A/N: Thank you so much to those reading. I hope you're enjoying it. Please let me know what you think.

Chapter 29: An Offer

"We're not free in what we do because we're not free in what we want.
We can't overcome what's deep within us."
The Stranger from the show Dark

"So what's the plan?" Kelly asked as she walked into the room. "How are we stopping this?" she motioned towards the hall.

Sam ran a hand through his hair and looked away. "I don't know."

"Wait, who's this?" Kelly pointed at Adam who was still sitting on the bed. "Did we get another vessel?"

"That's Adam, their brother. Angels raised him from the dead," I said from where I was sitting with a book.

"Oh," she looked like she thought about it. "So...not a vessel?"

"I am," Adam spoke up. "You want to fix this? You let me go. I say yes and Michael and I kick the devil's ass."

"I can't let you do that," Sam said.

"You can't stop me."

"The hell we can't," Kelly said. "Fuck the angels. Say no. I'm tired of them thinking they can play around with us."

"It's fighting the devil," Adam stressed. "Why wouldn't you want to stop that?"

"Because they're going to destroy the world to do it and in case you haven't noticed, I live on this planet now! I'd like to keep it intact."

"You're not even from here," Adam snapped at her.

"How the fuck do you know?" Kelly glared at him.

"The angels told him," I added quickly, trying to cut off the potential explosion that was building.

"Yeah, well I'm here now and I happen to like living, so we're going to keep it that way, got it?" Kelly turned and left the room. I shrugged and turned back to my book. I had yet to find anything of interest or at least something I could use. It kept telling me things that couldn't harm angels or things that they had the power to do. It was getting a little tedious. Still wasn't as bad as trying to get through Don Quixote though.

"How are you doing?" I asked Giles. The others had either left or fallen silent. Adam was picking at a sandwich. Kelly was in the kitchen, her head in her hands. I had no idea where Sam was.

"As well as can be expected, I suppose," Giles answered. I raised my eyebrow, pushing slightly for a real response. "It has...been difficult."

"Yeah," I leaned forward and rested my elbows on my knees. I sighed. "I know." I didn't really have anything to say to that.

"It is quite different being on this end of an apocalypse, without a slayer and not in one's world."

"As someone who has never had to deal with any of this before, I am right there with you. This sucks."

"Indeed," he said. "There is only so much one can look before it starts to feel...well, pointless for lack of a better word."

I thought about it. The lack of information, of feeling like there was any control over the situation was likely taking its toll on him. It certainly was for me, but I dove into running and training. Giles just had this. "I have a favour to ask," I leaned towards Giles. He sighed and took off his glasses to clean them.

"Yes? What is it?"

"How would you feel about helping me? You have the research skills and know more about what's in this library than I do."

He looked intrigued. "And what precisely do you need help with?"

"I want to find a way to exorcise an angel and maybe make some new weapons that can kill demons. Someone obviously made ones before, so it should be possible. Thus, I need to research, but I can't be here all the time, not with the house."

"You really think you can exorcise an angel?" Adam's voice asked. I looked over at him and shrugged.

"I don't know. Should be possible."

"Why?" He looked confused. "Why would you want to? It's angels!"

I turned towards him. I felt Bobby and Giles staring at me. "It's still a possession, they just have to ask. Pretty sure they don't tell the whole truth when they're asking too. They don't tell people what it feels like."

"And you know?"

"Yeah," I snapped. "I've been possessed. It's worse than you can imagine, okay? The lack of control you have over your own body...it fucking sucks." I didn't mean to swear. My possession wasn't something I liked to rehash. I wanted to forget it. I wished I could scrub the memories of it from my mind.

"So why are you still here?" Adam's voice was a little more subdued. "Why do you keep coming back here? To them?"

"Not like there's much of a choice," I said slowly. "I mean, I walked into this world by accident and there's some theory that my world is gone. I know what's out there. The best way to survive is to be prepared, and that sort of includes helping everyone that gets dragged into this mess, especially those that have no idea. None of us asked for this, but we're here. I didn't get a choice in that, but I can choose this. I can choose trying to make things right, or at least giving them the time they need to fix this. I'd much rather put my trust in Sam and Dean than anything else out there. At least they try."

Adam fell silent at that. I was getting agitated thinking about it. I got up and put the book down. I needed air.

I walked out onto the front porch. It was cooler than I expected but Sam was sitting there with a beer in his hand.

"Hey," I said as he looked back to see who was there. I sat down next to him. "You okay? Never mind," I amended. "Stupid question."

His hand went around my back and he pulled me into his side. We sat in silence for a few moments.

"You know Cas called me an abomination?" He didn't look at me. "When he said none of us could be servants of heaven. You think that's true?"

I reached over and grabbed his hand. I weaved my fingers through his. "Course not. How could you be?" He looked at me and the expression on his face was nearly heartbreaking. "Sam, Castiel was probably still drunk. You might not be perfect, but no human is. You're not an abomination."

"Then what am I? Because it seems like everyone just keeps telling me how much of a screw-up I am. Dean doesn't even have faith in me."

I stared at him in surprise. "He said that?" Sam took a drink in response. "Well, I do."

He looked stunned. "What?"

"Yeah," I shrugged. "Why wouldn't I?" He didn't look like he believed me so I tried to explain. "Sam, ever since I got here, you've been looking out for me, for all of us. Even when I didn't think you would. That night at the bar when I was scared to go in, you told me that you'd try to protect us, even when you admitted you'd put Dean first. I told you once, Sam, and I'll say it again. You're a good man and I...I trust you." It was a weird realization to have as I sat next to him. I did though, trust him. He kept proving that I could.

He kissed me hard. The hand that had been holding mine let go and grabbed the back of my head. His fingers dug into my hair. I reached up and touched his jaw before moving my hand to the back of his neck. His mouth moved against mine. I kissed him back. The feeling of it, of his lips and his hands, was a distraction, driving all thought from my head.

I pulled back slowly. His lips chased mine, trying to continue the kiss. It was easy to be tempted to lose myself in him.

"Sorry to interrupt," Kelly's voice sounded from the door. "We have a problem."

I looked her over. "How the hell are you dressed? Like, not in your uniform?"

"I have bags packed in the trunk with essentials, in case we ever needed to take off. You're not the only anxious one who can be prepared."

"Huh." That was a great idea. I never thought about it.

"Come on," she held open the door. "Cas is here."

"Bitch, get your hands off of me."

Sam and I walked into the library, following Kelly and the voice. There was a tall Black man being held by Castiel. If I didn't recognize the voice, I knew the face.

"Lafayette?"

"Oh, so yous know me too?" He turned to face me. "Well, hello sexiness."

"Don't talk to her like that," Sam said pushing me behind him.

"He's talking about you," I said, dryly.

"What?" Sam looked back at me.

"I would climb that mountain as soon as he asks," Lafayette said, looking at Sam up and down. Sam moved back and I tried not to laugh as he stepped behind me. "Now, someone want to tell me what the fuck is going on?"

"Well, you're no longer in your world, instead you've been dropped into a world where the angels and demons are trying to destroy it and the only reason you're here is because you're a good vessel for one of them. Say no to angels," Kelly said quickly. "Any questions?"

"Bitch, now I got lots of questions."

Lafayette seemed to be in a state of shock and in need of a drink. Kelly took care of it. Sam took off to stop Adam from walking out in the confusion. I fell asleep curled up on the same chair I had been reading in.

"Michelle…" I knew that voice. "Open your eyes, Michelle."

I did. I was surrounded by darkness. I tried to force myself to wake up. I needed to wake up.

"Michelle, look." I was tempted not to. I turned until I finally saw a mirror. It was the only thing visible. My reflection stared back at me. Sam appeared behind her and wrapped an arm around her waist. A quick glance said there was nothing behind me. It was only the reflection. They both looked at me. Their eyes were black. I stepped back and bumped into a chest. I turned to see Lucifer standing behind me. Where had he come from? He motioned me back to the mirror.

"This is the truth," he said. "When I have succeeded and defeated Michael, this is what's going to happen."

I shook my head. "No. That's not true."

"It is." He sighed and I saw my reflection smile up at Sam. "This is what you want, isn't it? I can give this to you. Sure, you'll go to hell and there's the pesky thing about turning into a demon, but you'll be you...minus your own restrictions. I'm offering you freedom."

"As what?" I sneered. "Your slut?"

His lips curved up into a small smile. "As his." He made a face, scrunching up his nose and mouth. "He's developing this unhealthy attachment to you. You have to have noticed. The only one telling him he's doing good? What do you think that does to a guy like Sam?" I clenched my teeth together, trying to stop myself from replying. I only told Sam the truth. He wasn't...attached. Not like he was suggesting. "I have my own body in hell, in heaven. I only need Sam for earth. When I've conquered it...I'll release him. You'll both be free...in my world, of course." I could feel his stare on me. I didn't look away from the reflection. I wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of a reaction. "It's not all torture and pain," he said slowly. "There are some sins that humans do enjoy. As my Gatekeeper, and my vessels, you will be rewarded."

I didn't say anything. I refused to. I bit the inside of my cheek. Surprisingly, it hurt.

"I know what you want," he was getting repetitive. "What both you and Sam want and it's each other." I froze. That wasn't what I wanted. Not truly. I wanted to go home. "I don't lie, Michelle. You wanted the truth, I'm giving it to you. Wouldn't freedom be better than the fear you still feel? Don't you want that?"

The reflection changed. The images of Sam and I looked as if they were in the middle of stripping while trying to have sex. He had her pinned to the wall, legs wrapped around his waist. I tried not to stare at the muscles of his back. His head turned, looking back towards the real me. Black eyes met mine and he grinned as he started to move. My throat went dry as my reflection pulled him back to her. Lucifer's voice lowered.

"Don't you want him?"

I spun to face him and glared. "Stop. I'm not playing your games. I'm not saying yes." He didn't react, just stared back at me.

"Sam said the same thing, but I don't need you to say yes. You're doing your job. You're making my vessel...comfortable. I'm just telling you your future and what it could be if you play nice."

"Fuck off." I spun and punched the mirror.

I woke up with a start. My hand hurt as if I had hit the mirror for real. I stood up instantly, trying to shake off the feeling that dreams with Lucifer left behind. I could taste blood. I had bitten the inside of my cheek when I was sleeping...in the same spot I did in my dream.

"Michelle? Are you alright?" I looked over at Giles. My muscles felt tight from sleeping curled up, but I slept in a similar position whenever I did sleep. It was nothing that stretching couldn't fix.

"Yeah," I said. "Bad dream." At least I didn't scream this time. I quietly tried to stretch. Adam was passed out on the makeshift bed.

"Indeed. You punched the desk right before you woke."

I looked at Giles in surprise. "I did?" He nodded. That explained why my hand still hurt. I looked to see that my knuckles were red, but they were no more bruised than usual. That would change in a day now. I opened and closed it, trying to get the pain to subside.

"Was it Lucifer?"

I turned to face him in shock. "How?"

"With such a violent reaction, it was not a difficult guess. I do believe they have been visiting everyone, at least once." He pushed up his glasses. "I, myself, have had a dream with, well not Michael, but an angel. Can't seem to recall his name." Well, that was useful information. That meant that everyone at the house had dreams with them. We needed a meeting.

"Well, point still stands, say no." He gave me a look that said he wasn't impressed. I shrugged and passed Bobby in the kitchen. "Where's everybody else?"

"Well, Castiel went down to the basement. Sam and Kelly are outside," he motioned towards the front porch. "And the new one is upstairs. Showering." I nodded and headed for the fridge. I grabbed an apple and leaned against the counter as I ate it. The dream with Lucifer played over again in my mind. He said that what I truly wanted was Sam and that he was becoming unhealthily attached. I wondered what he meant by that.

Sam came in the front door. He walked into the kitchen and put the empty beer bottle on the counter before coming towards me. I tossed the apple core into the garbage as he reached me.

"You should still be sleeping. You okay?" he asked, his voice low.

"Bad dream," I shifted, a little uncomfortable now, considering what had happened in it and how Sam had played a role.

"Was it him?" Sam looked down concerned. I was tempted to say yes, to tell him the truth, but he had enough on his plate. I didn't want to stress him out about this too. It wasn't like it was controllable.

"Just a nightmare." His hand settled on my waist and he stepped closer to me. I leaned forward and rested my forehead on his chest. His other hand wrapped around me and before I knew it he was hugging me, holding me steady while letting me rest there. I breathed in. The scent of him was becoming familiar. Exhaustion started to sink in.

I lifted my head off of his chest. "Thanks." I smiled up at him.

"Of course. You know you can come to me, Michelle, even if it's just a nightmare."

I nodded. Lucifer's words played in my head again. Sam pulled back, letting me go before he looked around.

"Where's Cas?" he asked me.

"Bobby said he was in the basement. I haven't seen him since I got up." Sam's lips pressed together and he left, heading to the basement.

Kelly came inside as he came back upstairs. He grabbed his coat from a chair by the desk.

"Cas is blown to oz. I'm going after Dean. He can't have gone far. Watch Adam." Sam cast a look at Kelly and me before he stormed out.

"I'm going to see what happened." Kelly headed down to the basement. I stayed where I was. As much as I trusted Giles, they might have needed help if Adam woke up. Kelly came up moments later.

"Well?" I asked.

"It looks like he tricked Cas into opening the door and then banished him," she fell into the seat at the kitchen table. She looked...disappointed. I sat down across from her. "I just...I don't understand."

"I know." I didn't have anything else to say. I could understand wanting it to all stop, but not like this. Not from Dean who had been the most adamant about saying no.

Lafayette came down the stairs and into the kitchen. He looked odd dressed in one of the boys' clothes.

"You bitches got something to eat?"

I waved him towards the fridge. He gave me an unimpressed look before he headed into the library. I looked to see him walk up to talk to Bobby.

"What the fuck?! That motherfucker just disappeared!"

Kelly and I looked at each other before we got up and raced over. He motioned to the bed. Adam was gone.

"What? How?" I looked around. "I didn't see him leave."

"That's 'cause he vanished into thin air," Lafayette snarked. "This a usual thing with yous?"

"How?" Kelly and I asked at the same time.

"Can angels do that?" Kelly continued. "I thought he was protected."

"He was," Bobby said.

"Huh." That was alarming. If angels could steal you even with the protections, then what was the point? I looked over at Giles. "Maybe we should add more protection things to the research."

"Indeed. The power these things have is exponential, however, if there's one thing I've learned it's that everything has a weakness."

I picked up the book I had fallen asleep reading. "Alright, let's find it."

"What the fuck just happened? And who the hell did that?"

"I don't know, we think the angels," Kelly said. "Remember how I told you it was their fault we're all here? Well, they're getting antsy and want someone to be a meatsuit for Michael to ride around in. I guess that's why they took him."

"You said angels before but I didn't think you were serious. What type of fucking angels do this shit?"

"These ones," I looked up at Lafayette. "Sit down. I doubt anything else is going to happen now."

Sam came back within the hour. He was not pleased.

"What do you mean Adam is gone?" He was pacing in front of Bobby.

"Should I say it in Spanish?"

"He's gone how?" Sam pushed back his hair. "What the hell guys?" He looked at all of us.

"Watch your tone, boy!"

I tried to focus back on the book. The search for information about angels that we could use was not easy. So far the things we had found had been things we had already known.

"-nished into thin air!" Lafayette snapped. He was not taking this well. I didn't blame him.

"Because the angels took him."

I jumped back, pushing the chair across the floor as Castiel appeared in the room. He looked like he was holding up Dean. Lafayette looked like he jumped six feet in the air at the appearance.

"Oh my god," Kelly got up. "What happened to him?"

"Me," Castiel answered. My eyebrows rose. Dean looked like hell and I only saw the back of them both. Castiel moved and dropped Dean on the bed.

"Oh hell no. I'm outta here! I did not sign up for this bullshit with people disappearing and popping outta nowhere." Lafayette left the room. I looked around. Kelly was checking on Dean and Sam and Bobby came in. I ran after him.

"Wait!" I caught up to him in the junkyard.

"No!" He yelled back. "I'm going home!"

"There is no home!" I snapped back. He stopped and turned to me. He looked furious. I took a deep breath, trying to reign in my own emotions. "Look, I know how much this sucks, okay? But you got lucky that Castiel found you. There are monsters out here, far more than the vampires you're used to. The only chance you have at surviving, at making it back home is with us."

He stared at me for a moment. I waited. He was considering his options. "Monsters?"

"Yeah. Come on, we can grab Kelly and go back to the house."

"Ain't this the house?"

"This is Bobby's. We have our own...filled with a bunch of others in the same situation as us. You're not alone in this."

"Alright, let's go meet some bitches."

[tbc]