AJ finally comes face to face with the angel that pulled her out of hell.
My still shaking hands move again under the flow of the freezing cold tap, scooping up another quite large amount of water, moving it up fast to my face, a shiver coming out of me cause of how cold it is.
Having been in this unnatural life since a very early age, I'd experienced more then a few moments in my long, seemingly neverending life of hunting, putting a stop to the things normal people think are nothing more then fiction, where I'd been terrified, more then just simply a little freaked out.
After what had happened at Pam's house, watching her eyes burn out of their sockets, I was feeling that all too familiar feeling of terror. And it was only making it worse knowing exactly what it was that had blinded her, knowing that same thing had pulled me out of the pit.
Unlike my brothers, I'd always been pretty religious, would try to find time during a job to find a church, to light a candle, to pray in silence, my mind and prayers always straying towards my parents, towards the people me and my brothers had failed to save.
The revelation that it was an angel that had rescued my soul from hell, that they truly existed like I've believed my entire life is making me feel that one emotion I began to believe I'd never experience. That emotion is hope.
Mom...mom would often tell me before I fell asleep at night that angels were watching over me, over my two brothers. And there were times when I would feel that I was truly being watched as I fell asleep at night. Instead of feeling overjoyed that the beautiful, powerful beings I'd always believed in were real, I feel scared, shit scared especially after what had happened to Pam.
Then there was that name. Castiel. A name I'd known my entire life even before discovering he was an angel. I've known that own name from my own body, my own skin, what I always thought was some strange and beautiful birthmark in the middle of my stomach, a couple of inches above my navel. It's just not possible, can't be, that it's the same name, nothing but an extremely freaky coincidence.
I splash my face one more time then turn off the tap, my hands which have finally stopped their uncontrollable shaking moving to pull some paper out of the machine drying off my face. I know I should tell Dean and Sam the truth about what had freed me, brought me back to them, but I just can't knowing they wouldn't exactly believe me, most of all my twin.
I take a long deep breath, brushing some of my long blonde tresses away from my face before leaving the rest room heading over to the table in the diner Dean is sat at, sitting down next to him, my hand moving to one of the glasses of water picking it up, downing half in one gulp feeling my twin's eyes bore into me.
"What'd Bobby say?," he asks, Sam joining us, hanging up on his cell.
"Pam's stable and out of ICU."
"And blind cause of us."
"And we still have no clue what we're dealing with."
"But that's not exactly true, is it?. I mean, at least we have a name. Castiel," I shrug, putting my glass down trying not to let them see how badly that name is affecting me.
"And with the right mumbo jumbo we can summon him, bring him right to us," Dean says.
"What?. Are you fucking crazy, D?. Pam took one little peek at him and now she won't be peeking at anything ever again. The last thing we should be doing is arranging a little meeting."
"Well, have either of you got a better idea?."
"Yeah, as a matter of fact I do. I followed some demons to town, right?. So we go find them. Somebody's gotta known something about something," Sam explains, looking at us.
"Oh thanks," I nod at the waitress, her putting some plates filled with pie down in front of us then proceeding to sit down in the spare seat, her eyes moving through all of us.
"You angling for a tip?," Dean asks, looking at her.
"I'm sorry, I thought you were looking for us," she says, her blue eyes turning black, revealing her true demonic nature, another one, a man, getting up and moving to the door, locking it.
"AJ. To hell and back. Aren't you a lucky duck?."
"I was born lucky," I shrug staring back at her, her black eyes gone, her normal blue eyes in play.
"So you get to just stroll out of the pit, huh?. Tell me...what makes you so special?."
"I like to think it's because of this beautiful face. How the fuck should I know?. What makes you think I'll tell you or your black-eyed chums anything?."
"You mind your tone with me, girl. I'll drag you back to hell myself."
"Really?. You will?. Nah, don't think so. Cause if you were gonna, then you'd have done it already. You know what I think?. I think you're scared, nope, sorry, terrified of whatever it was that pulled me out. You wouldn't even dare attempt to take me back cause you know this being wouldn't like it one bit. Cause they want me out and they're way, way more powerful then you. So go ahead, try it. Just don't come crawling to me when they turn up on your doorstep with some vaseline and a firehose."
"I'm gonna reach down your throat and rip out your lungs," she snarls, making me smirk a little.
"What are you waiting for then?," I whisper, my smirk dropping, punching her in the face hard knocking her head back, delivering a second one just as hard straight after.
"Yep, just what I was thinking. Let's go, boys."
"For the pie," Dean says, throwing some money down on the table.
-x-
"How are you doing, kid?," Bobby asks, looking over at Dean from behind the wheel, my twin wiping the blood from his ear, that same force that swooped on me before coming to both of us in that motel room.
I was feeling a little less horrible then Dean was, just a tiny headache setting up home comfortably in the front of my skull. Just like those other two times, the exact same things had happened, that force surrounding us, the high-pitched ringing, all the glass in the room shattering, raining down on us, Bobby bursting in and helping me drag my brother out.
The only difference this time was that I could make out some words that powerful voice was saying to me. And it was just the two words: my name and Listen. Anything else was still difficult to make out. Why was I able to hear those two words and yet Dean wasn't?. Why was Castiel so keen for me to listen to him?.
"Aside from the church bells ringing in my head?. Peachy," Dean mutters, pulling out his cellphone, dialling a number.
"You still with us, darling?."
"Hmm?. Oh...oh yeah, I'm okay, Doc," I sigh leaning my head on the window next to me hearing Dean talk to who's obviously Sam.
"Why the hell didn't you tell him?," Bobby asks, Dean hanging up a few minutes later.
"Cause he'd try to stop us."
"From what?."
"Summoning this thing. It's time we head it face on."
"Dean, I thought we'd agreed that was the last thing we'll do," I frown, raising my head off the window.
"You can't be serious," Bobby says.
"As a heart attack. It's high noon, baby."
"Dammit, Dean," I growl, flopping back on the seat, rubbing my eyes.
"We don't know what it is. It could be a demon, it could be anything," Bobby says, sounding just as worried as I am.
"So then we gotta be ready for anything. We got the big time magic knife, you got an arsenal in the trunk," Dean answers.
"This is a bad idea."
"Couldn't agree more, but what other choice do we have?."
"We could choose life."
"Maybe...maybe Dean's right, Bobby. Look, we all know I'm what this thing wants. I...i know it sounds crazy, but I know it won't hurt me. It did bring me back from the pit. I want answers and this is the only way we'll get any," I say, my hand moving to my locket, covering it with my palm.
"We could use Sam for this."
"No, he's better off where he is."
-x-
It feels like we've been sat here for hours instead of time a lot less, just sat around waiting for Castiel to turn up, the rundown derelict barn having been set up for Bobby's ritual. And it certainly doesn't help lessen my fear at all, still scared any of us could end up blinded like Pam. Humans aren't meant to look upon angels, something Pam had learned the hard way making me wonder how the hell we were supposed to hold a conversation with the angel.
I let out another sigh which quickly turns into a yawn, my hand moving to my face, my fingers rubbing my suddenly droopy eyes, my other hand keeping a loose grip on my shotgun which was loaded with our special rock salt bullets even though I know it would be useless against an angel.
"You sure you did the ritual right?," Dean asks looking at Bobby getting that all too familiar 'don't be an idjit' look making me smirk a little.
"Sorry. Touchy touchy, huh?."
Literally seconds later, the roof of the barn starts to rattle and shake violently like a very strong wind has hit the building making all of us get up out of our sitting positions, our grips tightening on our weapons.
"Wishful thinking, but maybe it's just the wind."
Suddenly, all the lights in the barn start to shatter making me squeak loudly, the thick wooden bar keeping the doors shut splitting in half, them swinging open revealing the shadow of a person.
That shadow turns fast into an actual figure, a man, quite tall, a tan coloured trenchcoat covering his tall frame, what looks like some kind of suit underneath. He carries on walking towards us, the lights continuing to shatter as he walks, his face beginning to become clear.
And I drop the shotgun I was holding the instant I see his face one hundred percent clearly. He's unbelievably handsome, beautiful even, a head of dark brown hair that looks a little messy, perfectly formed cheekbones, perfect smooth looking skin with just a light trace of stubble on his chin, lips that look thin yet a little thick at the same time.
His eyes, though. His eyes are unlike any I've seen before, pure blue, making me think of the ocean on a summer's day. Those eyes are making me feel unlike myself for the first time in my life.
I don't even realise any action has been taken against him until I hear the gunshots, Dean and Bobby the cause of them, the bullets having no effect on him just like I knew they wouldn't. The only thing I'm having trouble believing right now is how we're all able to look at him and still be able to see.
"Who...who are you?," I whisper, staring at him, those pure, incredible blue eyes of his boring into my emerald green ones.
"I'm the one who gripped you tight and raised you from perdition," he states, his voice very deep and rough, exuding power making me shiver.
"Yeah. Thanks for that," Dean says, Castiel nodding at him, then moving forward driving the demon blade into his chest, again having no effect, the angel glancing down at it then looking back up at my twin, his hand pulling the blade out, dropping it to the floor.
His other hand then moves behind him, stopping the swing of the iron bar from making any contact with him, it being swung by Bobby. Then he turns around to face him, two fingers moving to his forehead, his body collapsing to the floor.
"We need to talk, Alexandra. Alone."
"No...NO!," I cry backing away from him fast, feeling his hand move to my arm, everything around me going black, the cries of my brother being the last thing I hear.