good idea for you to do too much too soon."

"Well, aren't we kinda on a clock here?" Andie pointed out. "I mean, Cassidy is technically a corpse right now... and corpses, y'know... rot..."

"You're grandmother will keep her safe." Castiel replied. "Go back to bed; Dean's awake. He's concerned for you."

And within a blink of her eyes, Castiel vanished from Andie's view. "Oh, crud." She hissed as she turned and made her way back to Bobby's house. It was a shame she didn't inherit all the angelic powers of her grandmother; blinking around from place to place would make travelling a whole lot easier than crammed into the backseat of the Impala.

Dean was in the kitchen when Andie came back inside. "Hey," His eyes glanced over her noting the dirt smeared across her clothes. "What happened? Are you ok?"

"Yeah; fine," Andie smiled. "Castiel..." She rolled her eyes. "I guess you'd say he's 'training' me."

Dean was way too tired to question her further, but he did rub her shoulders clean of the dirt stained across her. "You coming back to bed?"

"Yeah, I just need to take a shower first." Andie tried to give him a reassuringly smile; but she could tell he was still worried about her. It was in his eyes. "I'm fine, Dean." She said firmly.

He cupped her face between his hands and planted a gentle kiss on her lips; parting her mouth ever so slightly with his own. "Y'know, I'm not leaving you either." He whispered as he pulled away.

Andie found herself smiling again; but this one really was reassuring. "Good to know." She smirked as he kissed her deeply once more. "I'll see you upstairs."

"Ok, don't keep me waiting." Dean tapped her nose with his finger, which she then playfully smacked away, then retreated upstairs.

"He's a good man, Andie," Ellie's voice sang from the top of the basement stairs. "A good heart."

"I know," She cast a curious look to her grandmother. "What are you doing up here?"

"Cassidy's alright." She assured her as she drifted across the floor; her dress was so long it covered her feet so she looked like she was floating. "You could go down and see her if you want. She just looks like she's sleeping."

"No." Andie replied hurriedly, not intended for her voice to sound so panicked. "No; I don't want to see her until I can bring her back. I don't want to go down there."

"Ok," Ellie said calmly. "It was just a suggestion." She rested her hands upon Andie's shoulders, but then her eyes narrowed as she saw something else was troubling her grandchild. "What is it, sweetheart? You seem uneasy."

Briefly Andie thought about saying nothing, it surely wouldn't be easier for her Grams to hear about Andie's dreams, but then again she was an angel. "I had a nightmare," She began slowly. "About mum. About the day she died."

A mournful glow cast across Ellie's eyes. "Oh..."

"I haven't had them in a long time." Andie continued. "It used to be every night...then after I met Cass they were less frequent...and up until now I couldn't tell you the last time I had one."

"What exactly do you see, dear?" It was hard for Ellie to ask this question, after all they were speaking of her only daughter's demise, but Andie was the most important thing to Ellie and her needs came first.

"I see myself as a kid... finding her in the bath." Andie tried to keep the mental image of her mother floating in a bath full of blood red water from creeping into her mind. "Why am I having them again?"

"Perhaps it's my fault," Ellie mused aloud. "My reappearance stirred up some old feelings..." She closed her eyes; as if overcome by guilt.

"Hey, I'm screwed up in more ways than one," Andie tried to cheer her up. "Might just be me."

"Oh, you're sweet dear," She cupped Andie's cheek in her palm. "But I'm sorry to say nightmares are something that runs in our blood..."

Andie smirked, that sentence stirring up a memory. "Dale one time said the same thing..."

"Dale?" Ellie repeated, the name striking an old flame inside her. "Dale was here? He found you?"

"Yeah, actually he was the one who came up with the idea that I should marry Dean to keep him outta Hell."

A wistful grin tugged at Ellie's lips. "Did he now..." She laughed. "That does sound like him." She sighed with huge relief. "I'm so glad he found you."

"Yeah; last year." Andie nodded, remembering her brief encounter with her grandmothers' old friend; he was a master in knowledge of the occult and even had numerous degrees on the matter. He was always researching something new. "Although now he's in the middle of the jungle somewhere, haven't heard from him in awhile. You guys were friends, weren't you," She asked. "I remember reading about him in your journal."

"Yes, he was of great comfort to me after my husband died...but, my journal, you still have it?" Ellie seemed delighted at this news.

"Yeah, it's come in quite handy," Andie smiled. "Do you want to see it?"

"Tomorrow, love, you need rest." Ellie traced her hand along Andie's jaw line.

Andie nodded and started to head upstairs, but she paused on the bottom step and turned back around. "Awhile ago... she came to me. Mum." Andie admitted. "I mean, it wasn't her. It was a demon playing a trick... and I...I hurt Dean; I almost killed him." She brushed that horrid thought aside. "I don't want that to start again."

Ellie stepped forward and took Andie's hand. "It won't, my darling."

Andie chewed on her bottom lip. "Promise?" she muttered quietly.

"I promise. Now go clean up and get back to bed." She patted her granddaughter's hand and watched her carefully as she ascended the staircase. "Will she be alright?" she asked Castiel, whom she had felt pop up behind her once Andie was out of view.

"I don't know." He answered as he stepped up beside Ellie. "She's strong, but her powers are unpredictable."

"Nothing matters more to me," Ellie flexed her fingers. "In this world or the next, than that girl, Castiel." She said warningly. "If what you're doing, this training, harms her? You will have to answer to me."

"I don't wish to harm her." Castiel replied pointedly; almost offended by her accusatory tone. "However there are concerns..."

"I heard." Ellie sighed, wishing sometimes she could tune out of angel radio. "After everything she's done they all still doubt Andie's ability to help Sam and Dean defeat Lilith."

Castiel glanced sideways at Ellie. "Not all of them." He reassured her.

xxx