A/N: Thank you to everyone who's read this so far. I hope you're enjoying it. As always, please review and let me know what you think! Thanks!

Chapter 12: Touched by an Angel

"Nothing eases suffering like human touch."
― Bobby Fischer

We left Chloe with Giles as we trained with Jane. He was the least threatening out of all of the others. Considering Chloe's power, we wanted to make sure she was calm. It also helped that he also had the most experience with magic.

Jane continued to push us harder. She increased our pace in running and the reps of exercises we went through. She also increased her speed and force in the fighting. She didn't hesitate in her strikes and Kelly and I left each session with more bruises. It was starting to become a little easier though, or maybe just familiar.

Watching Jane and Kelly fight was always interesting. The first time Jane swung at Kelly and hit her, the latter reacted...loudly. It ended with Kelly yelling and Jane not backing down. Both of them were scary when they wanted to be.

"Do you guys always train?" Chloe asked as I walked into the kitchen after cleaning up. I had a massive bruise starting to grow on my jaw from not ducking in time.

"Yeah. Every day. Jane makes us."

"Why? I mean, aren't you guys already fit? Why the need for the massive workout?" She was fiddling with the anti possession necklace we had given her.

I paused and leaned back on the counter as I faced her. It was true. The starvation and stress had leaned off the excess fat I had had, but training with Jane was shaping it into muscles. It was weird to see when I looked in a mirror. "Self defence." I took a sip of the water. "There are a lot of scary things in this world. Supernatural things that aren't like what you had at home. Most of them will kill you if they get a chance." I could have sugar-coated it, but she needed the truth. She was more likely to get hurt if she didn't know what was out there. "I was the furthest thing from being fit before. I had a run-in with a demon and got lucky. I'm not planning on letting it happen again." Her expression changed as she thought about it. "Do you want to join?" I asked. "Jane could start you off slow if you're interested." She looked wary. I didn't blame her. I wouldn't have wanted to join if I didn't have the experiences I did.

"I'll think about it."

Kelly arrived, pulling her wet blond hair into a ponytail. The boys followed her in.

"We're going shooting again," Dean said. "Practice and all." He grinned at Kelly.

"Now?" she asked. "All of us?" she glanced at Chloe.

"No," Dean cut Sam off before he could say anything. "You two." he motioned between Kelly and me. "We can split off again. Like before."

"Cool," I nodded, thinking back on what I had just told Chloe. We needed to protect ourselves. I turned to Sam. "Same place?"

He nodded. Dean waved Kelly to follow before he turned and left. She smiled at me before heading after him. Sam waited.

I put down my glass and sighed. I was tired. I looked at the kid at the table. "We'll be back later Chloe."

oOo

I was a little surprised that Sam still wanted to teach me. I wasn't a great student. I complained about him last time during training and on the way back. Sam barely spoke as we walked. It was a little unnerving. He had a tendency to fill the silence.

We finally settled back in what I assumed was the same area as last time. It looked like it, but a field with a fence was still a field with a fence.

"Do you remember what to do?" He asked, looking down at me.

"I think so," I remembered to watch for the recoil. He handed me the gun and stepped back. I shifted into the stance that I remembered and aimed.

I stiffened as I felt him step up behind me. I could feel the heat of his chest on my back. I felt his breath on my ear."You need to take off the safety first."

"Right." I found the safety and clicked it off. He was too close. I could smell him. He was wearing some sort of cologne. I couldn't place the scent of it but it was weirdly attractive the way some men's scents were. "Remember how last time you were too close? Totally not helping now." I couldn't concentrate when I could almost feel him breathing.

He stepped back and I aimed carefully. I shot and didn't move properly with the recoil. None of the cans fell. I narrowed my eyes and aimed again.

"You need to relax. Breathe out slowly as you shoot."

I tried again and one of the cans rattled. It was not the one I was aiming for. I heard him laugh and I shot him an unimpressed look over my shoulder.

"Here." He moved closer and put one of his hands on my shoulder. The other went to mine holding the gun. He leaned in a bit so he was level with me. His hands were huge. He guided my hands up slightly higher. "Remember what I said about the recoil. Try to relax and move with it, but remember to keep it steady." He let go slowly and I tried to ignore the lingering feeling of his hands.

I took a deep breath and aimed carefully again. I wasn't sure how to move with the recoil while keeping it steady so that it went where I aimed. I shot again and it didn't hit anything. I sighed.

"You'll get it," Sam said. "Keep trying."

Sam was laughing at me as I jumped up and down.

"I did it!" It wasn't much that I had succeeded, but I did end up hitting one of the cans I had been aiming for. That was an improvement. Despite what Sam said, there was a trick to it. I just needed to figure it out.

"Really?" Kelly asked, meeting me as we walked up to the house.

"Well, sort of," I admitted. "I'm getting the hang of it. What about you?" I asked. Kelly grinned and I saw Dean shoot a look over me to Sam.

"Fine," she said. She looked away from me. She wasn't telling the truth. "It's not as easy as I thought it'd be."

"That's true," I said. There was more to it than just pointing and shooting despite what the media claimed. At least, if you wanted to properly aim.

Jane stepped out onto the porch as we arrived. "Come. It is time for a game." Kelly and I looked at each other in alarm. Since when did Jane play games?

oOo

I struggled to get up the stairs. Kelly had managed to get into the shower. Jane's idea of a game was standing on a high point and throwing rocks at us while we ran and ducked around the cars. It was a method, apparently, of teaching evasive maneuvers. Not that that was what she called it. The woman had terrifyingly good aim and while she didn't aim for our heads, we were still covered in more than enough bruises. Neither of us was good at dodging rocks we didn't see coming.

I didn't bother changing and fell onto the bed. I was asleep in seconds.

It was a forest of gold. Music faded in and out as I walked down the path, searching for something. I saw her. I walked closer, just to be sure.

"Helen?" My sister turned and faced me. She smiled. "You're not supposed to be here." And she wasn't. No one was allowed in my forest.

"I am not your sister."

I suddenly became more aware of my surroundings as it clicked. The dream, the one dream that wasn't a nightmare, had been infiltrated.

"Who are you?" The forest melted away from me and I was left facing her form in the dark.

She shrugged. "I've been called many things...what's that song you like, pleased to meet you, hope you guess my name?"

Cold fear flooded through me. "Lucifer."

"Yes." He moved towards me and I held up a hand, motioning him to stop.

"Wait, before we go any further, show what you really look like or your vessel. Not this. " I couldn't stand to look at her face and know that it wasn't real, that she wasn't here.

He nodded and her form melted off into the shape of a blonde man. He looked older, a little worn by life. I wondered if this was just a vessel...and what made him say yes. "Is this better?"

"Yeah, thanks." I looked around for somewhere to sit and noticed a couple of chairs. I needed to sit if I was going to get through this.

"I am certainly surprised to hear about you, Michelle. I can't say I was expecting it. Gatekeepers were supposed to be a myth." He was watching me carefully, a shrewd look in his eyes. The fact that he was aware of me made me think of the demon. It made me angry. "I can help you, Michelle. I can help you get them back, but I need something from you."

I rolled my eyes. "You're not asking me to say yes, are you? Because I'm really not a fan of that option."

"Are you aware of what it means to be a Gatekeeper?"

"I help the newbies?" I guessed. It hadn't been explained and I was still trying to not believe in the role. I was a little curious though and grateful that it wasn't the nightmare of the diner. He pulled out the other chair and moved it closer to me before he sat down.

"It's more than that. What you are is in fact a guardian. The vessels are arriving and it's your job to take care of them, to make sure none of them die like the lizard one...Voldemort?" He wiggled his fingers as he motioned to me and made a face at the name. "Honestly I'm not that too concerned about him. I mean, could you imagine him as a vessel?" I stared back at him, confused at the attempt of humour. No one said that the devil could be funny.

"What about Kelly?" I asked.

"She works for Michael. You are my vessel and my Gatekeeper. You work for me ." He pointed at me then himself and paused for a moment. "What I need you to do is help me convince them."

"What?"

"If you help me, Michelle, I can help you. Don't you wonder about your nieces? Don't you want to go back?" He reached over and tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear. I jumped up quickly, shoving the chair back.

"Don't touch me!" I looked down at him. "Why would I help you? One of your demons tried to kill me! I can't go out in public because of her!"

"I'm truly sorry; they can be such...pests." His lip curled and I stared at him for a moment. It was hard to believe that someone who created these creatures, who was so powerful...came across so human in some ways. He cared little for them. I wondered if God felt the same about us. "She did lead me to you though, so, can't say I'm too upset about that."

I clenched my teeth together and tried not to snap at the actual devil.

"How? How can you help me? My family is a whole other universe." He looked like he was about to say something when it clicked. "You're lying."

"I don't lie."

"A lie by omission is still a lie. You're not telling me everything. I don't trust you and I want you to leave. I want to go back to my forest. You can go...bother someone else. I don't care. Just go."

He sighed. "I see you're not ready to hear me out. I'll be back when you are."

oOo

I woke up and was running down the stairs before I even knew it. I skidded into the library. "Where's Castiel?"

Bobby and Dean were still awake. Dean looked at me. "What?"

"Where's Cas? Call him!" I looked around. My heart was pounding but the angel hadn't appeared. "Castiel!" I called out.

"Woah! Calm down, Michelle. What's wrong?"

"I need Cas!" I looked at Dean. Both he and Bobby looked concerned. I heard a creak on the stairs behind me and saw that Kelly and Chloe had appeared. Sam was entering through the door. I turned back to Dean. " Please, Dean."

Dean looked at Bobby and Sam before he sighed. "Cas, Michelle is freaking out and we need your help."

"Mish? What's-" Kelly was cut off by the sound of wings and Castiel's appearance.

"Dean. What's wrong?" Castiel turned towards me as I stepped up.

"I need protection," I said quickly, ignoring the surprise around me. "The...thing you did on their ribs," I waved in Dean's direction. "The one that hides them from angels."

Castiel tilted his head as he stared at me. "Why?"

I stopped. They weren't going to react well if I told them I dreamt about Lucifer. I still wasn't sure it was entirely real, but it felt real. "I had a nightmare." I heard someone scoff and ignored it. "Look, if we're really Gatekeepers or vessels, don't you want us to be hidden from them? So they can't just...show up and zap us with them? Please Castiel, please."

Castiel looked around the room as if looking for any objections before he turned back to me. "It will hurt," Castiel said.

"I know."

"Hold on," Dean stepped forward. "What the hell is going on? Why are you pushing for this?"

"Because we need it," I said. I tried to think of the best way to explain. "I...I don't know what's happening, like the whole gatekeeper thing, but there is one thing I do know. I don't want to be near an angel. I don't want them to find me. I don't trust things that believe in the greater good, not when it involves sacrificing a few. We should have done it sooner."

"If you get it though," Sam said and I turned to look at him. He was staring at me with that concerned look on his face. "Cas can't find you. If something goes wrong…"

"I'd rather have him struggle to find me than be open to any of them showing up. I can throw salt at a demon, I can't fight an angel!"

"It just seems sudden, Michelle," Sam said. "What brought this on?"

"I told you, I had a...I had a nightmare." I clenched my teeth together, trying to keep myself from telling them that something claiming to be the devil was in it. "I know you think I'm crazy, but I'd rather be paranoid and be safe than need it and not have it."

"She's right," Kelly said, coming down the stairs. "We all need it."

I thought I heard Dean swear under his breath but when I turned to look at him, he motioned Castiel forward.

Castiel stepped towards me and I held myself tightly, trying not to flinch. He touched the centre of my chest and it was like fire burnt through me. It was fast but I still bent forward in pain over it. I took a few deep breaths, trying to keep the sudden nausea down.

I heard Kelly swear. "That stings like a bitch," she grounded out.

"Thank you," I looked up at Castiel. One more thing to keep me safe.

Castiel nodded. "I will find Jane." He disappeared again and I finally felt like the adrenaline was fading. Lucifer couldn't find me, couldn't find us.

oOo

Something changed after that. It wasn't anything major, but the men kept looking at me as if they were expecting something to happen. As if they knew there was more to my demands for Enochian to be inscribed on my ribs than just a nightmare. I was trying to ignore it.

Jane, in turn, decided we needed a break from training. Her training at least. Jane's idea of a break resulted in us training with Giles.

"Does he think we're slayers?" Kelly muttered as he explained what exactly he had planned.

"Maybe," I whispered back.

"Michelle," he called out to us. "You're first." Giles decided that we needed a basic understanding and ability to use more weapons. He also decided we needed to work on using our senses with our reflexes. So he blindfolded us. It was a little terrifying but I was trying to not freak out about the fact that I could no longer see.

I held the staff tightly before loosening my grip. I could hear Kelly muttering to herself. She had a tendency to do that. She also had a tendency to walk into doors occasionally. Something hit me in the thigh. "Ow!"

"Focus, Michelle. Listen to the sounds around you." Giles' voice sounded. Easier said than done. Something hit me in the arm this time.

"Ow!"

"Focus! Tune everything else out."

I wasn't sure how that was possible. How was I supposed to block something I couldn't see? I sighed and tried to do what he said. Jane had once calmed me from a panic attack by making me focus on the trees. Maybe this was similar.

I took a deep breath. I could still hear Kelly, shifting about impatiently. There were the usual sounds of birds and the creak of something. I heard the wind of the motion of the stick and tried to move. I felt it glance down my other arm.

"Good. You must keep focus and feel it. Try again."

I was officially certain that Giles was training us as if we were slayers. I took a breath and tried to concentrate. I could hear the small sounds of the place around us, Kelly shifting and then felt it. I raised the staff and it hit, sending vibrations up my arms. It was much harder to protect and hold the staff still against something you couldn't see.

"Excellent, Michelle. Again."

[tbc]