Thanks to moonchild-things for following my story.
NicoleR85: thanks
"You sure?" Sam asked her.
"Without a doubt", Lena replied tucking her grimoire back into her bag. She turned to him "think about it. Marshall dies the same time you were being healed, Dean. Not only that, he dies of a heart attack...
"Which is what Dean had", Sam added.
"Exactly. And add in the fact that the clock at the pool stopped at 4.17..." Lena trailed off, giving them a look.
"I didn't wanna believe it", Dean admitted "but deep down I knew. I knew the moment I saw that old man on the stage behind Roy".
"So we know we're dealing with a Reaper", Sam stated "that brings us to the big question how is Roy controlling the damn thing?"
"Black magic", Lena replied "he's using black magic to bind the Reaper".
"If he is, he's riding the whirlwind", Sam said "It's like putting a dog leash on a great white".
Lena scoffed "that's putting it mildly Sam".
"How did you know that Roy was using black magic to bind the Reaper?" Dean asked Lena.
"Certain kind of spells and rituals require the use of black magic. Binding a Reaper is one of them", she replied.
"And how do you know that?" Dean demanded, suspicious of her knowledge.
"My half-brother is a hunter like you guys, remember?" Lena reminded them "Nate taught me everything he knows". Sam shot his brother a look at her response.
"Ok, then we stop Roy", Dean said, kinda kicking himself for forgetting about Nathan.
"How?" Sam asked.
"You know how", his brother replied, giving him a knowing look.
"Wait, what the hell are you talking about Dean? We can't kill Roy!" Sam exclaimed.
"Sam, the guy is playing God, he's deciding who lives and who dies. That's a monster in my book", Dean said.
"Dean, you can't kill a human being. If you do, then you're no better than he is", Lena pointed out.
"Ok, we can't kill Roy, we can't kill death", Dean stated "Any bright ideas?"
"Ok. Uh...If Roy's using some kind of black spell on the Reaper, we gotta...figure out what it is", Sam replied "And how to break it".
"Knowledge Girl, you wanna tell us?" Dean asked turning to Lena.
"Well, since you asked oh so nicely Dean, I will tell you what I know. You have to build a black altar with some seriously dark stuff. Bones... human blood", Lena said.
"What about the spell?" Sam asked.
"I'm afraid I don't know the exact incantation. That's something Nate didn't share with me", Lena replied "but Roy will definitely have a book with the binding spell in it. We get that, I can figure out to break it".
"You two find that spell book", Dean instructed to Sam and Lena as they got out of the Impala. He glanced at his watch "service starts in 15 minutes. I'll do what I can to stall Roy". Sam and Lena nodded before they hurried towards Roy's house. Dean turned and headed for the tent.
Sam and Lena watch, hidden in the shadows as Roy walked down the stairs assisted by his wife and a dark haired man. The moment they were gone, Sam and Lena entered the home via a window. "Let's spilt up", Sam suggested and Lena nodded.
The young witch waited for Sam to walk off before she closed her eyes, tapping into her magic. Lena smiled when she got a sense of where the spell book was. She opened her eyes and started to walk. Lena stopped at a door, opened it and stepped inside. She went over to a bookshelf and pulled an out a book, Encyclopedia of British History. Setting book down, Lena reached into the gap and pulled out a smaller black book.
"Gotcha", she murmured as she flicked through it, finding the spell to bind a Reaper. She also found a page that had a picture of the cross that she'd spotted in the tent. Tucked in the back were a few newspaper clippings about people who'd died. One clipping was about Marshall who happened to be an openly gay teacher. The second article was about a female, who was an abortion rights advocate. The third article was about the protester she and the brothers had seen arguing with the sheriff. He wasn't dead yet which meant he was going to be the next person the Reaper was going to kill.
Lena shut the book, stuffed it into her pocket and hurried out the room. "Sam! I've found it!" she called. A moment later she heard him come down the stairs. The pair then left the house. "Roy is choosing victims that he deems as immoral", Lena explained to Sam and to Dean via the phone as they walked down the steps "and I know who the next victim is going to be: it's the protester".
"Find him you two", Dean instructed "I'll stop Roy from healing anyone" and with that he hung up.
"You heard him, let's go find us a protester", Lena said and they headed for the carpark.
"I'll take the left. If you find him, give me a shout", Sam told her and the young woman nodded in agreement.
"Where are you?" Lena muttered glancing around the area of car park she'd been searching. And then she heard it.
"Help! Help me!"
The young witch turned and ran, following the cries for help.
"Help! Help me please!"
~tent~
"Pray with me friends", Roy said to the crowd. To Layla he said "I hope you're ready".
Layla smiled softly. This is what she'd been waited for, prayed for. A chance to be healed. "I am", she said confidently.
~outside~
Lena found David Wright, the protester looking around wildly, in a sheer panic. "Where is it?" she asked. David pointed over her shoulder and shouted
"Right there!"
"Ok, let's go", Lena said grabbing his arm and pulling him away. In her haste to get David away from the Reaper, she ran into Sam. "The Reaper's here", she quickly informed him.
"Alright, come on", Sam said taking hold of David's other arm and they ran.
~tent~
Roy slowly placed his hands on Layla, who'd closed her eyes. Suddenly the healing processed was interrupted by Dean shouting.
"FIRE! Hurry, tent's on fire!"
Layla opened her eyes and looks at the crowd who were starting to get up. "NO! No, please. Please don't stop. Reverend, please, please! Please don't stop, please!" Layla's mother pleaded, moving towards the stage.
"Friends, if you'd all just leave the tent in an orderly fashion...and we'll, uh, and we'll figure out what's going on out there and we'll come back", Roy said to those who were still remaining.
~outside~
The trio stopped running after a while, stopping by a car. Sam pulled out his phone when it rang "I did it, I stopped Roy", Dean reported.
"David, I think it's ok", Sam assured him. David nods, looking relieved. He glanced at Lena, his eyes widening when he saw the Reaper over her shoulder.
"No!" he exclaimed and took off running.
"David!" Lena shouted taking off after him.
"Dean it didn't work. The reaper's still coming!" Sam said quickly into his phone before he too chased after the pair.
David skidded to a stop when the Reaper suddenly appeared in front of him. "No! Please!" he begged as the Reaper reached out and touched his face. David gasped, dropping to his knees.
"Let him go!" Lena shouted grabbing hold of David, trying to pull him out of the Reaper's grasp but it wasn't making any difference. "Sam I can't pull him away!" she said as the Winchester joined him. Sam was going to say something when Lena suddenly gasped, let go of David and collapsed on the floor unconscious.
"Lena!" Sam cried dropping down next to her. He touched her neck and was relieved when he found a pulse. She was still alive. He then glanced at David who on his knees, gasping for breath. Sam hadn't felt so helpless before. His friend was unconscious and David was being slowly killed by a Reaper, which of course he couldn't fight.
David suddenly dropped to the floor, still gasping for breath, colour creeping back into his face. Sam turned his attention to Lena who was still unconscious. He took out his phone and called his brother "Dean, I need your help", he said.
~motel room~
"How long do you recon she'll be out for?" Dean asked as Sam laid the unconscious woman on one of the beds.
"I don't know it could be hours", Sam replied turning to his brother.
"I'm glad her brother isn't here. He would kick our asses", the older Winchester remarked.
"Yeah, he definitely would", Sam agreed. He then took out the spell book from his pocket, sat down at the table and quickly paged through it. "Well, Lena's right about the black altar" he looked up at Dean who was reading it over his shoulder "To cross a line like that...a preachers wife. Black magic. Murder. Evil..." Sam shook his head.
"She was desperate", Dean corrected "Her husband was dying, and she didn't have anything to save him. She was using the binding spell to keep the reaper away from Roy".
"Cheating death, literally", Sam added.
"Yeah but Roy's alive, so why is she still using the spell?" Dean asked, sitting down at the table as well.
"To force the reaper to kill people she thinks are immoral", Lena mumbled. The brothers glanced over to see her slowly sit up, rubbing her head.
"You ok Lena?" Sam asked.
"Yeah I'm fine", Lena replied getting up and going over to the table "what did you find out from that?" she asked nodding to it.
"You were right about the black altar", Sam replied.
"Figured I would be", Lena said "I saw something interesting when I was looking through it" she reached over, turned the pages until she got to the page with the cross on it. "I saw this cross on a table that was on the stage", she said showing them both the image.
"You know Sue Ann had a coptic cross like that", Dean remarked "When she dropped it the Reaper backed off".
"So you think we gotta find the cross or destroy the altar?" Sam asked "Lena?"
"I don't know", she replied "I think we should do both just to be on the safe side".
"Well, whatever we do we better do it soon, or he's healing Layla tonight", Dean said.
The Impala pulled up near to the church tent. Layla's car was already there. "You know if Roy woulda picked Layla instead of me she'd be here right now", Dean said quietly looking at the parked car "And if she's not healed tonight she's gunna die in a coupla months".
Not if I can help it Lena thought touching her bag. When the boys had gone out to get some food, she'd quickly whipped a little something to help Layla. It wouldn't complelety heal the brain tumour she had but it would heal it just enough to give the young woman a fighting chance. Lena knew it meant exposing herself as a witch to Layla but it was worth the risk especially when she had the power to help her.
"What's happening to her is horrible", Sam said "But what are you gunna do? Let somebody else die to save her? You said it yourself Dean, you can't play God".
Dean didn't say anything in reply. He just sat there for a moment before getting out of the car. Sam and Lena get out as well. The trio crept over to the tent and peaked inside. Roy is inside along with Layla, her mother and a handful other people, believers. There was one person missing: Sue Ann.
"Where's Sue Ann?" Lena whispered.
"House", Sam replied. The three of them move away from the tent and over to the house.
"You two go find Sue Ann, I'll catch up", Dean said to Sam and Lena.
"What are you gunna...?" Sam began when Dean cut him off with a shout of
"Hey!"
He'd just spotted the two cops from earlier. The two men look over at him, his shout having gotten their attention. "You gunna put that fear of God in me?" he challenged before taking off, the two cops giving chase.
"Your brother is crazy", Lena commented shaking her head.
"Tell me something I don't know", Sam said "come on" he gestured to the house. It didn't take them long to check around the outside of the house. The whole building was pitch black. "Sue Ann has to be doing the spell here but the house is completely dark", Sam said confused "so where is she?"
"I think I know where", Lena replied nodding to the tiny slivers of light coming through the cracks in the wooden doors of the outside entrance to the basement. The duo moved over to it, opened up the doors and slipped inside.
Sam and Lena walked through the basement, stopping in front of a candlelit altar littered with parts of dead animals, blood, horns and other various items. In the middle is a photo of Dean which appeared to have been taken from the security. His face has been crossed out with what looks like blood.
"I gave your brother life", Sue Ann spoke up behind them startling the pair "and I can take it away". She then turned and rushed for the stairs, Lena ran after her while Sam knocks over the altar angrily.
The young witch cursed when she'd started up the stairs only to have the doors slammed in her face. Lena pushed against them as hard as she could but Sue Ann had barred the doors with a wooden beam on her side. Sam joined her, he too pushing as hard as he could.
"Sam, Lena can't you see? The Lord chose me to reward the just and punish the wicked", Sue Anne said "And your brother is wicked and he deserves to die just as Layla deserves to live. It is God's will".
"You're deluded if you think its God's will to use black magic to control a Reaper", Lena spat. But there was no reply from the older woman. Lena smacked her hands on the doors, angrily.
Sam turned around at surveyed the room. "What are you doing?" Lena asked when he picked up a block of wood.
"I'm smashing the window", he replied nodding to it before doing just that. Sam then gave Lena a boost so she could haul herself out of the window. The brunette woman then ran, not even bothering to wait for Sam to climb out. She was more concerned with stopping Sue Ann and at this point she was going to do whatever was necessary to do that. The woman deserved no mercy.
"You!" Lena shouted spotting Sue Ann who was near the tent, chanting. She held up a hand and flung the woman away, stopping her in mid chant. The cross fell out of her hands. "Rigescunt indutae", Lena said freezing Sue Ann to the spot as she desperately tried to reach for the cross.
"What are you?" she cried as Lena crouched down to her level.
"I'm a witch", Lena replied making her eyes flash blue getting more of a panicked look from Sue Ann. She picked up the cross. "Nobody hurts my friends and gets away with it", Lena snapped and slammed the cross onto the ground, breaking the small glass bottle of blood that it had contained.
"My God, what have you done!?" Sue Ann exclaimed.
"He's not your God", Lena said coldly standing up. She then released Sue Ann from the spell that held her to the spot. Lena stepped back and watched the woman get up. Sue Ann tried to run but the Reaper was there, unseen by Lena. The young woman only saw Sue Ann's eyes glaze over before she dropped to her knees. She then collapsed on the floor, dead.
It was in that moment Sam came running up. "Dean's safe. It's over", she said. The pair turned and walked away. Sam and Lena arrived at the impala roughly the same as Dean.
"You ok?" Sam asked his brother.
Dean shook his head "Hell of a week", he commented.
"Yeah..." Sam agreed "All right, come on. We should get going".
"Actually there's something I need to do first", Lena spoke up "it'll only take a minute". The brothers watched as she went over to Layla. They exchanged some words before Lena led her off out of sight.
The young witch glanced around making sure that they were out of sight before she produced a glass jar from her bag. "I made this for you. It's an herbal tea mixture to help with that brain tumour of yours. This stuff won't make it completely heal but it will diminish the tumour enough so that it's operable", Lena explained holding out the jar.
Layla stared at the jar in her hands "Y-you made that for me?" she asked surprised. "Yes. Sue Ann was right about one thing. You do deserve to live", Lena replied.
Layla took the jar from her "thank you Lena. Thank you so much", she said with tears in her eyes. They weren't tears of sadness, they were tears of happiness.
"You're very welcome", Lena said with a smile "you need to take that twice a day for about a month", she instructed "and then you should get an appointment with your doctor".
Layla nodded "I will. Thank you Lena", she said, shifting the jar into one arm so she could hug the brunette. The pair then went back to car park where they exchanged farewells.
"What where you girls talking about?" Dean asked.
"I was just giving her a little something to help with her brain tumour", Lena replied "I wanted to give her a fighting chance, ok?" she added and then got into the Impala.
As she'd been pretty helpful on the Reaper case, Lena had been appointed as 'Knowledge Girl', the moniker haven been given to her oh so nicely by Dean. Her job was to provide extra information whenever the brothers needed it. Which ended up being quite a bit. So while she focused on her finals, Lena stayed in contact with the brothers almost daily either by phone or email.
Both Winchesters were glad to have another source of information for their hunts. With Lena's help they stopped the ghost of Cyrus Dorian and discovered the link between Max Miller and the youngest Winchester. She even gave them some useful info on Daevas when they came across one in Chicago.