The Fate That Binds Us

So this is the third part of my trilogy. The first story is Our Solemn Hour, and the second is In Darkness We Dwell. You need to read these stories before reading this one!

It was a mystery which one of the three men was the most surprised to see Anna standing before them. Out of the three, it seemed like Sam was the only one happy to see her. Castiel was the perfect blend of shock and sad; Cas was still so full of regret for what he did to his sister. On the other hand, Crowley was looking more and more angry. The red headed angel had vowed to stop Crowley and his plans by any means necessary.

Anna's brown and green hazel eyes seemed to soften at the sight of the younger Winchester sibling. Sam was a friend and ally, and more importantly, he was the younger brother of Dean. Anna bore no ill will against the tall human. Her eyes darkened, however, at the sight of the demon standing near the hunter. Crowley brought out a lot of mixed emotions within the female angel, but she mostly felt rage toward the demon. Had the King of the Crossroads gotten his hooks into Sam like he had done to Anna? If so, then that would be awful. She would have to make Sam see the truth behind Crowley before it was too late.

Then those feminine eyes turned toward the last occupant in the room. Her eyes glowed with grace and unbridled rage. "YOU!" she seethed.

Castiel shifted his stance. He deserved her anger, but he also needed Anna to see how much he changed and grew since their last encounter. Besides, Cas still felt the urge to understand why his sister would want Dean dead rather than work with them to turn Dean back to human. Castiel had seen the way Dean and Anna interacted with one another; their connection was deep, primal, and something more.

Gripping the angel blade more tightly in her grasp, Anna surged forward and struck. Thrusting her blade forward, the red headed angel took aim at her own sibling. Cas had just managed to avoid the attack before Anna was trying again. She was on the offense, and he was on defense. Anna was consumed with the rage that was burning inside her.

Sam stared at the exchange with wide eyes between the two angels. The hunter did not want to lose either one of the angels. "We need to get them to stop," Sam commented to the being beside him that was perhaps the only one who could between the warring siblings.

There was an incredulous look on the King of the Crossroads' face. "I'd rather not and say we did," Crowley responded, "besides I will like to keep on living."

The hunter glared at the demon beside him. But Crowley may have a slight point. All in all, maybe it was not a good idea to get in the middle of that fight. Unless there was a way to force them to stop fighting without getting between them….

Castiel had no other choice than to draw out his own blade. The blue eyed angel did not want to hurt his sister, but he was not going to let her kill him either. Still, she was his slightly older sister, and she was once his superior.

Neither angel noticed Sam slowly sneak out of the house. Castiel had almost managed to knock Anna's blade from her grasp, but her grip was steadfast. Because of this near slip up, Anna doubled her efforts in taking down her brother. Castiel was physically strong and powerful, but he was not as nimble as her. The red headed angel did a fake out, spun on her heels, and managed to knock Castiel's blade from his hands. Seems like Castiel still had a lot to learn.

Castiel looked at his fallen weapon briefly before returning his eyes back to his opponent. Clearly physical incapacitation was not going to work on his sister, but maybe he could still make her see reason. "Anna, stop! Listen to me," Cas pleaded with her.

However, Anna's hazel eyes were still dark and stormy. "Save it Cas. Now you want to apologize for betraying me," she immediately cut in.

Cas took a couple of steps backwards, but she was still walking towards him. "I'm sorry for all I've done to you," he apologized, "if I had known then what I know now…"

Anna stopped in her tracks. She was still looking dangerous, but she raised an eyebrow at his words. "You what?" she demanded. It still cut her deep that it was Castiel who betrayed her. "You would have just let me go?"

Blue eyes were soft and pleading. "I would have joined you. Maybe you, Dean, and I could have prevented Lucifer from ever rising," he admitted.

His words caused her to pause. She could not help it in times of great desperation imagine what would have happened had she never been captured. Perhaps she and Dean would not be in the positions they are in now.

Meanwhile, Sam had raced out of the house. He had to act fast if he wanted a chance to save both Anna and Castiel. So the hunter rushed to trunk and opened it. He dug through the false bottom for a clay bottle. When his hand touched the handle, his eyes lit up. Quickly grabbing the bottle, Sam also grabbed a lighter before closing the trunk. Then he raced back inside the house.

When Sam returned, it seemed like the two angels were at a stalemate. There was an unreadable expression on Anna's face. "I'm sorry Cas, but what is can never be now," she finally spoke.

Crowley's eyes landed on the Winchester's returned form. Dark eyes spotted the bottle in the hunter's hand, and Crowley understood the Winchester's plan without ever speaking to him. "Wow, and here I thought you were different Anna. But you are just like the rest of your older brothers who kill anyone who disagrees with them," the demon goaded.

Stormy eyes turned to the King of the Crossroads. How dare this vile and manipulative character think he has the gall to judge her? Crowley spoke nothing but lies. As she white knuckled her blade, Anna seethed, "Don't you speak to me! You might be the one who deserves to die the most here."

As Anna and Crowley stared each other down, Sam laid down the trap. Even Castiel helped Sam pour the oil into a circle. When the holy oil was laid out, the hunter reached into his pocket and pulled out the lighter. With one stroke, Sam got a spark and dropped it to ignite the oil. Soon the red headed angel was trapped in a ring of holy fire.

Anna's eyes went from angry to betrayed as she gazed into the Winchester's hazel eyes. Did Sam not realize she would not harm him? "Sam?" her tone was questioning.

The Winchester looked apologetic for his actions. "I'm sorry, but I'm not going to let you kill my brother," he tried to explain.

Now it was Anna's turn to be confused. Why would Sam think she would ever try to kill Dean? "Sam, you are mistaken. I would never hurt Dean; I'm going to do whatever it takes to save him," she responded.

Castiel wiped the blood from his lower lip before moving to stand beside the Winchester. Why did the angel feel like they were missing something? "Sam," Cas whispered to his friend, "perhaps we should hear her out."

Sam's mouth dropped open and he took a hesitant step toward the trapped angel. Maybe they all had their wires crossed. If they were all working toward the same goal, they should be working together. "That's exactly what we are trying to do too Anna," the hunter spoke, "so then why are you trying to stop us?"

Anna's eyes flickered between the human and the demon standing by him. "If you are working with Crowley, then you are not trying to save Dean," she began.

Crowley's eyes bled red. He took a step toward her and opened his mouth to threaten her, but Sam stopped him. "What are you trying to say Anna?" the hunter wondered.

Anna chewed on her top lip and kept her gaze focused on the Winchester. "If you allow Crowley to act, then Dean will die," she warned the human.

Doubt was beginning to fill Sam Winchester. He had the devil (or a demon in this case) on one shoulder spewing promises, and an angel on the other shoulder screaming not to trust it. Who should Sam believe?

"How do I know I can trust you?" he chose to ask.

Taking a deep breath, Anna answered, "Maybe I should tell you about what I've been up to since the last time I saw you."