"If it's all the same to you guys, can you drop me off in Topeka on your way to go bust an angel outta jail? I'm a full-time hacker, part-time hunter—and I'm not messing with angels and demons and all that. Not my circus, I'm sure you understand," Charlie said, settling her bag across her lap as she slid into the back seat of the Impala.
"Actually, I was going to suggest that too," Dean said, casting a sideways glance at Hope. "This is going to be dangerous, and I don't want to risk more lives than necessary."
"Don't even think about it, Dean," Hope warned, narrowing her eyes at him.
"Calm down," Dean said mildly, "I wasn't. I know you wouldn't agree to that anyway. Besides, if we're going up against Lilith, we're going to need all the firepower we can get, which—as much as I hate the idea, that means we need you and Aisy backing us up."
"As if we would do anything else," Aisy snorted from the back seat. "Did you really think Hope and I would send you two to deal with this alone while we sat on our asses? Absolutely not! If you're doing this, we're all doing this. Got it?"
"Got it," Dean said, the corner of his mouth twitching into a smirk. "Let's go kill us a demon and free Cas. Nothing could possibly go wrong with this plan."
After saying their goodbyes to Charlie in Topeka, it was dark before Sam, Dean, Hope, and Aisy reached the bunker. Sam stifled a yawn as Dean parked the Impala in the garage, and a heavy silence fell over the car.
"Alright," Dean said, his voice soft as it cut through the tension in the air. "This is not going to be easy, but we need to be ready for anything. Sam and I almost died putting Lilith in that damn cage; I can't imagine she's going to be too happy when she finds out we're busting her out to kill her. So, let's try and get some sleep, and we'll come up with a plan tomorrow. Agreed?"
He glanced around the car, getting silent nods in answer from everyone else, and he nodded his agreement as he got out of the vehicle. No one spoke as they retreated to their rooms, and Dean eyed Hope curiously as she passed Dean's room, heading for her own.
"Hey," Dean said gently, reaching for Hope's hand. She glanced at him in surprise but didn't pull away. "Will you stay with me tonight? Please?"
Hope nodded, patting the hand holding hers with her other one. "Give me a few minutes and I'll be in there."
Dean nodded, releasing Hope's hand. Maybe, just maybe, they'd make it through what was coming in one piece, but if they didn't—he wanted to know that they'd made the most of their time together.
He opened the door to his own room, quickly cleaning up the disaster he'd made the night before when Sam put him to bed like a child. His face flushed with anger and embarrassment when he thought about the night before, and he quickly pushed the memories away. Tonight was not the time to worry about that.
A soft knock came from the door as it opened, and Hope entered, giving Dean a shy smile. She was dressed in sleep shorts and a flowy tank top that hid her growing belly. "I hope it's alright, but I just want to sleep tonight."
Dean smiled softly at her, taking her by the hand and leading her to the side of the bed. "I don't care what we do, Hope. I just want to fall asleep next to you." Hope nodded, getting into bed and curling into the solid warmth of Dean's body. Something told her neither of them would get much sleep, but the steady rhythm of his heartbeat soothed her frayed nerves regardless. Hope smiled against his chest as he planted a kiss on the top of her head and pulled her tighter against him.
"Dean?" Hope said, turning her face up toward his.
"Hmm?" He didn't look at her, but Hope felt his body tense in anticipation of what she might say.
"What would you do if you'd been raised in the normal way?" Hope asked. Dean cracked an eyelid and looked at her, quickly closing it again as he considered her question.
"I don't know," he said honestly. "I don't like to play the what-if game too much, so I've never given it much thought. Why?"
Hope shrugged, pressing her cheek against his chest again. "No reason. I've just been thinking about my life lately, trying to figure out what I'll do with it after this baby comes. Having kids was never part of my life plan, you know? But it's strange, now that it's happening I can't imagine going back to the life I left behind. I would never ask you to stop hunting, I was just curious what you might have been like if you weren't raised a hunter."
"You mean, you don't want to go back to being some big-shot surgeon?" Dean teased. "I thought that was your life's purpose or whatever."
Hope snorted, pulling away from Dean and frowning. "Working 60-80 hours a week and living off horrible coffee and bad hospital cafeteria food? No thank you."
"Because the alternative with me is five-star gourmet meals every day." Dean scoffed, and Hope rolled her eyes.
"No, genius, the alternative is being here with you. I'm a part of something bigger than myself now, and I'm doing it with you. That's what truly matters."
"You don't think you were part of something bigger than yourself before? You saved lives, Hope. There's nothing bigger than that."
"Except for when you have to choose between your career and saving someone who doesn't deserve saving," Hope said softly.
Dean looked down at Hope, his brows furrowed. "What are you talking about?"
"The night I, uh—" Hope held up her wrist with the jagged scar, "I wasn't supposed to be at work that day, but I got called in. One of the bastards who attacked me at the bonfire came into the E.R. with multiple stab wounds and the attending surgeon threatened to fire me if I didn't operate on him. I had a meltdown in the middle of the fuckin' emergency room because I just couldn't bring myself to save his worthless life. I almost lost my residency over it, and I went home, drank myself stupid and tried to end everything because nothing was worth it anymore."
"God, Hope," Dean whispered, pulling him closer to him. "I'm so, so sorry you had to carry that burden alone. No one should have to go through that, but especially not the way you did. If I had known—"
"I know," Hope replied, cutting him off. "But what happened to me wasn't your fault, and it's taken some time, but I've come to understand that it wasn't my fault either. It's just, now that I've seen another side to the Universe, I'll never be content to just be a surgeon or an E.R. doctor. I want to do so much more than that, and I want to be remembered by the people who matter, the ones out there fighting every day to make the world a safer place for everyone, the way you and Sam, Bobby and Jody do. I want that to be my legacy, Dean, not being the best trauma surgeon in the nation and making a bazillion dollars to save lives. Money isn't the meaning of life—family is."
"You are amazing, Hope, and I love you. You know that, right?"
"I know, Dean, and I love you. Now shut up and go to sleep." Hope planted a kiss on Dean's chest, right over his anti-possession tattoo.
"Hey," Dean grumbled. "I'm not the one who started playing the what-if game, so if anyone needs to shut up and go to sleep, it's you, sweetheart."
"Bite me," Hope said, yelping with laughter when Dean proceeded to do just that.
Aisy woke in the early hours of the morning, blinking in the darkness as her eyes adjusted. The solid warmth of Sam's body next to her beckoned her back to the oblivion of sleep, but her mind refused to listen. She sighed, slipping out of Sam's embrace without waking him and pulling on her clothes. Something terrible was going to happen, she could feel it in her gut, and the anxiety was eating through her insides like acid eating through steel.
She walked to the kitchen, humming to herself as she put on a pot of coffee, drumming her fingers restlessly as she waited for the pot to finish brewing. "Finally," she muttered as she poured herself a cup and went to the library. She gathered several books from the shelves, stacking them neatly on the table, grabbing the top one as she sat down.
Aisy wasn't sure what she was looking for, only that she hoped it would be obvious when she found it. "Whatcha doin?" Dean said from the doorway. Aisy stifled a shriek, glaring at him.
"I'm not sure," she replied, flipping pages as she regained her composure. "I'm looking for something—I think."
"You think you're looking for something? How does that work?" Dean asked suspiciously.
"Look, I don't expect you to believe me, but it's the truth. I get these feelings sometimes, and more often than not it leads me to something useful. I've learned not to ignore them."
"I didn't say I didn't believe you, Aisy," Dean said quietly. "I was just thinking that maybe I could help if I knew what you were looking for."
Aisy blew out a breath, wondering for a moment how much to tell him. "I think I'm looking for a spell. One that can unbind magic."
"What? Why?" Dean asked, shaking his head. "Whose magic are you going to unbind?"
"Mine." Aisy said matter-of-factly as she turned the page in front of her.
"Wait, I'm confused. I thought your magic is tied to your emotions, so it's only as powerful as they are, right?"
"Yes and no," Aisy shrugged, glancing up at Dean and trying not to smirk at the frown he wore. "After I, uh—well, what I did isn't important—Drexil put a dampener of sorts on my powers. I'm still more powerful than an average witch, but I can't tap into the full potential of my emotions anymore, if that makes sense."
"I'm assuming Sam knows? What you did, I mean," Dean asked, giving Aisy a pointed look. He knew why she didn't want to tell him, and truth be told, he understood better than anyone the guilt that haunted Aisy's gray eyes at times. She'd screwed up, and someone had died. The details didn't matter in the end—not to Dean anyway.
"For the most part," Aisy said quietly, avoiding Dean's gaze. "I'll tell him everything someday, but he knows I'm not innocent."
"That's good enough for me," Dean said, reaching for a book and thumbing through it. They sat in silence as they searched the pages of the dusty tomes until Aisy let out an excited yelp, jabbing her finger at the center of the page in front of her.
"This is it," Aisy said, her eyes wide with excitement, "I found it. I just have to gather the ingredients. I'll be back." She stood up, picking up the book and practically running from the room, leaving Dean shaking his head and muttering about cleaning up the books.
"We really need a map of this place," Aisy muttered as she wandered the winding corridors until she found the storage room. She rummaged through boxes and drawers, gathering up the items she needed. As she turned to leave the room, something shiny sitting in the corner of the room piqued her interest. Aisy wandered over, pulling the dusty cloth away from the surface. It was a mirror, and the surface shifted and moved as though it were made of water. As she stared into it, she could see images of people—no more than shadows, really, moving in the depths.
"It's a soul mirror," Aisy breathed, quickly throwing the cloth back over the surface. The magic behind them was simple enough, a whole lot of intent and focused concentration on the one you wanted to see the most. The problem was most of the witches who created soul mirrors were driven by the grief or rage of what they'd lost, and the magic took their sanity as payment. But what if the magic wasn't fueled by rage or grief? What if it was driven by love?
Aisy turned and left the room, her mind spinning with possibilities as she forced herself to focus on the task in front of her. If she couldn't find a way to undo Drexil's dampening spell before they went up against Lilith, Aisy had a feeling that there wouldn't be anything to worry about later. When she got back to the library, Dean was still there, putting away the last of the books Aisy had stacked on the table.
"Did you find what you needed?" he asked, sliding the last book into its place on the shelf.
"Yeah, I think so," Aisy replied, dropping her haul of ingredients onto the table. "Hopefully this works."
Dean watched as Aisy expertly measured and dumped ingredients into the brass bowl on the table. Something about this ritual made him nervous, but he wasn't sure why—other than his healthy skepticism of anything witchy. Aisy dropped a match into the bowl, and flames shot toward the ceiling before disappearing into smoke as she held out her hands and began chanting in Latin.
Dean recognized some of the words, and he understood the overall idea of the spell, but something just felt—wrong. "Aisy!" Dean said. "Aisy—stop!" Aisy's eyes flew open and she stared at Dean, blinking in confusion as blood dripped from her nose, the scarlet drops plopping onto the polished tabletop. "Son of a bitch," Dean murmured, grabbing Aisy by the shoulders and tipping her head back as he steered her toward the kitchen.
"I-I don't understand," Aisy said, dabbing at her nose with the paper towel Dean handed her as she sat down at the table. "The spell should've worked."
"It's alright," Dean said, patting Aisy's shoulder. "Aren't those spells specific, anyway? I mean I don't know much about witchcraft, nor do I want to, but I do know that witches are petty creatures who tend to like causing suffering. So it wouldn't be a stretch to think that a spell like that could only be reversed by the one who cast it. I mean, who is Drexil? Old boyfriend?"
"Ex-husband, actually." There was a pause, and then Aisy added, "Sam knows. Please don't ask." Dean held up his hands to indicate he wasn't going to.
"That son of a bitch," Aisy seethed, closing her eyes as she leaned her head back, the paper towel still pressed to her bleeding nose. "Of course he would do something like that."
"Call me crazy, but I can see an ex being that way," Dean said as he moved around the kitchen, packing food for the journey. "How's the bleeding?"
"It's stopped for now," Aisy said, examining the bloody paper towel as Sam walked into the kitchen.
"What the hell happened?" He demanded, his gaze darting between Aisy, Dean and the bloody wad of paper towels in Aisy's hand.
"Nothing, Sam. I'm fine," Aisy said. Dean shot her a look, then turned back to the cooler. Sam caught Dean's look and glared at Aisy.
"What?"
Aisy sighed and rolled her eyes as she tossed the paper towel into the trash. "I tried to remove the dampening spell and it backfired, alright?" she snapped.
"Why would you do that to yourself, Aisy?" Sam asked, his voice low as he slid into the chair across from her and reached for her hand.
"Because," she said, shrinking away from Sam's touch and folding her heads in her lap, "if we're going to survive this, I need to be able to tap into all my power."
"No, you don't. This isn't on you alone. It's going to take all of us to bring Lilith down, and the thought of losing any of you in this is almost enough to make me not want to do it at all. But you know what? Cas wouldn't do that to us. He'd move Heaven and Earth to save us if we were stuck, so we have to try to do the same for him—even if we fail," Sam said, taking her hands in his own.
"If we fail, we do it together," Hope said from the doorway, adjusting the duffel bag she'd slung over one shoulder. "So let's get this show on the road, shall we?"
Twenty Hours Later
A chill ran up Hope's spine as she followed Dean down into the catacombs of St. Mary's, trying to ignore the memories of being tortured by demons there months before. She shuddered, absently rubbing the side of her stomach as the four of them made their way into the inner sanctuary.
Hope felt eyes all around her—watching and waiting. She wondered for a moment whether they were demons or just the restless spirits of the long-dead entombed here. She pushed the thought away, feeling the familiar tingle of the celestial energy that coursed through her veins now.
"We're here," Sam murmured from behind her as they pushed through a set of double iron doors. "The place where the end began."
Hope glanced around the cavernous room, taking in the stone altar at the opposite end of the room. On top of it sat a massive stone bowl carved with Enochian symbols. "The blood of the first and the last opens the gate to the Queen of the Damned," Hope murmured, drawing three curious stares.
"You read Enochian?" Dean asked, his brows furrowed. "Since when?"
"I don't know," Hope said, shaking her head. "Since now, I guess."
"Okay, that's officially weird," Aisy said, gesturing toward Sam and Dean. "But how about we focus and do what we came to do, hmm? This place is fuckin' creepy, and I for one don't want to be here any longer than I have to be."
"Right," Sam said, clearing his throat as he looked at Dean. "Are you ready for this?"
"No—so let's get it over with," Dean said, moving to stand opposite of Sam.
"Wait," Hope said, holding up her hands. "How much blood is this going to take?"
"A lot," Sam and Dean said in unison.
"Well, in that case—"Hope said, moving to stand between them next to the bowl. She placed one hand on each of their shoulders, her eyes glowing bright blue. "Do what you need to. We will keep you safe."
Dean pulled out his hunting knife, nodding to Sam as he did the same. They counted to three, then drew the razor-sharp blades vertically down their wrists. Blood poured into the stone bowl, tracing along the circular sigil carved into the bottom. As their blood flowed, Aisy watched with horror as Sam's skin grew paler, and he struggled to stand upright.
"Hope! Do something!" Aisy cried, unfastening her leather bracelet and transforming it into a whip. Hope nodded, forcing energy through her fingertips and watching with awe as it traveled through their veins. The ground and walls began to tremble, raining a shower of dirt and stone down on their heads as a gaping hole opened up in the wall behind the altar. Hope, Dean, and Sam stumbled backward away from the opening as a woman dressed in a flowing white dress appeared before them.
"Hello, boys," she purred, raking her eyes up and down first Sam, then Dean. "It's been a long time. Did you finally decide to finish what Dean started, Sam?"
"Let's just get this over with, Lilith," Sam growled, readying his blade. Lilith laughed, shaking her head.
"Oh—that's cute. You actually think you can beat me, Sam? You weren't strong enough to do it then, and I don't smell the sweet scent of demon blood on you anymore, so there's no way you're strong enough now."
"That's right," Sam said, tilting his head to one side. "I'm not strong enough to beat you—alone. But the four of us—well, I like those odds a lot better."
Lilith turned her snakelike gaze on Hope and Aisy. She tilted her head to one side, approaching Hope with cautious curiosity. "Interesting... she's human, but the child she carries most certainly is not. So what is it? Nephilim or Cambion? Or are you a whore that has no idea who the baby's father is?" Lilith waved her hand, turning away from Hope as her face flushed with rage. "It doesn't matter, either way. I'll enjoy eating it for breakfast. It has been so long since I've had a decent meal."
Aisy launched a fireball, just barely missing Lilith's head. Lilith sent the four of them flying through the air and crashing against the stone wall on the opposite side of the room with a single movement. Sam and Dean both lay on their side, groaning. "Son of a bitch," Hope seethed, recognizing the look of broken ribs as she stumbled to her feet. She pulled the golden blade Atropos had given her out of her jacket, spinning it between her fingers.
Lilith flinched, a look of pure fear crossing her face. "Where the hell did you get that?" It was all the opening Aisy needed, and in one swift movement, she'd wrapped the end of the whip around Lilith's neck, yanking hard enough to choke her.
"This?" Hope said, waving the blade in front of Lilith's face as she took a step closer to the demon. "This was given to me by a friend. They said it might come in handy."
"Oh it will," Lilith said, a sinister grin spreading across her face. She reached up and grabbed the whip, jerking it hard enough for Aisy to lose her grip and stumble into Hope, knocking her off balance and sending the blade clattering to the floor.
Lilith moved quicker than a flash of lightning, knotting the whip around Aisy's neck and pulling it tight, cutting off her air supply as Hope charged toward Lilith. The blade flew through the air, landing in Lilith's hand, and Hope skidded to a stop in front of her, the point of the edge within striking distance of Hope's belly.
"You have two choices, Hope Bennett," Lilith said, pressing the tip of the blade into Hope's skin hard enough that a single drop of blood appeared through the cotton tank top she wore. "You can save your friends, or you can save your child. There's no way to save both. So choose, Hope."
Hope pressed her lips together and closed her eyes, unable to think of a way out. The blade pressing into her wavered, and Hope's eyes flew open when Lilith let out a strangled cry, and the knife clattered to the ground.
"You forgot one thing, bitch," Dean growled into Lilith's ear as he twisted the demon blade into her heart and the last of the life left her eyes. "Nobody fucks with my family and gets away with it."
"You brought what's coming on yourself," Lilith choked, wheezing as blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. "Remember that." Her eyes fluttered closed, and Dean grabbed Hope, hugging her so tightly she couldn't breathe.
"Are you alright?" He demanded, grabbing her by the shoulders and resisting the urge to jerk her shirt up to see how nasty the wound might be.
"I'm fine, Dean," Hope said breathlessly. "See?" she lifted her shirt slightly, "already healed."
"Uh guys?" Aisy croaked, rubbing her throat as she freed herself from the makeshift noose. "What the hell is happening?" She pointed toward the place where Lilith's body fell, watching in horror as a trail of blood followed the path carved into the floor. Hope realized a moment too late it was another Enochian sigil, and she almost wasn't fast enough to grab Dean and Aisy and get out of the way before blinding light and ear-splitting sound filled the convent. The four of them scrambled into a corner, huddled into a tight mass, protecting each other as best they could.
The walls and floor trembled for what seemed like hours, sending stones clattering to the ground from the ceiling above, then the light and sounds were gone as quickly as they'd started, leaving only Castiel standing in the middle of the room, blinking.
"Cas?" Dean said, brushing dirt off his jeans as he approached him skeptically. "Is that really you?"
"Yes. Hello, Dean."
Dean grabbed Castiel by the shoulders, pulling him into a hug. "Oh my God, Cas. It's good to see you."
"It's good to see all of you as well, but we have to go. It's not safe here. The word has already spread that the cage has been opened and there are things you need to know. This place will be swarming with demons soon."
"The bunker," Sam wheezed, forcing himself to get to his feet. "It's warded against demons."
"Alright," Castiel said, touching his fingers to Sam's head, healing his broken ribs. "Here we go."
Moments later, the five of them stood in the middle of the bunker library, blinking in bewilderment at one another. Cas didn't speak as he healed both Dean and Aisy, then gestured for everyone to sit.
"How did you find me? Where is Raphael now?"
"He's dead, Cas," Hope said matter of factly. "He attacked us and tried to kill me, and Atropos stabbed him with this blade."
"Atropos killed him?" Castiel said incredulously. "I-I told her to stay out of it, that I would fix everything."
"Well, apparently she decided you needed a little help after you went missing," Dean said, shaking his head. "I'm so sorry we didn't know you were missing before. Atropos is the one who figured out what happened to you. But why? Why did Raphael throw you in the cage? And where the hell is Lucifer?"
"He's here. In this room," Cas said, staring blankly at the four dumbfounded faces staring back at him. "And so is Michael."
"What the hell are you talking about, Cas? There's no one here but us," Sam said, his brow furrowing as he tried to make the connection.
Cas sighed, and the corner of Hope's mouth twitched at the thought of the angel doing such a human thing. Her smile faded, though, when he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out two bottles, each filled with a glowing, ethereal smoke that danced inside the clear glass: one golden, one blue. Castiel held them out with such reverence as though he were presenting them with the gift of life itself. It was such a sweet gesture it made Hope's heart hurt.
"What is that?" Dean breathed, picking up the vial with the blue smoke and holding it at eye-level, watching the contents with awe.
"It's your grace," Cas said. "The other one belongs to Sam. You two are not the vessels for Michael and Lucifer—you are Michael and Lucifer."
"No," Sam said, shaking his head. "No, that's not possible, Cas. It just isn't."
Cas closed his eyes, tapping into his infinite supply of patience. "Sam, listen to me. It is possible, and it's the truth. I've long suspected there to be something special about you two. Your souls—they burn so much brighter than other humans. It's almost blinding to look at either of you. At first, I thought it was because you possessed mirrored souls, but I quickly realized that wasn't the only reason when I first met Hope—her soul isn't as bright as yours. Your souls are so bright because of the residual celestial energy left over from when you fell."
"Are you saying we did this to ourselves?" Sam said. "That can't be true. Why would we do something like that?"
"Sit down, Sam, and I'll start at the beginning."
Hope, Dean, Aisy, and Sam all took a seat at the long table. No one spoke; there weren't words to begin to describe the enormity of what Cas had just told them, so they remained silent as the angel took a deep breath and began telling them the truth that none of them wanted to hear.
"When God first created humans, he told the angels that they were his greatest creation, and that we must protect and serve them, the way we would protect each other, as family. Lucifer refused, believing that humans were inferior to angels in every way. When God tried to cast him into hell for his disobedience, Michael got in the way as our father tried to rip out Lucifer's grace, and he took Michael's instead. Michael fell, and Lucifer was so angry with God for what he'd done to Michael and tried to do to him, he ripped out his own grace and followed Michael to Earth, where you were reborn as humans to John and Mary Winchester. Not wanting anyone to know what he'd done to Michael, our father locked both your grace in the cage and told everyone he and Michael put Lucifer there, and Michael died in the battle."
"Somehow, Raphael figured it out, but he was determined for you to never know. As long as you didn't know who you really were, there'd be no one to challenge him to rule Heaven in Father's absence. He was trying to kill Hope because once she became pregnant, the secret would be out and Heaven would fall into chaos. He thought if he got me out of the way, he'd be able to kill Hope and no one would know the difference."
No one spoke for several moments, and the silence in the bunker was deafening. "So the child that Hope's carrying—is really a nephilim?" Dean asked, shaking his head as he tried to process everything Cas said.
"Yes. There's something you need to know about that as well," Cas said, avoiding Dean's glare.
"Well go ahead and drop another bomb on us, why don't you?" Dean snarled, jumping up from the chair and pacing the room.
"This is important, Dean. Birthing a nephilim is not like a normal childbirth—especially not when the nephilim is the offspring of an archangel. When this child is born, Hope will die," Cas said, shaking this head as he turned sad eyes on Hope. "I'm so sorry, Hope."
Tears welled in Hope's eyes as she took a deep breath, placing a protective hand over her growing belly. She nodded, unable to find words to speak as she watched Dean struggle to process what Castiel said.
After several tense minutes of silence, Dean stopped pacing and crossed his arms over his chest, his green eyes boring into Hope's. "I'm not taking it back. I don't want it. God has manipulated my life enough. This is my choice, and I say no."
Hope bit her lip and shook her head. "Dean, you have to do this. Think about all the people you could save with this? You and Sam—you'd be invincible."
"We'd also be immortal, Hope! Don't you get it?" Dean said, melting into a nearby chair and burying his face in his hands. He scraped a hand through his hair before lifting his gaze to Hope once more. "Sam and I would have to watch everyone we love grow old and die while we stayed the same—never changing, never aging. I can't live with that, especially not knowing you're possibly going to be gone in a few months. Which I do not accept either, by the way. There has to be a way to keep that from happening."
"If there is, we will find it," Sam said gently. "I promise. And we can table the grace discussion for right now. I think we may have bigger problems."
"What do you mean?" Aisy asked, tilting her head curiously as she studied Sam. She almost didn't hear his answer over her own screaming thoughts. Of course, I'd fall in love with Lucifer—literally. And I thought Drexil was terrible. Something told her that regardless of who Sam truly was, spending the last thirty years on Earth had taught him a thing or two about humanity, and maybe, just maybe, if Sam truly loved her like she believed, it would be enough to keep him from burning the world to ashes.
"Lilith said that we brought what's coming next on ourselves," Sam replied. "Call me crazy, but that sounded more than a bit ominous, don't you think?"
"Yeah," Dean said with a huff, "but Raphael is dead. Now that he's gone, things should be back to normal in Heaven, right?"
"Theoretically, yes," Castiel said thoughtfully, his eyes squinted slightly at the corners as a faraway expression creased his face. "But, God—our Father—has been gone for a very long time. There are those who have begun to question their faith in Him, especially now that the truth about what He's done has been revealed. There's a war coming, and we're going to have to be ready for it."
"Well, what else is new?" Dean snapped, getting to his feet to resume his pacing. "I can't with all this, Cas. I need—I don't know—some good news, a distraction, something. This is too much to process all at once."
"Then let's not worry about any of this right this minute," Hope said, as four faces turned to stare at her. "I say we do something just for us. Because here's the thing, Dean. You asked me to marry you, and if I'm going to die bringing this child into the world—then that is the one thing I want before this child is born. I want to be married to you, because I don't care if you're an angel or a human, I love you. Besides, no matter what you do—whether you take your grace back or you don't—Cas is right. Now that the truth has been revealed, there will be fallout, and if there's one thing I've learned since ending up with you guys, it's that life doesn't give you many chances to be happy, so when one comes along you have to grab it before it's gone. So what do you say, Dean? Do you still want to marry me?"
After an interminable silence, Dean whispered, "Absolutely. Let's do it."
"Yes!" Aisy said, clapping excitedly. "One last 'screw you' to the Universe, I like it! So where do you guys wanna do this thing?"
Hope looked at Dean and shrugged. He shrugged back, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "Bobby's?"
"Works for me," Hope said. "Although, it's going to be a lot of work."
"Leave that to me," Aisy said with a sly grin. "Sometimes having a sorceress as a friend is a good thing." Aisy turned to Castiel. "There is an idea I've been thinking about for a wedding gift for these two, but I need some help with the logistics. Do you think you could give me a hand, Castiel?"
Castiel narrowed his eyes and studied Aisy's open, earnest expression as though searching for some indication she was trying to deceive him. Finding none, he nodded. "Sure, I can try to help."
"Good. Come with me, I want to show you something," Aisy said, gesturing for Castiel to follow her to the storage room. "The rest of you should get packing if we're going to Bobby's."
"But Baby—" Dean started, realizing they'd left the car parked outside the convent in Maryland.
"—is in the garage," Cas said over his shoulder as he followed Aisy out of the library.
"Thanks, Cas!" Dean called after him, shaking his head as he grinned. He glanced at Hope, who watched him with curious eyes, although he could see the sadness she was trying to hide. "Are you ready for this?" he asked, holding out his hand to help her up.
"I've been ready for this since the night we met, Dean," Hope said softly, brushing past him as she went to grab her duffle bag. "I just can't believe it's finally happening."
"Me either," Dean whispered as she left the room, too low for her to hear him. "I love you, Hope."
Two Weeks Later
"I feel like Cinderella before her fairy Godmother shows up," Hope complained, staring into the full-length mirror that hung on the wall in Bobby's guest room. Aisy stood beside her, staring at their reflection in the mirror. "I mean, I'm not getting married in Dean's old t-shirt, but I don't even know what my dress looks like, Aisy. You wouldn't let me help with anything."
"I wanted it to be a surprise, but I promise, I took everything you said into consideration and I tried to get as close to your vision as I possibly could. But that's also the beauty of magic, Hope. If you hate it, I can change it without much fuss. So, are you ready?"
Hope took a deep breath and nodded, resisting the urge to close her eyes. Aisy snapped her fingers, and the oversized band tee Hope wore faded away, replaced by a floor-length, A-line chiffon gown. It was aqua blue with a beaded v-neck and a Watteau train that pooled around Hope's feet like water. "Oh," she breathed, unable to suppress the smile that crept across her face. "Aisy, it's-it's beautiful."
"I'm not done yet," Aisy said, her eyes dancing with glee as she snapped her fingers again, transforming Hope's hair into an elegant half-updo with braids twisting at the crown of her head and curls tumbling in all directions across Hope's back and shoulders. "Here," Aisy said, reaching for the waterfall bouquet of flowers in the vase behind her. Fragrant baby-blue roses and white lilies filled the room with a sweet scent, and Hope's eyes welled with grateful tears.
"I love it, Aisy," Hope smiled through her tears. "Thank you so much. You didn't have to do this."
"Yes, I did," Aisy said. "I know you and I had kind of a rough beginning, but I've come to see you as the sister I never had, and I wanted to do this. You guys are family to me, and if anyone deserves this tiny moment of happiness, it's you and Dean." Hope nodded, unable to speak around the lump in her throat as she pulled Aisy into a hug. "You haven't even seen the best part. Wait until you see what I did to Bobby's garage," Aisy grinned, snapping her fingers to change into her own tea-length aqua halter-top dress. "Come on, everyone's waiting."
Aisy turned to leave, then stopped abruptly, snapping her fingers. "Dammit, I almost forgot," she muttered, rummaging through her duffle bag and pulling out a square box covered with faded velvet. She opened it, removing the halo from its bed of padded softness, settling it around the circumference of Hope's head. It was silver, and the evening sunlight slanting through the window caught the diamond nestled in the center of the triquetra symbol that pressed against Hope's forehead.
Hope reached up to touch it, feeling the warmth radiate off the usually cool metal. She frowned, and Aisy smiled at her. "That warmth is normal. It's a protective spell, my great-great-great grandmother put on this for her daughter's wedding day. I know you are practically invincible, but nothing has ever ruined a wedding day in my family so long as the bride wore this. So please humor me, okay?" Hope nodded, unable to say anything else. "Alright," Aisy said, taking hope by the arm. "Let's go."
Arm in arm, Aisy and Hope walked the now carpet-lined drive to the garage. Sam stood outside the door dressed in the best suit Hope had ever seen him wear, his hair combed back and tucked behind his ears. He grinned as Hope and Aisy approached, although Hope knew he only had eyes for Aisy. Sam held his arm out to Hope as Aisy let her go, winking at Sam before slipping through the door in front of them, careful to not let Hope see inside.
"You're going to love this," Sam murmured to Hope, "I promise. Aisy went all out." Hope blew out a breath and nodded as the first instrumental notes of Ed Sheeran's "Perfect" began on the other side of the door. "So are you ready to officially join the family?"
"I've never been more ready for anything, Sam," Hope croaked. Sam nodded, smiling down at her as he opened the door. Hope sucked in a breath as she and Sam stepped through the door, unable to believe just how beautiful the inside of the garage was now. Aisy had taken Hope's wish for a fairy garden wedding to heart, and Spanish moss, white Lilies, and baby blue roses draped from all the rafters. Strings of fairy lights hung everywhere, giving the interior a glowing, ethereal look. Paper lanterns lined the aisle leading to the altar, and the floor was littered with flower petals laid out in the shape of protective runes. A bubbling fountain stood behind Bobby and Dean on the dais, and Hope's breath caught in her throat as Dean caught her eye and held her gaze.
Hope and Sam sauntered past Castiel, Jody, Charlie, Alex, and Claire, who were all seated in a row of chairs on one side of the aisle. On the other side, a massive ornate brass mirror was propped on an A-frame, a silk cloth draped over the front. Hope eyed it curiously, glancing at Sam, who only lifted one corner of his mouth as though he knew a secret no one else did.
When they reached the altar, Dean took Hope's hand, guiding her up the steps to stand beside him as the last of the song faded away. Bobby stood in front of them, his customary baseball cap missing off his head. In its place, he'd combed his hair back and put on a nice suit.
"Before we start this, Aisy has something she wants you to see," Bobby said, nodding toward Aisy. She grabbed the cloth, pulling it down to reveal the surface of the mirror. It rippled like the surface of a lake, then came into focus as several people appeared on the other side, waving and smiling.
"What is that?" Dean said, tears stinging his eyes as he saw faces he recognized. Ellen, Jo, Ash, John, and Mary all waved to them. "How did you?" He stepped down from the altar, momentarily leaving Hope alone as he stood next to Aisy and stared into the mirror.
"It's called a soul mirror," Aisy said. "There's a spell witches use to create them, and with a little bit of tweaking and a lot of help from Cas and Sam, I created one that allows the people you care about most to be here with us today. This is my wedding gift to you and Hope."
"Oh my God, Aisy," Dean said, squeezing her in a tight hug. "Thank you so, so much. I'm so glad you are a part of our family." Aisy grinned, squeezing him back, then let go and gestured to Hope.
"I didn't leave you out, Hope. Come down here and say hi to your mom," Aisy said, gesturing toward the mirror as one last face came into focus. Hope let out a cry, a tear slipping down her cheek as she waved to her mother. "Alright, this thing doesn't have infinite battery power, so we need to get this show started."
Hope and Dean took their places back on the dais, and Bobby began to officiate the ceremony. "We're all gathered here to witness a day I'm sure none of us ever saw coming. The day when Dean finally found someone willing to put up with him. I, for one, don't know how Hope does it, but then again I've seen first hand that she's made of far tougher stuff than most normal people. Like it or not, to be a part of the Winchester clan means things are never easy, but the love and devotion this family is built on is unwavering, and a force that is unstoppable. So before we get to the 'I do's', you guys have some promises to make. Who's going first?"
Dean cleared his throat, staring into Hope's eyes. She'd never looked more beautiful to him than she did at that moment, and he wanted to remember it forever. "I will." Bobby nodded, and the garage fell silent as Dean took Hope by the hands and began to speak.
"Hope, when we first met, I thought I was saving you, and it took me a while to realize the opposite was true—that you were actually the one saving me. I could stand here and tell you that I'll love and cherish you and all of the vows that hopeful couples make, but I'm not going to do that. I'm not hopeful. I'm not standing here in front of you hoping this works out. I am sure. My love for you is solid, steady, unending. I know without a doubt that regardless of what happens, I will always fight for us. You are my light when the world goes dark, the one my soul seeks when I need comfort. When I look at you, I see my partner and my best friend. You are the love of not only this life, but all the lives before and after." He paused, blinking away the tears that stung the corners of his eyes as Hope reached up and discreetly brushed away a stray tear that had fallen onto her cheek as Sam handed Dean a simple silver wedding band. Dean slipped it onto Hope's hand as he continued, holding her gaze as though she were the only other person in the entire world.
"I promise to always love you, even when it seems impossible. I promise that no matter what separates us, I will always find my way back to your heart, because with you is the only place in the world where I am home. You are my yesterday, my today, and my forever, and I promise to spend the rest of my life showing you just how precious you are to me."
Dean kissed Hope's hand, and she sucked in a deep, trembling breath. "Wow," she breathed. I have no idea how I'm going to follow that, but here goes. Dean, the moment I saw you standing next to that bonfire, I knew my life would never be the same. I didn't plan on falling in love with you, and I doubt you planned on falling in love with me-but when we did, we created something so rare and beautiful, most people could only dream of finding something like this in their lifetime."
"Despite everything that's happened between us, all the obstacles we've had to overcome—and the ones we have yet to face—I know with every fiber of my soul there's no one else in this world I want to spend my life with. You are my heart, my smile, my everything. You sat with me in the darkness when I couldn't bear to face the world, and you held my hand when I was ready to step into the light." Aisy stepped forward, handing a matching silver band to Hope. She slipped it on Dean's hand, her eyes not leaving his.
"I love you with all that I was, all that I am, and all that I will ever be, and I promise to always hold you with all the patience love demands. I promise to walk beside you and share the burden of the impossible days, and I promise to call you on your bullshit when you need it, and share the silence when you don't. But most of all, I promise to live in the warmth of your light and always call it home, because that is what you will always be to me. Home."
A tear fell down Dean's cheek, and without waiting for the official 'kiss the bride,' Dean cupped Hope's face in his hands, wiping away her tears with his thumbs as he kissed her.
"Well, then," Bobby said with a chuckle, "I guess I don't have to say that part. You are now man and wife and all that good stuff. Let's eat, I'm starving."
Hope laughed against Dean's mouth, and he couldn't help but smile. Even for all that was coming, Hope was right about one thing. Nothing could ever take this moment with his family away from him, and in the end—that's what truly mattered in any lifetime, these tiny moments of happiness that would sustain them through the dark days ahead.
They spent the rest of the day talking and laughing, sharing stories, and meeting those who'd been lost along the way. Bobby had made Dean's favorite, pepper-jack bacon cheeseburgers as well as a whole spread of food. After they finished eating, Aisy tapped her glass and stood up, getting everyone's attention.
"Alright, so—I knew that this wouldn't be a wedding without a cake, but since Dean is more fond of pie, I came up with something special for this." Aisy waved her hand at the table in front of her, and Dean's eyes bugged out as a three-tiered pie appeared before them. The topper was a realistic miniature of Dean and Hope, standing back to back with pistols in their hands as various types of miniature monsters and demons looked like they were climbing the sides of the pie dishes. Dean turned to Sam with a dead serious look on his face.
"Sam, I swear to everything that if you don't marry that girl, I'm gonna kick your ass for eternity," he said. Sam blushed slightly, a small smile curving his lips.
"I plan on it—someday," Sam replied, glancing at Aisy. "If she'll have me."
Aisy's heart skipped a beat, and her cheeks brightened. "Was that a proposal, Sam?"
Sam shrugged, his mouth twitching. "What would you say if it was?"
"I thought you'd never ask, old man," Aisy said, her eyes glinting with mischief. Sam cocked an eyebrow in answer, and Aisy smirked at him as Dean burst out laughing.
"Sounds like I'm getting a sister," Dean said, holding up his glass in a toast. "To say that our first meeting didn't go well is an understatement, Aisy. But I just want you to know that I am truly glad that you and Sam found each other and I wish you all the happiness in the world."
Hope held up her glass and smiled, then took a drink, watching the others do the same. She wasn't about to ever forget this moment or this day. This family—her family—for all its faults, was the best thing she could've ever dreamed of, and no matter what, they would always be a part of her, and she would never forget them just like this. Smiling and laughing together. She only hoped that everything would be alright once she was gone because deep down, she knew Cas was right. Hope wasn't going to survive bringing her child into the world, and as for Dean—Heaven only knew how far he would go to get her back.