Quick warning! Mentions of suicide ahead.


Alex watched Sam out of the corner of her eye, her fingers playing with the amulet that hung from her wrist as she studied him. His jaw was working furiously, anger warring with worry in his gaze. She glanced back towards the window after a moment, her brow furrowing. She felt the same as he did, she supposed. Angry and worried about the idiot of a man they were chasing.

The past few days had been a whirlwind. One moment, they were dead and she was dealing with Avery and a bunch of archangels. The next, after a quick check in with Bobby, who'd said that Avery wasn't awake just yet, they'd been dealing with the Whore and a drunken Castiel. And then - and then, after everything - Dean had just booked it. A quick lie about getting bandages from the Impala had been all it took for him to get out.

"Are you sure we're going in the right direction?" Alex asked suddenly, glancing at Sam. She didn't doubt his knowledge of Dean. She suspected that he'd know precisely where to go next, too, if this location was a dud.

"Yes," Sam said without looking at her. "Lisa…and then the nearest bar...and then the motel that's closest to the bar. He, uh, he did that last bit last time. Remember?"

Alex nodded, biting her lip. He had done some bar hopping and sleeping around, she supposed. Around the time the hellhounds had come. "Who's Lisa?" she asked suddenly.

"An old girlfriend of his." Sam let out a loud breath. "She has a kid...Dean really liked her and the kid. Still does. A couple of years ago, before we met you, there was a changeling problem she got dragged into. She knows kind of what we do, but didn't really want much to do with it." He pressed his mouth into a hard line. "He'd say goodbye to her before doing anything."

"He didn't say goodbye to her last time," Alex pointed out. She paused. "Did he?"

"I don't know. Maybe. If he did, he didn't tell us. It's possible he didn't want to risk hellhounds around her," Sam admitted. He grumbled for a moment before saying, "Any word on Avery?"

Alex shook her head as Sam pulled off the interstate. "No, not yet. But she's healing, so…"

"We'll go there next. After we find Dean. Cas is going to help us lock him in the bunker if necessary, so...I'll help you with her."

Alex's lips kicked up at the corners. "Sounds good, Winchester number two." She sat back, running a hand through her hair. Her fingers thoughtfully brushed over her scars, feeling the ruined flesh. "Barachiel," she murmured and Sam glanced at her. "He's the one who let it slip. Where Matt lived. I didn't tell you guys, but…"

"We'll go after him," Sam promised, eyes narrowing a little.

"We've got other things to worry about right now," Alex replied, shaking her head. "I'll figure it out after the apocalypse ends, whether it be in the way we want it to or - Sam, there!" She pointed at the familiar Impala through the window, her lips pressing into a hard line.

Sam complied and pulled the stolen car alongside the Impala. Alex scrambled out, nostrils flaring. "He's here," she murmured, "and there's no angels. This way, Sam." She led the way through the parking lot, casually taking a sniff at each door until she found the one they were looking for.

She nodded, and quietly pulled the door open, ducking in near silently. Sam followed her in, not bothering to close the door. Perhaps it was the sudden temperature change, but Dean, who was taping a box shut, didn't look back as he questioned, "How'd you find me?"

"You're going to kill yourself, right?" Sam responded quietly, his voice a little biting. "It's not too hard to figure out the stops on the Farewell Tour. How's Lisa doing, anyways?"

Dean snorted, turning to face them. He blinked at the sight of them, as if he'd not really thought they were physically there. "I'm not going to kill myself," he said, rolling his eyes.

"No?" Alex replied, her lips pressed into a hard line. She'd had a few moments in the past year in which she'd wanted nothing more than to do just that. After Matt's death, especially. They'd known it, both of the Winchesters. She'd gotten so close on more than one occasion to taking the blade she so proudly carried with her and using its sharp blade to end it all. The only thing that had stopped her in the moments that she'd held it in the dead of night, debating as they slept in the next room over, was the lack of knowledge of where creatures like her went next and the fact that she didn't want them to have to take care of her body in the way she'd done for Dean.

No matter how much Dean pissed her off at times like this, she wouldn't do that to him. Nor to Sam.

Alex let loose a deep growl that thundered from deep in her chest. "Because people just run off with no reason, right? You just chose to ditch us like that for no bloody reason?"

Dean ignored her, refusing to answer and Sam said, voice breaking a little bit, "How could you do that?"

"How could I?" Dean challenged. "All you've ever done is run away, Sam."

Sam winced at the reference to their trip in Heaven, and Alex snapped her teeth together once. Sending her a warning look, Sam told him calmly, "And I was wrong, Dean. Every single time I did. Just...come on. Not now. Bobby's working on something."

"Oh, really? And what is it that he's working on? You've got nothing and you know it," Dean said with a bark of laughter. He rolled his shoulders, eyeing the door, and Alex put her hands on her hips, reassured that Castiel was on standby, nowhere to be seen yet listening for the first murmured prayer of his name.

"You know we have to stop you," Sam said quietly, looking saddened that he'd not been able to convince his brother without getting the angel involved.

"Yeah, well," Dean drawled, "you can try." His green eyes blazed with irritated determination. "Just remember: you're not all hopped up on demon blood this time, and I've trained my entire life to deal with monsters like you, mutt, so try me. I know a dozen different ways to get rid of you."

Once, such words wouldn't have struck her so hard, as he'd said them on a regular basis and honestly disliked her. Now, Alex flinched like he'd re-drawn a knife over every one of her scars at once, and Sam scowled, not at all happy with this, but said, "Yeah, we're aware. So we brought help."

Dean stilled and Alex gave him a sorrowful look as she breathed Castiel's name. Dean whirled around and was immediately confronted by a grim-faced Castiel. It took only seconds for Castiel to press his index and third finger to Dean's forehead, soundlessly knocking him out, and Dean hit the ground heavily. Sam winced.

"I'm sorry," Castiel said with a light grimace. "I could have stopped that."

"No, it's fine, Castiel," Alex said quietly, expression blank. "Just...you two go ahead without me. We need to get him to Bobby's before he wakes up." She folded her arms tightly across her chest. "I want to get him there as soon as possible, and we're kind of far by car. I'll bring the Impala."

Sam agreed and bent to hoist his brother's arm over his shoulder. Castiel took his other, briefly looking up when Alex suddenly strode over, grabbing the box of things and ripping it back open. "There we are," she rumbled, finding the Impala keys. She tucked the box under her arm. "See you there," she said and ducked out of the motel room without looking back.

"Is Alex alright?" Castiel said, looking concerned, and Sam shrugged.

"We'll figure that out later," he said in response. Castiel nodded once and the pair vanished.


Alex had just crossed the stateline when she realized that she needed to stop for several reasons. One, she'd not set foot out of the car in a few hours and she needed a restroom. Two, she'd not slept at all in the past two days, and she knew better than to keep pushing forward, no matter how close she was to Sioux Falls. Three, she was starving. And finally, four, she needed gas for the Impala. She eyed the clock. Five a.m.

"I could," Alex said aloud in thought, "just call Cas…"

But she may have been procrastinating actually getting there due to the rage she knew was going to have to face regarding Dean's precious car. He'd be anything but pleased that she'd taken it without permission. She could already hear him practically screaming at her for the matter.

Alex sighed and pulled off the interstate.

Good thing he was paying for her room.

She decided to do the gas first. It would be quick and painless, and would save her the effort of having to get up earlier to do it come morning. Alex pulled the Impala carefully into a station, putting it in park and turning the engine off. She took a deep breath, bracing for the chilly weather. At least spring was on its way; the weather would warm up soon enough, making it easier to fight with her blade.

She swung out, nudging the door shut. She fished in her wallet for her credit card, grateful for the darkness of the night.

Alex had just begun to put gas into the Impala when something odd filled her. She tensed, immediately aware that she was being watched, and pressed her lips together, impatiently waiting for the gas pump to get a move on.

She could handle maybe one demon. She was too tired for this, too hungry. She took a deep breath to steady herself, tracing her inner arm calmly, as if messing around and bored with what she was doing. The blade was there, she could feel it, trace it. Nothing happened as the gas finished, and she took a deep breath, finishing up. She was okay. When the car was on the move, she'd not stop at a motel like she'd planned. She'd push on to Bobby's and call Castiel if necessary-

A shot had her yelping in surprise, something sharp and painful skimming across her arm. Her flesh burned at the familiar sensation of silver, and she snapped her head around, immediately sliding into a defensive crouch. Bloody hell, here we go. She growled low in her chest, seeking out where she expected the next blow to come from.

It came from an unexpected direction: over the roof of the Impala. Someone took their shot gun and swung it, cracking it over her head. She hit the ground immediately, the breath rushing out of her in a gasp of surprised pain. Her head spun, gaze bleary, tears streaking her cheeks instinctively. "Ow," she groaned, immediately annoyed.

"Don't move," a gravelly, angry voice said warningly, and she swallowed thickly as footsteps filled her ears, the attacker rounding the side of the Impala to look down at her. She inhaled sharply. Human.

She didn't move an inch as something shoved harshly into her back. The barrel of the shotgun she'd been struck with, more than likely. Alex tasted blood on her tongue and prodded at her split lip with it. She prayed she'd not need stitches.

"Just shoot her and get it over with," another voice snapped irritably.

"Are you stupid? You've heard the rumors. She's not human. You don't kill skinwalkers with a shotgun. You have to-"

"Nail them in the heart with a silver blade, I know," the second man snarled back. "So deal with the hard part and we'll finish up quickly. Hurry up. There's cameras everywhere."

Bloody hell. She'd almost forgotten about the security cameras that often resided at gas stations, which meant she couldn't just deal with this situation as she normally did with violence and the blade at her wrist…

Then again, they'd attacked her first.

A low growl ripped from her chest violently in her rage. She was told in a shaken voice not to move a second time, and she responded with a snarl, baring her teeth against pavement. "Let me take a...guess," she slurred, head aching. Concussion, she'd guess, but she'd deal with it. "You're the two bloody idiots who thought they could kill the Winchesters."

"There's no thought about it," one of them said icily, "we did kill them."

Dean had told her about them. Walt and Roy, the pair who'd broken into the motel room Dean and Sam had been sleeping in and shot them dead. First Sam, and then Dean. Dean, rarely expressing such emotion, had admitted to her that he'd not soon forget the sight or sound of Sam's massive frame hitting the ground dead, and Alex remembered that as she purred, "Surprise, boys. They're still kicking, and you've pissed them off."

"Liar," one of the men said darkly. "I checked; they're dead."

"And we're well-liked by the angels," Alex crooned back. "Phone's in my back pocket. Call one. I dare you." She kind of hoped they did. Just so she could hear the terror that would come with it. "Sam's number's on speed dial."

"Shut up," the same one growled. She winced when that shotgun was shoved into her shoulder again. A grunt left her. He turned his attention back on his friend. "Just shoot her already! We had this argument last time, I don't want to have it again, Roy."

Then the one talking was Walt, Alex decided, and the one with the gun to her was Roy. She sucked in a slow breath, gathering herself. And then she swung out a leg, nailing the man behind her in his own. The shotgun clattered from his hands as he hit the ground with a yelp, dropping his weapon. Alex didn't hesitate to fling herself at the shotgun, twirling it expertly so that she could wield it like a club.

Roy stared at her in shock as he scrambled back, taking in the furious skinwalker that snarled at him, and she sneered, "How the bloody hell have you survived as a hunter? You're pathetic." How had he been one of the two to get ahead of Sam and Dean Winchester?

A shot rang out and Alex let out a bark of pain when it slammed into her shoulder. She staggered, flinching, but went in swinging, not hesitating to crack the shotgun she wielded against the gun in Walt's hand. He shouted in pain when the weapon connected and splintered bone, but Alex pushed forward, knowing better than to take a moment.

She barreled into him, knocking him to the ground. He yelped beneath her as she landed hard on top of him, straddling him with the shotgun flipped into proper position, braced against the shoulder that didn't scream in pain. She pumped it once, the weapon pointed straight at the terrified Walt's face.

"You made a mistake in letting me catch a whiff of your reeking scents," she breathed, looking down at him with her lips pulled back into a snarl. "I'll let you off lightly this time, because of the cameras," and because her shoulder bloody hurt, "but I'm coming for you. Remember that every time you go to sleep every night." She clicked the safety on and slid her fingers down the weapon, gripping the other end to swing it again.

Before she could do so, she was blind-sided, Roy slamming into her and tackling her off of his companion. She shrieked in fury, hissing when his fist landed a nasty blow to her jaw. She grappled with him, wedging a foot between them and shoving. A bark of laughter left her when he was sent flying by the amount of strength she used.

She scrambled for the shotgun again, grabbing it and swinging without hesitation when Walt came at her, gun in hand. She grinned maliciously when it collided with his head, and he crumpled to the ground, unconscious. Her own head throbbed. "Twat," she muttered and then turned on Roy. A growl thundered in her throat when she realized he was gone. "Bloody hell…"

She swallowed thickly, rubbing a hand cautiously over her jaw. She winced, moving her hand to check her shoulder, where the bullet had struck. It was burning, she realized as the adrenaline began to fade, and she bit back a whimper. Silver. Ouch. Her gaze darted to the Impala. She couldn't summon Castiel. Not with those cameras were there. So she'd have get to a safer area, and then call him, or do it while she was driving…

She swore under her breath and swiftly grabbed her things from where they'd fallen, leaving Walt on the ground where he was. She didn't hesitate to swing into the Impala. She'd clean the blood off of the seat when she could.

Hopefully before Dean found out.


"Everything okay?"

Sam paused, looking up from the hurricane of papers and books that had somehow become sprawled out in every direction of the study, littering the floor to the point that one could barely walk. He straightened a little, caught by surprise. "Avery," he murmured, furrowing his brow.

He was sure that Alex was going to throttle them for not calling right away, but she was already on her way in, so Bobby had said that there was no reason to make her risk wrecking one of the very few things that would keep Dean sane for the time being. The young woman had woken up only two or three hours prior, and had immediately been hauled into the kitchen to drink and eat, with Bobby keeping a close eye on her. She'd been distressed by the fact that he was in a wheelchair, clearly recognizing them all, although she'd been given Castiel suspicious looks as the angel curiously trailed around, looking fascinated by something or another.

"Not really," he said with a sigh, setting his paper down and running his hands through his hair. He winced as a loud shout came from somewhere below. "I'm tired and can't find anything to help my brother."

Avery, leaning in the doorway of the study, tipped her head thoughtfully to the side, damp dark hair falling over her shoulder "Have you tried other religions?"

"Everything."

"I don't know much about what could help," Avery admitted, looking guilty. "I'm sorry...I've been out of practice, I guess, and I didn't know much before whatever happened."

Sam smiled tightly at her, reassuring. "It's okay," he told her kindly, sincere in his words. Avery had claimed to not remember much from the last few months, and although they didn't believe her, no one was going to push for the time being. They all knew that pushing would do no good.

"Does Dean really have to be locked up down there though?" Avery asked hesitantly, gesturing to the floor with a grimace when Dean gave another wordless bellow of rage. She wrapped her arms around herself, thoughtful. "I mean...as long as someone is keeping an eye on him, surely he could come out?"

Sam's lips quirked a little as he looked stood, folding his arms and approaching. She stepped aside to let him through the doorway and then trailed him to the kitchen. As they walked, he said, "I can't watch him and look through stuff in detail like this. Cas is out doing stuff, Bobby can't do it, and Alex has yet to make an official return to Bobby's."

"I could watch him," she offered.

He bit back a grin at the half-hearted way she said it. She knew as well as he did that it would take Dean one little push to knock her over. "He's staying down there, where the angels can't get to. I'll let him out when Alex gets here."

"When is she getting here?" Avery's eyes flashed with concern for the skinwalker. "The last time I saw her-" She pressed her mouth into a hard line, not wanting to state much more, and Sam found himself wondering about that. Alex avoided talking about the circumstances surrounding Matt's death, and as such, neither he nor Dean really knew what had happened to Avery in her view.

"Sometime today, if I did the math right." Sam fished around in the fridge for a beer. He knew exactly what had upset Alex into driving rather than coming the fast way with Castiel, and he felt a little bad for her. She was tough most of the time, but she took certain things to heart, and Dean's comment about her being a monster had struck a nerve.

He popped the cap off of the beer, leaning against the counter and taking a swig of the drink. "How are you feeling?"

"Okay." Avery ran her fingers through her dark hair, wincing when they snagged in a knot. Carefully prying at the strands, she said, "I think it'll take me a while to be completely back on my feet. I'm already exhausted."

"Take your time," Sam told her, offering a kind smile. "Don't push it, or you'll make everything worse for yourself."

"We don't have time for me to do that." Her eyes flashed. "From what I've gathered, the apocalypse is at full blast and after everything you've told me...I want to help. I don't want either of you saying yes to Michael or Lucifer, and I don't want Alex or Bobby to have to watch it happen." She wasn't nearly as close to he and Dean as Alex was, but she liked them well enough; they were Alex's friends, and she cared a lot for her friend.

"Okay, okay," Sam chuckled. "You can help me with the papers and stuff then." He paused when another shout came from somewhere in the basement. "We'll put on some music and drown him out. Where's Bobby?"

"Outside. Said he wanted the fresh air and a break from Dean's hollering," Avery reported with a soft, delicate snort.

It earned her a laugh and Sam gave her a crooked smile. "Let's go and find some papers then," he said, chugging the rest of his beer before heading back for the living room. Avery trailed after him, rubbing her arms thoughtfully and hoping that her friend would come home soon.

Silence fell over Bobby's house as the day continued. Sam worked furiously, Avery either napping or helping if she could. She often times took breaks, urged away by both Sam and Bobby to get some water or eat something small.

It was during such a moment that she was helping him when Castiel suddenly reappeared in the room with them, crushing papers beneath his feet. "I let Dean out," he told them, and Sam gave him an incredulous look. Sure enough, he could hear angry footsteps storming their way up the basement stairs. "He promised not to do anything rash if I let him out. I told him I'd lock him back up if he did."

Sam rubbed his temples, already preparing for the tantrum they'd be met with. For a man who was well past the age of them, he had quite a few. Seated beside him, Avery furrowed her brow worriedly. "Is he going to start yelling? I have a headache. I want to know ahead of time so I can leave the room."

"Probably," Sam admitted. "Cas, you wanna take her outside for a bit?"

Castiel frowned deeply. "Dean-"

"Isn't going anywhere," barked a viciously angry Dean Winchester as he stomped into the room, already glaring at his brother. Bobby could be heard calling from the other room, demanding to know what Dean was doing topside.

"...yes," Castiel decided, "I'll accompany Avery." He frowned as the young woman rose to her feet, eager to escape the tension creeping into the room. "I will ensure nothing happens to her."

"Thank you," Avery said, faintly amused, "although I'm not sure what would happen out in the yard."

"Stuff has happened out in that yard," Dean said without looking at her, still glaring at Sam. "Just not today."

"Um, good to see you as well." Avery skirted around him and ducked out of the room, Castiel close behind with a look anxiously thrown back over his trench coat clad shoulder. The second they were out of the room, Dean exploded.

"The hell is wrong with you, Sam?" Dean bellowed, and Bobby shouted again from the other room, the sound of him wheeling himself toward the study heard. "You just lock me up 'cause you didn't like the way I was handling things? When did we start doing that?"

"When you wouldn't listen or let us try to help," Sam said calmly, not bothering to get angry in return. Anger wouldn't do them any good right now. He had work to do, whether Dean agreed or not. "Are you done?" He supposed he could have brought up the matter of the demon blood, when he'd been locked away against his will, although the situations were entirely different.

"You're not going to find anything," Dean bit out. He folded his arms across his chest.

"Don't be a bitch, Dean," Bobby said as he wheeled himself partially into the study. He studied the mess on the floor and then wheeled himself further into the room, scowling. Papers crumpled beneath his wheelchair, and he winced when a book or two tore, but he ignored it all, heading for his desk.

"Yeah, no, this is good," Dean said sarcastically, "really. You know, eight months of turned pages and screw the pooches, but tonight - tonight is where the magic happens!" He threw his hands into the air, letting out a bark of laughter.

"You ain't helping. What the hell happened to you?" Bobby gave him a small glare.

Dean studied him, jaw working furiously as he considered what to say before snapping, "Reality happened. Nuclear's the only option we have left. Michael can ice the devil, save a boatload of people."

"But not all of them," Bobby pointed out, "and I can give you a few names on top of that list. Some of which aren't promised places in neither Heaven nor Hell, Dean." Dean grimaced at the reminder; they'd have some idea of where the three of them would go if they died, but Alex was a lost cause. "We gotta think of something else."

"Yeah, well, that's easy for you to say. But if Lucifer burns this mother down, and I coulda done something about it, guess way? That's on me."

"You can't give up, son."

"You're not my father," Dean retorted, and Bobby flinched a little, hurt by the statement. "And you ain't in my shoes."

Sam said nothing during the conversation, continuing his work and checking the time every now and then with increasing worry. Where was Alex? She should have been there by now to help them deal with this, even with regular breaks and a few hours of sleeping during the night. He paused in his thoughts when Bobby gave Dean a long look and proceeded to wheel himself around the desk. He shuffled through a drawer, and then pulled out a handgun, his eyes lifting to Dean's after he'd removed a bullet from his pocket.

"What is that?" Dean said, unnerved.

Bobby's response had Sam pausing to look up, worried. "That's the round I mean to put through my skull." He set the bullet upon the desk along with the gun, and leaned back in his chair, folding his arms with a dark glare. "Every morning, Dean. I look at it. I think, 'Maybe today's the day I flip the lights out.' But I don't do it. I never do it. You know why? Because I promised you I wouldn't give up."

A guilty look crossed Dean's face, but before he could respond, they were interrupted by a breathless Avery appearing in the doorway, her dark hair wild and tossed around her face. She gripped the doorway with white-knuckles, pressing her lips together as she tried to catch her breath through her nose. Finally, she got out, "Something's wrong."

"What?" Sam asked immediately, rising to his feet. He winced, rubbing at a crick in his neck.

"Castiel," she said, gesturing behind her. "He was...he was hurting, he was holding his head, and he said that something was happening, and then he just…" She made an awkward gesture. "Disappeared. Without a word."

Sam nodded to himself, stepping forward with a reassuring look plastered onto his face. "Alright, thanks for letting us know. Could you call Alex for me? Let her know she needs to get back here pronto?" He tossed her his phone, and she barely caught it, looking startled.

"Sure?" she agreed, looking between the three men. Her gaze locked briefly onto the gun, brow furrowing, and then she turned away, searching through Sam's contacts for her friend's number.

There was a beat of silence, and then Sam said quietly to his brother, "You're a hypocrite, Dean." He spoke in a tired manner, not accusing or angry or bitter. Not even worried. Simply tired. He remembered all of the times in which Dean had kept an eye on him, worried he'd do something to get himself killed, the way he'd kept an eye on Bobby, the way they'd agreed to keep an eye on Alex when she'd wanted the bottle of sleeping pills they'd started keeping in their pockets instead of in their bags along with any money to purchase more.

Dean opened his mouth to speak, but finally just shook his head and ducked around him, muttering about going to get a beer. Sam followed him, not caring if it pissed him off further or not. Bobby remained where he was, studying the bullet on his desk in a manner that worried Sam, and Sam wanted to throw his hands in the air and scream at them all.

God, their family was so unhealthy when it came to coping with everything. Not just Dean, either, nor Bobby. He and Alex were just as guilty, even Castiel, who'd recently gone through an entire liquor store to Alex's horror. The only one who wasn't horribly off was Avery, and that was just because she'd not been around them for too long.

Dean had just popped the cap off of a beer, seething, when Bobby suddenly shouted for them. "Boys!"

The pair exchanged a quick glance, and then swiftly walked back to the study. They stilled when they found Castiel lying an unconscious man on the couch, eyes narrowed. Bobby eyed him, shocked. "Who is it?" he demanded.

"That's our brother," Sam breathed, recognizing the man on sight. Adam. What the hell? He was dead.

"Your brother?" Bobby seemed as shocked as Sam felt and looked incredulously to him, eyes round. "Adam?"

"What the hell, Cas?" Dean blurted, stunned.

Castiel's answer was curt and to the point. "Angels." Sam looked at him questioningly and he said gruffly, "I'm not sure...but we need to hide him now." He rested a palm, fingers spread out, over Adam's chest and Adam jolted awkwardly before snapping awake. Sam winced; Castiel had done as he had to he, Dean, and Alex: branded Enochian symbols on ribs.

"Where am I?" Adam demanded, his sandy hair sticking up all over and his lightly colored eyes flickering with a hint of panic.

"It's okay, just relax," Sam soothed, quickly stepping forward and running his hands through his hair to give himself time to think. Dean watched him suspiciously, and Bobby remained silent, thinking about what was happening. "You're safe."

Adam narrowed his eyes suspiciously, not believing them for an instant, and Dean offered reluctantly, "You're gonna find this a little...a lot crazy, actually, but we're actually your brothers. We share a dad, John Winchester. I'm Dean, and-"

"I'm sure that's Sam," Adam said coldly, gaze darting between them. "I know who you are." He searched the room for someone else and pressed his lips together. "I know who you are. They warned me about you."

"Who?" demanded Sam.

"The angels," Adam replied as if it were obvious. "Now where the hell is Zachariah?"


Avery played with the phone in her hand, worried. She heard muffled voices in the study as she hovered in the kitchen, but didn't know if she should enter or not, interrupt a conversation that was clearly important. She recognized each distinctive voice. Dean and Sam, of course. Castiel's low timber, Bobby's gruff voice. She felt a flicker of fondness for Bobby, who'd cared for her as if she were his own child.

And then there was the new voice, who gave her a feeling of uncertainty and worry. Something wasn't right there, but she'd ignore it for the time being.

She glanced down at Sam's phone, pressing her lips into a hard line as she looked at the screen. Alex hadn't answered. She took a deep breath, and then stepped into the room, interrupting the conversation. "Sam," she said, addressing him over everyone else. Dean was too cranky to do much, Castiel still freaked her out a little bit, and Bobby...he couldn't drive, although it pained her to think as much. Her gaze briefly darted to the strange man that had appeared out of thin air. He glared back at her angrily.

"What's up, Avery?" Sam said, carefully pulling himself away from the conversation. He seemed like the sane one in all of the insanity for the time being, Avery thought, and she hesitated before speaking.

"Alex wouldn't pick up the phone." She glanced anxiously to Bobby, her dark eyes full of worry.

"Where the hell is the mutt anyways?" Dean said gruffly, looking annoyed.

"Don't call her that, Dean," Sam said quietly before folding his arms, taking a few steps in Avery's direction. "She might be getting gas or taking a few hours to sleep," he explained. "She said she'd get here last time I talked to her. I'm surprised she didn't answer immediately though. She picked up every other time…"

"Hold on, is she driving here?" Dean seemed to swell up like an angry cat and Avery grimaced. "What the hell, Sam? Did she take my car?"

"Your car will be fine, boy, now shut up and stay quiet for a second," Bobby snapped, wheeling his way over to the pair. Avery looked to him. "She'll be fine, Avery. Always is."

"Something feels weird though," she insisted. She searched Bobby's gaze, and then Sam's. Finally, she looked to Castiel, faltering before pleading, "Could you...could you maybe check in with her? Even if she doesn't want to come back the way you do?"

Castiel blinked once, and then looked over his shoulder at the newcomer. The man scowled at the look, looking even angrier. He looked to Sam, questioning, and Sam nodded. They might as well check in with Alex. It wouldn't take more than a few seconds at most, and even if Avery was a bit of a mess and Bobby was in a wheelchair, he could keep an eye on both Dean and his half-brother.

Castiel vanished with the fluttering of feathers, and Avery wrapped her arms around her waist, stepping closer to Sam and Bobby. "Who's he?" she asked.

"Our half-brother," Sam explained, earning a snort from the new person. "Adam Milligan. This is Avery Hunt," he added to Adam, glaring at him when he sneered at her.

"You have...another brother," Avery said slowly, lifting her eyebrows in surprise. "Does Alex know about that?"

"Nope," Dean said, sounding amused by the idea. He grinned.

That grin vanished when a moment later, Castiel appeared again, this time accompanied by a hissing skinwalker. He stared at Alex in shock. She looked ready to pass out, her face smeared with bruises and blood, which stained a good portion of her left shoulder and right arm. "What the hell happened to you?" Dean demanded as Sam cursed softly and ducked out of the room to go and fetch some supplies.

Alex didn't respond, merely growled under her breath and glared at Castiel. "I was five bloody minutes out. You couldn't let me finish the trip?"

Castiel ignored her, instead tightening his grip on her uninjured shoulder when she wavered a little, trying to keep her upright without getting any closer. "She was pulled over two or so hours away," he informed Bobby, ignoring everyone else. "I found her sleeping in the car."

"Damn it, Alex," Bobby grumbled, "you should have called."

"I tried," she said bluntly, "Cas didn't pick up."

All eyes turned on Castiel and he grimaced apologetically. "It appears the battery...died, I believe."

Dean groaned in frustration at the angel and said, "C'mon, Cas." He jabbed a finger at Alex, still rather cranky although he looked a bit calmer than Avery remembered him being when he'd first come out of the basement. "Seriously. What happened?"

Alex ignored him and simply folded her legs slowly beneath her, wavering a little, unbalanced. Castiel watched her critically, making sure she didn't collapse as Sam gently pushed Avery out of the way so he could step further into the room, a bag shouldered. Avery watched all of this nervously, her eyes round with worry.

Alex glared when Sam grabbed her chin gently to inspect her split lip. "Forget my face, it's already a mess," she grumbled, "just get the silver out of my shoulder, would you?"

Even Adam forgot to be annoyed, watching in fascination as Sam frowned and watched her yank down the shoulder of her T-shirt, ripping the collar without much care for it. A single wound decorated the soft flesh near the joint, seeping blood that soaked her shirt and skin. "Bullet," she told him. "You're gonna have to dig."

"Alex," Avery said in distress, finally catching the skinwalker's attention. Her gaze lit with relief at the sight of her up and walking, and she pushed a happy smile to her face, even as she cringed in pain when Sam began to prod and poke, trying to figure out how to get to the bullet out..

"Good to see you up and walking," Alex said warmly, before flinching. "Ow," she barked, baring her teeth angrily when Sam suddenly shoved a pair of tweezers in to try and grab the bullet. She let loose a loud snarl that made Adam flinch. Without looking away from what Sam was doing, she jabbed a thumb over her good shoulder at him. "The bloody hell is he? Where'd he come from?"

"Long story short," Bobby sighed, "that's Adam."

"She's the dog that follows them around, right?" Adam sneered, looking at Alex in disgust, and she stiffened, wincing when it made Sam jerk awkwardly.

"Shut up," Bobby retorted.

"Our, uh, brother," Sam told her and she stared at him for a few moments before snorting, not questioning it. She'd demand the full story later. "What happened? You were fine last night when I called."

Dean looked downright pissed when she answered the question for Sam. "Was putting gas in the Impala and got jumped by two friends of yours," she said, lips twisting angrily. "The names Roy and Walt ring a bell?"

"Those are the two that shot you," Castiel mused to Dean, who rolled his eyes and muttered something along the lines of "No shit, Sherlock," under his breath.

"I would have killed them," Alex informed them, not bothering to look at either of the Winchesters as she spoke, and Avery frowned at the dark tone that entered her voice briefly. "I had the gun pressed up against Walt's head. There were cameras. I didn't want to end up as the States' Most Wanted."

Bobby muttered his approval and grumbled about something or another as he wheeled himself out to the kitchen again. Avery moved aside so he could, biting the inside of her cheek. After a moment's hesitation, rather than staying in the room that seemed to roil with tension, she gave up and decided she needed another nap. She turned and headed out, intending to find a place to crash for the time being.

Alex watched her go anxiously but said nothing, instead making a sound of pain when Sam finally got a hold of the bullet and carefully pulled it out. Immediately, Alex found herself feeling better, and she flashed a weak look of gratitude at him. "Thanks," she said honestly, rolling the shoulder with another grimace. It hurt, but it would heal. She'd just have another scar to add to her collection. Catching sight of Adam's interested look, she smirked. She knew he cared nothing for her, but said anyways, "Skinwalkers and silver don't get along."

She let Sam tend to the other injuries for her, and it didn't take him very long. Declaring her done after a long few minutes of silence from those around them, she slowly climbed to her feet, yawning loudly. She'd still not slept much, but she supposed there'd be no time for that now. "Alright," she rumbled, "what's going on here? Why is there a third Winchester in the house?"

"Milligan," Adam said icily, looking disgusted with the idea of having anything to do with the name. "My name's Adam Milligan."

Alex ignored him, looking to Castiel for an explanation as Sam did a quick clean up. "Long story short, the angels brought him back from the dead," Bobby said gruffly. "And apparently the sorry son of a bitch thinks he's here to do God's work and serve as vessel to Michael in Dean's place."

Alex pressed her lips together as she thought over what Bobby had said. Finally she just turned to Adam and gave him a scrutinizing look. "Kid," she said, and Adam immediately bristled at the word, insulted. "If you think for one second that the angels and archangels won't use you up and then ditch you somewhere….you have another thing coming. Believe me. The only semi-okay angel is Gabriel, and he's really pushing it." Castiel gave her a small frown and she quickly added, "You don't count, you're on our side entirely. You're the only good angel as far as we know."

"There's no good and bad," Castiel protested, but the others all rolled their eyes in disagreement.

"In any case," Alex said, ignoring Adam's glare. She turned to Sam, ignoring Dean entirely. "What are we going to do?"

"Not sure yet. Avery and I were looking into things with Bobby, but there's been nothing good that's shown up just yet." Sam looked frustrated with the matter and Alex yawned widely as she answered.

"Give me fifteen minutes to nap and I'll come help. My healing's kicking in." She rolled her shoulder carefully with a wince. That would take a little longer. The silver had been in there longer than she would have liked.

"Alex-" Dean said, trying to catch her attention, but she continued to ignore him, anything but pleased with the eldest Winchester. Instead, she headed out of the room without a backwards look. He glared after her, frustrated, and Sam said without sympathy, "Shouldn't have called her a monster. You know she doesn't like it."


Fifteen minutes turned into almost two and a half hours, and Alex was scrubbing at her eyes blearily as she trampled down the stairs. She was feeling testy after a shower that had made her wounds ache a little more than previously, but felt clean and comfortable in a fresh set of clothing that had come from the bag someone had dropped off in the room she'd slept in while she was showering.

She ran her hands through her damp hair, listening as she headed for the kitchen. The house was silent, although she thought she could hear Avery's soft voice conversing from somewhere further in the house. Castiel, maybe? She seemed as if she was getting on fairly well with the angel and Sam. She couldn't say the same for Dean.

Who she wasn't very happy with him for multiple reasons, although her agitation was slowly giving way to exhaustion. She was just...tired of fighting both Winchesters on various things, fighting against things that came out in the dark. She remembered her short comfortable time in which she'd simply lived with Avery, and with Matt and his girls, and she desperately wished she could go back and remind herself to enjoy it a lot more than she had while it had lasted.

She ducked into the kitchen and faltered when she caught sight of Adam abandoning a half-eaten sandwich to make a beeline for the door in the kitchen that they tended to use fairly awesome. She immediately cleared her throat to catch his attention. Adam whipped his head around. "Where the bloody hell," she drawled, "do you think you're going?"

Adam stiffened, straightening, and seemed to look down his nose at her. Alex merely lifted her brows, amused. She didn't care much for him, and he clearly didn't care much for her either, so she wouldn't let his words get to her. Especially as he sneered, "So they've sicced their dirty mutt on me?"

"I just showered, thank you." Alex smiled, showing off slightly changed teeth. He looked disgusted at the sight. "No. I just woke up. And I'm feeling a little hungry, so kindly faff off, you piece of-"

"Alex," muttered Sam with exasperation as he stepped into the room, running a hand through his hair. "Cut it out."

"He started it," she said with a pout, shooting Adam a glare.

Adam muttered something under his breath. Alex stiffened, rapidly losing her amusement, and gave a dark snarl, taking a threatening step towards him.

"Alex," Sam repeated, hastily grabbing her shoulders. She bared her teeth at Sam, although reluctantly pulled back, shaking off his hands. He hastily let go when he remembered the gunshot. She stalked over to the fridge, shuffling through it until a beer was in her hand. She popped the cap off with ease and took a deep drink, swiping her mouth on the back of her free hand. Smirking, she said, "I caught him trying to sneak out."

Sam turned onto Adam now, frowning, and Adam studied him closely with angry green eyes before saying sharply, "You know, you pitched this whole dewy-eyed bromance thing, but the truth is...I'm on lock down. Aren't I?"

"Adam," Sam began, trying to keep the peace. "You may not believe it, but Dad was trying to protect you. Keeping you from all of this."

"Yeah, well, I guess the monster that ate me didn't get that memo," Adam said bitterly. Alex glanced at Sam, sipping at her drink. She'd have to get the full story from him or Dean later, maybe even Bobby if Bobby was up to date with the matter. "And yeah. I remember that."

"Well, trust me. The one thing worse than seeing Dad once a year was seeing him all year,." Sam's voice was a little irritable with the matter, as if he was frustrated he couldn't push what he wanted Adam to understand into Adam's head. His dark eyes narrowed as he folded his arms across his chest. Had Alex not been herself, she thought he might have been intimidating.

Deciding she didn't want to be a part of this anymore, Alex cut in. "Hey, where's Winchester number one?"

"Panic room," Sam said without looking at her.

Alex rolled her eyes. "Did he try to give himself up again?"

"No, we just figured it was a house full of flight risks." Something dark flickered through Sam's eyes, and Alex took another look at him. He looked exhausted and hurt, as if someone had said something to harm him. "'We' being Cas and me. Bobby, too. Avery was the only one against it."

Alex wondered just where Avery and Castiel were, but thanked him quietly and left the kitchen. She paused only to greet Bobby with a fond word, earning a faint smile in response as she moved on.

She wanted to have a little chat with Dean, figure out what the hell his problem was.

She touched the amulet on her wrist, figuring it had to do with seeing Joshua. She still didn't know the full extent of what Joshua had said to the pair, and she wasn't willing to bet that she'd ever find out. Something had happened that had changed both he and Sam, though, and it wasn't okay. Alex treaded down the stairs, and rolled her eyes when a cranky voice immediately shouted, "Let me out already, you sons of bitches!"

Alex gave a loud snort of amusement. "Like that's gonna work," she drawled, keeping a few steps away from the iron door. Dean glared at her through the small hatch that had been left open, looking like he'd throttle her if he could reach her. Beer still in hand, she lifted it to her mouth, only pausing to say, "That's what you get for being an idiot who doesn't think straight. I hear you're down here so that we don't have to worry about more than one 'flight risk' at a time...did you try something while I was asleep?"

Dean glowered. "No," he retorted.

"Hmph," she mumbled, not inclined to believe him. She shifted her weight slowly, her body aching. She tenderly touched the knot on her head from where she'd been hit by the shotgun and winced, dropping her hand quickly. "Anyways, I want to know more about that half-brother of yours and Sam's occupied keeping him in the house."

He continued to give her a nasty look through the door, admittedly not wanting to say anything while he was locked back up in the panic room. But he finally just said, "We didn't know about him until later, after our dad was gone. Got eaten up by a monster we took out. Not much more to say."

"Is he a hunter?" Alex asked, thinking of the disgust he'd displayed towards her. "He didn't seem like one." The attitude towards her had been on the normal level of one, but at the same time, he'd not seemed to have the patience that most hunters tended to have. Even Dean, who was ready to rush headlong into most hunts, knew when to step back and think things through. Excluding this mess that had gotten him forced into the panic room. And the interest he'd shown in the silver...he'd definitely not known that skinwalkers were sensitive to it.

Dean shook his head. "No," he said grouchily, voice curt and angry. He was done talking.

Alex studied the eldest Winchester for a few moments before shrugging, finishing the rest of her beer. She'd admittedly gone down hoping to hear an apology for at least the comment he'd made, but clearly that wasn't going to happen. She supposed she shouldn't have let the remark cut so deeply; he'd been angry and still was. Alex wasn't even sure he remembered saying it.

Still.

For some reason, it was really, really bothering her.

Without another word, Alex turned on her heel and left. She found Sam back in the place she had heard he'd spent most of his time in the recent few hours: the floor of Bobby's study, surrounded by papers and books and even two laptops, opened with some text displayed. He was studying a piece of paper, as was Avery, settled onto the couch behind him with a few stacks in her lap.

"How was the chat with Adam?" Alex asked, settling down into one of very few open places.

Sam gave a non-committed grunt, clearly unhappy, and she shook her head. Things were not going good for them right now. "With Dean?"

Alex gave the same grunt and reached out to snag some papers that looked untouched, needing a distraction.


Late afternoon found Alex listening to Avery patiently let Sam throw a few ideas at her despite looking like she needed a nap, anxious about the lack of information he'd found. It was entertaining, Alex thought, and she remembered the pair being rather friendly over a few things before everything had gone down with Lucifer's arrival in the world.

Bobby was in the kitchen making something for them all to eat, a kind action on his part that Alex appreciated even though they'd not yet gotten to eat it. Adam was confined to the kitchen table, and Castiel was currently in the process of checking on Dean after doing a quick check-in to let Sam know that he was doing so.

It was while they were doing so that Alex suddenly felt something shift. She didn't bother to stop the growl that sprang from her throat, and she shot to her feet. Papers scattered at the swift motion.

"Alex?" Sam said, wary, and Alex shifted the sound so that it rumbled low in her throat, underlying her words.

"Something's wrong. I can feel it." She studied the space before her blankly, as if trying to see something they couldn't, and then she was sprinting out of the room, snarling curses. Sam exchanged a look with Avery before scrambling after her. His feet thudded heavily down the basement stairs when she led him that way and a groan escaped him when they found the door to the panic room open.

"How the bloody hell," Alex growled, eyeing the panic room with distaste, "did he get past me?"

"Hopefully no angels snagged him," Sam said, wondering the very same thing. The youngest Winchester gestured to a sigil they both recognized that had been drawn on the wall - in blood, they both recognized, although neither admitted it aloud. Sam ran a hand through his hair in frustration, pressing his mouth into a hard line. "Damn it, Dean," he muttered, blowing out a huge breath. "Okay, so I'm assuming Cas was blown to Oz. I'll go and hunt Dean down. Bobby can't do much, since Adam's got a bit of a height advantage, but would you be able to keep an eye on him?"

"Alex wrinkled her nose. I'd be the better choice for hunting Dean down," she pointed out, tapping her nose. "I've got the sense of smell that you're lacking on."

"He's my brother," said Sam firmly, "I'll find him. And you're still recovering from that silver in your system."

Alex studied his expression and nodded, her own softening. "Sure. I'll help Bobby watch Adam," she promised, smiling faintly. "Just make sure you stop that bloody moron before he goes through with it. I'm hoping we have a better chance of them waiting to get their hands on him with Adam around. So get moving."

Sam nodded and shot back up the stairs as fast as he could, Alex only a light step behind as he clambered up. "Just go," Alex rumbled when he paused, looking towards the kitchen, "I'll tell Bobby."

"Thanks." Sam threw her a grateful look and then bolted from the house, the door slamming shut loudly behind him.

Alex immediately made a beeline for the kitchen when Bobby gave a shout, demanding to know what the noise in the house was about. She ignored the glare Adam gave her from his place at the kitchen table, and instead approached where Bobby had just finished slapping together a rather ridiculous amount of sandwiches. It made her want to grin; she knew precisely how much they could consume. She alone could eat two or three sandwiches when she was hungry enough, and that didn't even include chips or other sides.

She approached his wheelchair calmly, keeping her expression neutral. She didn't want Adam to know that Dean and Sam were gone for the time being. It would keep him in place for a good while. With a deep breath, she stooped and murmured gently in Bobby's ear, "Dean somehow got out. He used a sigil on Cas and Sam just went after him. Don't say anything," she added hastily when he opened his mouth, eyes flashing. "We don't need Adam finding out."

Bobby merely nodded in agreement. "Well," he said, giving her a semi-annoyed look. "In that case. You can take the boys' sandwiches downstairs. If they want 'em, that's where they'll be."

Alex bit back a half-grin, her good eye glittering with delight.

She loved Bobby Singer.


When Sam returned from hunting unsuccessfully for Dean later that night, he was none too happy to discover that not only had he not found his brother, but Adam was gone. He stood in the study, now picked up by an anxious looking Avery, who hovered in a nearby doorway with her fingers tight on the door frame, with Alex and Bobby both before him. Alex looked downright angry while Bobby looked more annoyed than anything else. "What do you mean," Sam said, exhausted after running to hell and back to hunt for Dean, "that Adam is gone?"

"Should I say it in Spanish?" Bobby snapped, glaring crossly at him. Sam snapped a "what the hell" back at him and Bobby pointed at him threateningly from his wheelchair. "Watch your tone, boy."

"Bobby," Alex said quietly before looking at Sam. "We didn't just let him get away, Sam. He was right in front of us, and then he disappeared into thin air. We couldn't do anything to stop it."

Avery spoke form her place, her dark eyes darting between them all. "So the angels-"

Before she could finish, there was the sound of fluttering feathers and Castiel appeared in the middle of the study, scattering papers all over the place again. Avery threw him a look for that, but it vanished when she realized that he had the arm of a very bloody and battered Dean Winchester thrown over his shoulder. Dean was unconscious, head lolling downwards.

Alex squawked, whirling around. Her nostrils flared at the smell of blood. "What happened to him?" she demanded, hands on her hips, and Sam hastily took a few steps forward to help Castiel when he realized the angel was trying to keep from dropping him.

Avery stifled a snort when he took on a guilty expression and said, "Me."

"Moving on from that," Bobby said, clearly not minding that he'd done such a thing. At least Dean wouldn't be going anywhere again any time soon. Sam gave him a look of disapproval, however, which went ignored by Castiel.

"The angels," Castiel said, nodding towards Avery. "As she said, they were the ones to take Adam."

Alex touched her chest, confused. "I thought you'd branded his ribs like you did ours." She glanced at Avery, making a mental note to have him do the same for her if he'd not already.

"I did." Castiel narrowed his blue eyes. "Adam must have tipped him, likely in a dream." The skinwalker nodded, remembering that both Sam and Dean had mentioned meeting with angels in dreams. Castiel himself had come to Dean on multiple occasions through a dream.

"Alright," Sam said slowly, frowning. "Where would they have taken him?"

Castiel shook his head. "I'm not entirely sure, but I expect it is where they kept Dean when they tried to stop him from stopping your release of Lucifer." Sam grimaced at the reminder. "I'll check and make sure."

"That's dangerous though, isn't it?" said Avery, voice soft. "I don't know how many angels there are, but-"

"He's done stuff like this before, Avery, he'll be fine," Bobby interrupted. His voice was gruff but reassuring, and Avery studied him before nodding, deciding to trust his word. "So you get a move on with checking, Cas. These two," he nodded at Sam and Alex, "will deal with him."

Alex made a face but decided not to argue. Her shoulder ached as she carefully changed positions with Castiel, Dean's heavy weight making it cry in agony. She gritted her teeth and bit back a hiss as Castiel made sure she wouldn't drop him. She thought Dean deserved it after the way he'd been behaving for the last few days, but she pushed those thoughts back.

Castiel finished, and then surprised Alex by giving Avery a reassuring, tight-lipped smile. When he disappeared, Avery didn't look very reassured at all.

Alex couldn't blame her.

There was nothing that could reassure anyone when dealing with the likes of angels.

It took she and Sam a surprising amount of time to get Dean back into the bunker. Part of it was just getting him down the stairs without either of them falling. Alex's shoulder was practically screaming by the time they'd gotten him down on the floor in the middle of the panic room. She rubbed the space, grateful that she didn't have to deal with a human's span of healing. That took far too long for her liking.

Sam eyed his brother and said, glancing at her, "Are there handcuffs in here?"

Her lips quirked tiredly. "Time and place, Sam." He gave her a glare at that and she snorted at her own joke before going to hunt some down. "Bobby's got just about everything in here, I'm sure there's a pair of handcuffs somewhere." She began to dig through various drawers, keeping the silence that fell. Sam didn't take his eyes off of his brother, as if worried the second he did he'd disappear again. Alex had no doubt that with their luck, he would.

"Here," Alex said, finding the drawer of handcuffs. She plunged her hand in to snag a pair, only to screech furiously and rip her fingers back, hissing and shaking them out. Pain splintered through them before fading. "He's got it lined with silver," she snarled, furious with the man upstairs. "Sam-"

Frustrated tears lined her eyes as Sam gently nudged her aside so he could get a good set of handcuffs out. He nudged the drawer shut with his hip before going to cuff his brother to the bed at the center of the space. Dean was slumped against it on the floor, chin resting against his chest, and Alex winced. He was going to have a sore neck when he woke up.

Nursing her aching fingers, Alex scowled. "I wish," she suddenly muttered, "I wasn't a skinwalker."

Sam glanced at her, caught unprepared. Alex tended to take pride in what she was. She couldn't be human, so she'd stepped up, determined to show everyone that skinwalkers could live normal lives, too. As normal a life as a hunter could live, at least. "You're fine like you are," he protested. "You're not the one who started this mess."

"Still. Even if you hadn't, I'd still be in my situation, wouldn't I?" A snort left her. "Anyways, I'm going to go and see if Cas is back yet. Keep an eye on him?" Sam agreed, and settled down to sit a short distance away from where Dean was slumped, glancing at her when she turned to leave. He'd have a conversation with Dean when everything calmed down with the situation involving Adam. He got the feeling that Alex had been more affected than she'd let on by the comment he'd made.

The skinwalker made her way back up the stairs to wait with Bobby and Avery, on high alert. She had no doubt that given the chance, Dean would get past Sam, and it wasn't hard if you really wanted. All it took was one good punch to the jaw and you'd have a few hours at the most.

"He locked up?" Bobby asked when she joined he and Avery in the study. Avery was perched on the edge of his desk, her knees bouncing anxiously and her fingers tapping on her thighs.

"Yeah," Alex muttered. She ran a hand through her hair. "He is. Has Cas gotten back yet?"

Avery shook her head. "Not yet." She pressed her lips together. "I wish," she said suddenly, looking guilty, "that angels didn't exist. I feel like the world would be a lot safer - even with the other creatures that exist."

Alex glanced at her, lips pressing into a hard line. "Yes, well," she said, accent sharp in her irritation, "we exist, angels included, and there's nothing to be done about it." Avery grimaced, opening her mouth to say she'd not meant it like that, but was interrupted when Castiel reappeared before them. He looked grim as he immediately spoke.

"The room where Dean was taken," he said. "It's where Adam is. I think they wanted me to see. They've got dozens of others surrounding it."

Alex had heard the room described before and groaned. "Alright," she said with a heavy sigh. "Avery, could you go let Sam know?" Avery didn't look too excited to go to the basement but agreed nonetheless, disappearing from the study. "Is there anything we can do about it?"

"I'm not sure," admitted Castiel.

"What do you mean you're not sure?" snapped Bobby, glaring up at them both. "You either do or don't. If what the kid said is true about being a replacement for Michael's vessel, then we've got Michael coming and a hell of a lot of problems. If it isn't, we've still got that idjit downstairs running around trying to say yes. And even if we can miraculously stop both of that from happening, we've still got a bunch of angry angels looking in our direction. So figure out a damn plan."

"In any case," said Alex, running her fingers along the blade that resided on her arm. "We've got work to do. How good are you at drawing out the layout of a room?"


Alex found that she was grateful that she'd left her leather jacket back in South Dakota at Bobby's house. The temperature was shockingly high in comparison to what they'd just been dealing with. She'd donned a simple T-shirt and a pair of jeans that were decently easy to move in, and carried nothing but the blade that she'd left hidden away.

The others were with her, too. Well, at least Castiel, Sam, and - much to her surprise - Dean were. Avery had been told to stay with Bobby in South Dakota. Alex got the feeling that Bobby was bitter about the matter.

Dean was still somewhat grumpy in general although he wasn't nearly as bad as he'd been in recent times, and part of that might have been that he was still fairly bruised and battered from his fight with Castiel. He glared at the sky, squinting at it. "Where the hell are we?" he demanded, glancing at Castiel. The angel looked admittedly a little winded after transporting all of them there, but was quick to shake it off, studying the warehouse before them.

"Van Nuys, California," he said, voice deep and not very reassuring. He glanced at Dean. "The room is in the warehouse." Dean didn't look as if he believed what Castiel was saying, and Castiel furrowed his brow. "Where'd you think it was?"
"I don't know," Dean sid, "Jupiter? A blade of grass? Not California."

Alex, not in the mood for his attitude, cut into the conversation. "How many angels are in there, Cas? Do you know?"

"At least five," Castiel told her, looking much happier to be speaking to Alex rather than Dean.

Sam grimaced. It seemed as if Castiel was as happy with Dean as Alex was. He snapped his fingers a few times to get everyone to focus when Dean glowered at them both. He looked confused when rather than speaking, Castiel removed his tie. A grim look appeared on his face as he gently passed it to Alex, ordering her to hold it for him. She took it, confused. "Cas?" Sam muttered. He didn't answer.

"I'll clear them out," Castiel said, and upon seeing him remove a boxcutter from his pocket, Alex realized that something she probably wouldn't like was about to happen and hastily lowered her gaze. She stared hard at the pavement, hands trembling. "You three grab the boy. This is our only chance."

"Hold on," Dean said, a little uncertain now. Which was probably a good thing, Sam admitted silently. He could use a few surprises to knock him down a few pegs. "You're gonna take on five angels? Isn't that suicide?"

When Castiel responded, his expression was a fierce one. He stared down at Dean, and Dean winced at the disappointment he saw on his face. "Maybe. But then I won't have to watch you fail. I'm sorry, Dean. I don't have the same faith in you that Sam does."

Dean's stomach twisted with a hint of guilt in that. Castiel didn't think he'd make the right choice...and even if he wasn't sure if he would or wouldn't, that hurt. He glanced at Alex, curious to see what she thought, and found her pale-faced, staring at the ground. He frowned. Why was she so worried?

He found out a moment later, when Castiel unbuttoned his shirt and began to carve an angel-banishing sigil into his chest. Sam and Dean exchanged horrified looks. "Cas, is this even safe? What'll happen to you?" Castiel ignored the question.

The guilt grew even more.

Castiel was carving himself open because of how little faith he had in him.

When he was done, Castiel tossed the boxcutter aside and began to button up his shirt again. Blood seeped into it, but he payed it no attention, holding a hand out for his tie. Alex swallowed thickly, grateful it was over with, and instead of giving it back, stepped forward to put it on for him. "Be careful," she murmured, smiling faintly when she was finished.

The angel blinked, touched by her concern, and then turned without a word, heading for the warehouse. Silence fell among the three left behind.

"Ready?" Sam said, fully aware that neither of the two Winchesters had a weapon that would suffice if an angel truly did show up. Alex, however, had freed her weapon, readying the blade blessed by Lucifer himself.

"Let's do this," she said darkly. "I want to kill something."

"Don't get too ahead of yourself," said Dean under his breath and she turned a look on him that said he was likely one of the people who'd made her want to kill something. he pushed himself forward instead of responding, deciding he'd deal with that later. Later. He'd not used that term recently. Because he didn't truly think there would be a later.

They edged near the door, all three gathered and ready. Alex kept an eye on the area and then gave the okay when she knew Castiel had used the sigil, sympathy and concern for the angel evident on her face. Dean was the first to push himself inside.

Sam and Alex hung back as Dean darted forward upon seeing no one present - no one but Adam, who was half-sprawled on the floor across the room. Dean dropped to his knees beside him, muttering. "Adam." Adam groaned in response. "You hear me?" Dean heard the scrape of a blade on the floor - someone picking something up. His gaze immediately darted around. Castiel always managed to leave a mess - and he'd left one this time. He snagged a blade that had been abandoned on the floor, sliding it under his leg with haste.

"It's a trap," was the first thing out of Adam's mouth and Dean snorted, lips curling into a harsh smirk.

"Yeah, well. We figured."

Not to anyone's surprise, Zachariah appeared, beaming down at the pair of men. "Dean," he crooned, and Dean felt a stab of disgust at the sound of his voice. He hated Zachariah the most, he thought. Maybe even more than Lucifer. "Did you really think it'd be that easy?"

In response, Sam whirled out of hiding, an angel's blade clasped in his fingers. Before he could get anywhere near Zachariah, however, Zachariah spun around to meet him. He slammed the blade out of his hand and gripped Sam by the throat, hurling away. Sam choked as he hit the ground, coughing heavily as he tried to get his breath back.

Dean swore, but Zachariah only smiled, delighted. "You know what I've learned from this experience, Dean? Patience." He gestured to Adam, who made a strangled sound. Dean tensed when he collapsed back onto the ground, heaving and coughing. Blood spilled from his mouth, splattering the ground.

Dean stared at his half-brother in horror, but whipped his head around when Zachariah clucked his tongue. "Don't think I don't see you over there, Alex." She snarled in response, even as her body hit the ground, pain ricochequing through her body.

"I mean," Zachariah said, looking over at Alex in distaste, and she bared her teeth at him. "I thought I was downsized for sure. And for us…a firing is pretty damn literal. But I should have trusted the boss man. It's all playing out like he said...you, me, your hemorrhaging brothers, and a broken mutt." He snapped a finger. Alex snarled when a bone snapped in her arm. Dean flinched, hating it.

"You know there's no other choice. There's never been a choice." He grinned as Sam suddenly heaved like Adam was, blood striking the floor when he rolled over. Dean felt a flash of worry for his brother.

"Stop it," he said angrily when a pop came from Alex, and Adam groaned, another round of blood leaving his mouth. "Stop it right now!" When Zachariah merely clucked his tongue, he hastily added, "Please. I'll do it."

"I'm sorry," Zachariah purred, eyes twinkling with dark amusement. "What was that?"

"Yes," he said sharply. "The answer is yes. Call Michael down, you bastard." When Zachariah debated, accusing him of lying, he jabbed a finger towards Alex, and then Sam. "Do I look like I'm lying?"

"Dean," Sam managed to protest in a groan. His eyes flashed. He'd known this was a risk. But still. He'd had faith in Dean, and his brother was just breaking that faith into pieces. He tried to rise to his hands and knees, but his arms buckled as Zachariah grinned triumphantly and spoken in Enochian. No one else in the room knew what he'd said, but Sam was more than confident that it would bring Michael to them.

Alex uttered a growl and Dean glanced her way. She was giving him a look that made something in his chest sink. There were tears of agony racing down her face, although she was clearly trying to stop them. Sam held faith. Castiel had lost it from the moment Dean had first gone to say yes to Michael. He got the feeling that Alex had just lost faith in him, too. And it hurt, he realized. But he deserved it, he supposed. He could very clearly remember the look on her face when he'd snapped at her in that random motel he'd found, could remember how she'd come down to speak with him and he'd managed to chase her off then, too.

So, despite knowing she'd lost her own faith in him, Dean caught her eye. She was glaring at him, although the glare turned to confusion when he winked. He'd say yes. He still planned to do that.

But he'd never said he wouldn't go down swinging.

She mouthed his name questioningly. He turned his attention back on Zachariah, smirking. "Of course, I have a few conditions." Zachariah paused, confused. Even Adam looked up, puzzled. "The few people whose safety you have to guarantee before I say yes." He was waved off; Zachariah agreed to as much. "But most of all…" He grinned, proud of himself. "Michael can't have me until he disintegrates you."

"What?" Zachariah sputtered. "What did you say?"

Dean's grin widened. "Before Michael gets one piece of this sweet ass," he paused when Sam choked out a bitter laugh from where he was lying, "he has to turn you into a piece of charcoal."

Zachariah's eyes flashed as he stared down at Dean, fixing his immaculate suit. "Do you really think that he's going to go for that? You are nothing but a maggot, Dean Winchester. Do you know who I am - and after I deliver you to Michael, nonetheless?"

"Expendable," he replied confidently.

"Michael's not going to kill me," Zachariah snarled.

Dean felt beneath his leg until his fingers curled around the blade he'd hidden. "Maybe not," he said, body coiling. "But I am." Zachariah barely had a moment to look confused before Dean wa son his feet, slamming the blade up through the angel's chin. Zachariah eyes flashed with a bright light that made him stumble back as he hit the ground nastily, scraping his arms. Ignoring the sting, he spun around. An odd ear-piercing noise that he - and Alex - recognized immediately began to fill the air.

"Shit," he muttered, grabbing Adam's arm and hauling him to his feet. "Can you walk?"

"Yeah," Adam rasped. He began stumbling for the door after being told to, and Sam staggering to his own feet, darted for it, too. Dean bolted across the room to help Alex up when she tripped, trying to grab her blade. He felt a little sick at the sight of her arm.

This had just not been her week, he thought, and gently gripped the arm that wasn't still broken. He pushed her forward as she groaned in pain, prying the blade from her hand so she didn't have to worry about it.

Sam got out first, and Alex and Dean reached it next, but just after they'd stepped out, the door slammed shut behind them with Adam still inside.

"No!" Adam's cry was heard from the other side. He pounded on the door and Dean immediately whirled around when he cried for Dean's help. He slammed his shoulder into it, gripping the knob - only to rip his hand back with a grunt when it seared him.

"Hold on," he shouted back. "We'll get you out. Adam!" he cried when white light spilled out through the cracks of the door. It faded after a few moments, and he heard Alex suck in a ragged brush behind him when he threw the door open and found nothing but an abandoned office within an abandoned warehouse.

"Oh, Adam," she whispered.

She'd not liked the youngest and newest addition to the Winchester family, but he'd not deserved whatever had happened to him.


They'd been forced to steal a car to start the long drive back to Sioux Falls so they could at least find their way back to the Impala. No one wanted to talk about Adam or Castiel, who they were all worried about. Sam claimed the back seat, wanting to sleep. Not that he had. He was dozing, but still semi-awake. Alex, still a little agitated with Dean even after trusting him enough to help her pop her shoulder back into place and get the broken bone in her arm set in a temporary way, was in the passenger seat. He got the feeling, even with his face forward and eyes on the road, that she was watching him suspiciously.

As if she expected him to summon Michael then and there, with no regard for them.

It was for that reason that Dean said, "I'm not saying yes anymore."

"Aren't you?" she challenged.

"No," he insisted.

"Why not?" Sam asked quietly, waking up entirely. "What changed your mind?"

Dean didn't care much for big speeches. "The world's ending. The walls are coming down on us. I just didn't want to let you down." He glanced to Alex and didn't miss the shock that appeared when he added, "Either of you."

She was a part of their family, too.

"You didn't," Sam said firmly. "You almost did, but you didn't in the end, and that's what matters."

Awkwardly, Dean cleared his throat. "I owe you both an apology." Sam shook his head, and he said firmly, "I do. You've always been the one that needed help staying on the straight and narrow, Sam. And then I turn around and won't let you help me do the same. I owe it to you to let you help me.

"And I'm sorry about what I did to you, too," he added to Alex, who looks like he's just smacked her in the face with a book. "About what I said, and stuff. We've had the conversation before and you're not a monster. You know that, right? I shouldn't have said it."

Sam looked just as surprised as Alex felt. She studied Dean's face until he glanced her way, waiting for her response. Finally, she swallowed thickly. "Thank you, Dean," she said softly, lifting a hand to push her hair from her face. For the first time, he took notice of the amulet that resided on her wrist and his lips quirked.

Maybe faith wasn't dead after all.


Sorry about the wait! Got stuck, but we're good now! I might go and watch a bit of SPN to get back into it. ;) I'm aiming for some more fun Dean/Alex interactions soon. Possibly some self-confidence boosting that Alex could use. I've been trying to figure out what to do with Dean's relationship with Lisa, actually. It's a bit of a problem that's formed.

Thanks to reviewers (Savage Kill, kcheslock, emily2696, devoncarman, fairyninaM4, and Guest #1!) as well as those who favorited and followed. :D