When they followed a case of over zealous lovers that had eaten each other, Castiel had thought a Cupid was behind it. She knew it wasn't but she was so interested in meeting the lower level angels that her excitement overpowered her need to continue the case, and it was possible.
"Show yourself!" Castiel demanded in the back room of the restaurant after calling to the Cupid in Enocian.
After a few moments of silence Dean looked around confused.
"Am I missing something?" He asked. Behind him the cherub appeared, a large smile on his face. Suddenly he was rushing forward and hugging Castiel for all he was worth.
"Brother! It is so good to see you!" He said before letting go and rushing for Sam.
"And new friends! I love new friends!"
"Is this a fight?" Dean asked from the cherubs arms, nearly frantic. "Are we in a fight?"
The cherub let him go.
"This is their way of saying hello." Castiel said.
"Well I don't like it." He replied.
"No one does."
Suddenly the cherub noticed her and she smiled wide.
"Biggest sister!" He said, she opened her arms wide, welcoming the sudden hug from the overly large and naked celestial being.
"Hello little brother!" She laughed as he swung her in a circle.
"Well someone likes it." Dean chuckled.
"It is so good to meet you! Everyone in Heaven said you were mean, but you are so nice I can see it!"
"How could I be mean to someone so loving?" She asked happily, her eyes twinkling with her smile.
"Oh I love love!! Isn't it so wonderful?"
"It is." She smiled gently, pausing. "We were wondering if you could help us little brother. A couple that was marked by your arrows... they were so enveloped with each other that they..."
"They ate each other." Castiel said bluntly. Near immediately the cherubs eyes welled with tears. She looked to the cherub, and his face immediately answered their question before they could even ask it.
"It wasn't him Castiel." Em said.
"You thought it was me? It wasn't! Please brother read my mind! You'll see, please!" The Cupid asked Castiel. Reluctantly Castiel looked into his eyes before nodding.
"He's telling the truth. However that doesn't explain why Every person that has died has been marked by your arrow."
He began wailing.
"Oh, little brother it's ok! We're working on fixing it now! I promise!" Em said with haste as she pat his back in another hug.
"I'm confused." Sam said. Dean nodded in agreement.
"Boys, I've been thinking... what do all of our victims have in common?" She said over the cherubs shoulder, he was still sniffling and she was offering the only comfort she could in her hug.
Sam scrunched his brow, before it flattened out. "They all acted like they were starving." He said.
"Exactly," she said holding hands with the pacified Cupid. "It's Famine."
Dean looked at her oddly for a moment. She seemed to be clinging to the Cupid.
"I don't understand, I thought Famine was about food."
"It is, but it's also about whatever you're starving for. Love, food, alcohol. It's about your greatest desires."
"Ok, so another horseman. We got this, I say let's go find him." Dean said. If he was being honest all he really wanted to do was take Emmuel back to the motel room and hold her for a while... what?
"Yes... we should," she said looking sadly at the Cupid.
"It's alright big sister. Now I can go tell everyone how wonderful you are!" He said before picking her up in yet another massive bear hug. Dean suddenly felt a stab of jealousy at the display of affection.
"Maybe I'll see you again some day," she said smiling at him.
"I would love that!" He said before backing away and waving at the rest of the small crowd and fluttering off to continue his work.
Emmuel sighed wistfully.
"Their wings are rather small aren't they?" She mused. Castiel nodded in agreement.
Back at the motel Sam confessed his near slip up with Demon blood earlier in the day.
"You have to lock me up." He begged. "I don't want to compromise the hunt."
Emmuel sighed. "We'll leave Castiel with you. His vessel seems to be affecting his appetite," she said glancing to Castiel as he ate yet another burger.
"Jeez man, how many is that now?"
"I've lost count," he said through a mouthful. "It's in the low hundreds..." he took another large bite. "These make me very happy."
He had a large smile on his face.
They ended up handcuffing Sam to the sink in the bathroom so he could easily get to water or the toilet if he needed, and they set Castiel to watch him before disembarking in the Impala.
As they set outside the diner, where Famine had holed himself up, she looked over at Dean.
"You don't seem very affected." She mused quietly. He considered it for a moment.
"I am," he said looking into her eyes. "But I like to think I have better control than others." He said simply before forcing himself to tear his eyes from her. She sat confused for a moment. Before she could ask any further questions he spoke again.
"So we know the plan?" He asked.
"I go in, you come in after, Famine is very frail so it shouldn't be to hard to actually cut the ring from his hand but he will be guarded. I'll exorcise the demons and you sweep in and grab the finger."
"Ugh, I hate the finger."
It had almost worked too, but a large demon had been waiting in the alley, slipping in after Emmuel and bashing her over the head, knocking her out cold. Dean had nearly been killed until Sam ran in, Famine had sent in demons armed with raw red meat to distract Castiel then Sam, ravenous for the blood, killed them both.
After Famine consumed the demons meant for Sam, Sam had obliterated Famine from the inside out, splattering blood throughout the diner and all over Dean and an unconscious Emmuel as well as himself. Picking up the ring, and resisting licking his lips he walked over to Dean, helping him up off the floor.
Dean looked at him concerned, "Sammy?"
He just shook his head and clenched his teeth before walking over to Emmuel and motioning for Dean to help him pick up the unconscious Anarchangel. Once they had gotten her up, looking to the floor in amazement as gargantuan imprints of wings drug through the blood on the floor, Dean slung her up into his arms bridal style.
"Cas!" Dean yelled to the sky.
A shamed Castiel covered in raw ground beef appeared, his eyes widening as he took them in.
"Little help?" Dean asked his teeth clenched at the smell of raw meat.
Castiel placed a hand on each of their shoulders and suddenly they were back in the motel.
As if he didn't want to harm her any further he slowly cupped Emmuels cheek and they watched in amazement as her injury began to glow before it slowly sealed, the blood that had been flowing before stopped all together.
"She should be fine," he said gruffly. "She will wake up shortly." He backed away, looking to the floor.
Dean had walked into the bathroom quickly grabbing a wet washcloth and gently swiping the blood from her face.
He sighed in relief when her eyes fluttered open.
"Dean," she whispered.
"Yeah, sweetheart?" He asked.
"I think I missed one." She said with a smirk. He chuckled.
"Packed a hell of a punch didn't he?"
They found the bar that had been used to bludgeon her later, after Castiel softly demanded to know what had happened.
Someone had melted one of Thors hammers and mixed it with dirt from the gates of Hell. Just enough for any demon to be able to weld it.
—————
"Hey, Bobby." She said quietly, standing in the threshold of the kitchen. He turned to her from the fridge, placing the two beers he had pulled out on the counter.
She had been quieter the last few days, shaken that something had hurt her so badly. She doubted it would happen again, Famine had been prepared for anything. He had always been a paranoid bastard.
"How you feeling, girl?" He asked her.
She raised her arms, gesturing for a hug. He walked across the kitchen and gathered her in his arms.
"I'm ok," she said quietly.
Bobby nodded against the top of her head. Looking up he noticed Dean standing further back in the living room. He nodded his head to the boy, telling him to come over.
Taking the hint he nearly tripped over a rug in his haste to reach them, at which Bobby rolled his eyes.
When Dean finally reached them he put a hand on Em's shoulder and Bobby let up on his grip. Em looked up to Dean before leaning into his chest, relaxing against him with a sigh.
Bobby smiled at the two of them, wrapped up in each other, as they walked back to the couch and sat close.
He could hear Sam snoring in the side room, Castiel posted in a chair next to him looking around the room aimlessly.
His weary children, his warriors, resting up for their next battle.