A/N: And just when I thought I had lost the spark I originally felt for this story it comes back with a vengeance. If my urge to write has anything to say about how fast these next few chapters are going to get up, be expecting one every couple of days. I'm hoping to stick to that because all of these ideas are begging to be let out of my head and I'm really excited to see what you guys think of the things that are going to happen next. Also, there's still some bouncing around in this chapter, but it's not as crazy as it was in the last one.
Fifteen of the seventeen rogue witches that had been fought against that day had made it out alive. They had been completely stripped of their powers shortly after Connor had left the field, leaving the rest of their task in the capable hands of the witches that had fought alongside him. The two rogue witches that had been murdered received no trail for a wrongful death, no one could argue that Dean or Nicholas had done anything wrong in avenging the torture of one witch and death of another. Shortly after Iona had informed everyone about the loss of Ana's baby Nicholas and Dallis had appeared, the body of the father and husband they had just lost on the ground in front of them. Fenrick and Iona had been quick to react, moving away from Ana and becoming lost in the grief of losing their father.
It wasn't long after the sobs of the Calhoun family filled the room that the rest of the witches began to return. At first the people who had missed the battle were hopeful that they'd only had the one casualty, but that hope was quickly ruined as Ela and Mena both appeared with limp bodies in their arms. Five people moved at once as recognition of the blank, still faces set in. Their father, Leon, was the first to reach Mena moving to take Jacey from her arms. Mena didn't move to meet any of the eyes of her family, not strong enough to witness the blame that would be put on her for not protecting her younger sister. Four pair of arms suddenly wrapped around her, causing her to raise her head just enough to see that both of her youngest siblings were hugging themselves to her side as they cried for the loss of Jacey.
Across the room two men stood in shock, side by side, as they fought to understand the sight in front of them. Ela had moved toward them with Kari held close to her chest, her heart brimming with sorrow as she watched the faces of Harald and Marius melt into expressions of pain. When it was clear that neither man was going to be able to support the weight of the woman in her arms, Ela moved to the nearest cot and placed the older woman's still body on it. Both men moved to kneel by the side of the cot, each of their bodies beginning to shake with the force of their sobs.
Caoimhe looked around the room, taking in all of the grief that was filling the place. Sam and Charlie had been brought back with Val, the group moving over to where Dean now sat by Ana. Kellen had been trying to pull Connor back to his senses and pulled the witch to his feet so that they could join the rest of them at Ana's side. With tears in his eyes Kellen explained to the others what Iona had told them, watching as neither Connor or Dean were able to think past the raging emotions inside of them. The shock that took over Sam's face could have been enough to knock anyone off of their feet. Giving herself one last moment, she looked to Niall who had moved to stand by her side and gave him a small nod. They would properly grieve their dead, then they would decide their next move.
A day had passed since the fight with the rogues. They had buried the three witches who hadn't made it back home alive, giving them a proper witches farewell. Ana had woken up shortly before they had planned to gather for the funerals and it hadn't taken her long to realize something was extremely wrong. Connor had done what he could to explain what had happened, but once the words were out of his mouth Ana had asked him to leave the room. He had tried to put up a fight, knowing that he shouldn't leave her to grieve alone, but she refused to even look at him.
There was no fight left in Connor as he joined the rest of the coven to say their last goodbyes to their coven mates, he could feel Ana's grief and anger through their bond even though she was trying to hide it and it broke what little composure he had left.
Once the funerals were over Sam suggested that they return to the bunker, that they could all use the comfort of the place and that Ana needed to be somewhere familiar. Dean and Connor agreed, neither man really having an idea what to do otherwise and they all moved to gather their things. When Sam had explained his plan to Val, she offered to help teleport the group back to their home, knowing that Ana would most likely not be up to helping Connor with the task.
It had taken Connor little persuading to convince Ana to let them take her back to the bunker, it seemed that she didn't care where she was as long as she could be left alone. Since neither of them had anything to pack they were the first to meet Valera back in the now empty gathering hall. The space had been converted back to its original look of pews and the long table at the front. All signs that there had been injured and deceased people there the day before were gone. Thankfully it didn't take long for the others to join them and without any words being spoken the group grasped hands and disappeared from the room.
Ana took one look around the familiar library before turning and leaving for her room. No part of her was ready to face her family after what had happened, she could barely stand being by herself, adding other people on top of that would just end in disaster. She paid little attention to anything until she was in her room and the door was shut behind her, taking a minute to lock it so that no one could come in. Taking a step away from the door her body began to tremble with silent sobs before she fell to the floor, her legs curling up toward her chest and her arms wrapped around them as she tried to close off the very real, empty hole inside of her.
Dean hadn't said much to anyone as his worry for his daughter escalated. He could only imagine how she was feeling, but the fact that she was closing herself off from Connor along with the rest of them really solidified how bad off she was. The family had spread apart almost the instant after Ana had left the room, the only exception being Val and Sam which Dean had left alone so that they could talk. Ignoring his bedroom door as he passed it, he headed straight for the garage, knowing that the only thing that would be able to keep his head level was getting in his Baby and going for a long drive. The normal feeling of joy as he looked at the Impala was gone, nothing could break through the sorrow and darkness that surrounded his heart. Settling behind the wheel he gripped onto the steering wheel as if it were his only lifeline, placing the key in the ignition and letting the familiar sound of the engine calm him slightly. Without another thought he opened the large door to the garage and peeled out into the night.
Only when he was on the open road did Dean let his mind run wild with the worry and anger that had been plaguing him since he had watched the three rogue witches attack Ana. All of this was far more than he ever thought he would have to deal with as a father. Chasing off boys, making sure she stayed out of trouble, and was at least a halfway functioning adult; that's what normal dad's had to worry about. It seemed that he had traded all of that in for having a daughter who was a witch with some crazy prophecy hanging over her head along with all of the trouble from the demons and the angels. Never, in any scenario that he had concocted of what it would be like to one day meet his daughter did he think that he would have to figure out a way to console her over the loss of her unborn child.
They had no real answers to what happened to the baby. According to Iona it was as if there was zero sign that Ana had ever been pregnant, like the baby had never existed even though both witches and angels had been able to say otherwise. Dean didn't know much about any form of biological science, most of his experiments geared toward making things explode, but he was certain that at just two months after conception a baby couldn't survive outside of the womb. So what was the point of taking the baby? If they wanted the child gone there were so many other ways to go about it, but to wipe out any sign that Ana had been pregnant in the first place seemed to be taking it a step further. A step that led him to believe that the plan wasn't to merely take that life, but to take it away from them, from Ana. Part of him wanted to believe that some weird form of magic had kept the little girl alive and that they would be able to find her, to right everything and put her back inside of Ana to grow.
God. What was he even thinking? He had no idea if anything like that was even possible and everything was still too fresh to breach the idea with anyone else. Pressing his foot further down on the accelerator, he pushed the car to speed down the abandoned highway, trying his best to let everything just fade to the back of his mind so he could relax. Yeah right.
Sam and Valera had watched as everyone else left the library. "Thanks for the help." Sam spoke first, giving the shorter woman a soft smile. Things were going to be a wreck for both the hunters and the witches after the fight they had just lived through, there was no telling when he would see her again. Though Dean liked to tease him about the way he'd lose himself watching Val do magic or talk about something, Sam just enjoyed the presence of the witch and the easy friendship they had begun to develop was something he was happy about.
"Of course." Valera returned the smile before letting her eyes wander around the room, thinking about all of the information that was held within the books. "Even though the threat is gone, you all are more than welcome to come visit or if you need anything, we'll be around to help." She paused, turning her attention back to the giant of a man in front of her with a sigh. "It's going to be a while before anything is anywhere near normal for any of us, but we still have each other. With Ana and Connor connecting us all, we're basically family." Mentally cursing herself for rambling, she took in a deep breath, focusing her eyes on the pain filled hazel ones across from her. Taking ahold of his hand gently, she gave it a soft squeeze, "If you need to talk, know that I'm here. Alright?" With those words she squeezed his hand one last time before teleporting away.
Sam stared at the empty space where Val had just been, a ghost feeling of her small fingers wrapped around his hand had him wishing that she'd come back. Maybe Dean had been right, not that he would ever admit it to his older brother, but that seemed a little more forward than just friendship. Then again, he was always pretty clueless when it came to the awkward stage before a relationship would either form or not. Blinking his eyes a few consecutive times, he turned his focus around the room and then moved toward the hallway to go search for Dean.
Connor had planned to go straight to his room, to give Ana the space she obviously wanted, but the pain that rolled through their connection had him walking toward her room before he had really processed the direction he was headed. How could she expect him to leave her alone to deal with this? He couldn't, it was that simple. There was no way he could stand back and let her try to process her grief on her own, he loved her too much to do that. Stopping in front of her closed door, he swore that he could hear her sniffle on the other side of the wood, trying her best to make as little sound as possible. Sucking in a deep breath to give him strength, Connor reached for the doorknob and tried it, not surprised when he found that she had locked it. "Ana?"
There was a pause before her soft voice was heard, "Go away, Connor."
Closing his eyes, he talked himself up knowing that going in there wasn't going to be easy, but he wouldn't turn away now. This whole situation was like deja vu, it seeming almost identical to the time he had to talk her down after a fight she had with Dean. That night was the first time they had kissed and now they were both trying to deal with the pain of their loss. With a quick movement of his fingers he had the door unlocked and opened before she could do something further to keep him out. Nothing could have prepared him for the sight of his soulmate curled up on the floor, her eyes red and rimmed with tears on the verge of following those that had fallen already. Slowly walking in, he closed the door behind him and took a step closer to her. She didn't move, didn't do anything but stare at his feet and how broken she looked shattered the thin wall he had built inside of himself to force himself to keep going. "Ana?"
"I don't want you here." Cold words came out of her mouth, her eyes not leaving the floor because she knew that if she looked at his face that she would crumble, that her plan to keep him away from her would fall completely apart. "Go away."
Anger hit Connor like a kick to the chest, though the anger was not his own, but Ana's reaching him through their bond and the force of it had him slumping to the ground. Landing on his knees just in front of where she laid, tears began to slip from his eyes and uncontrollable sobs shook his body. Of course she was angry at him, he hadn't been able to protect her and their child like he swore he would. Why would she want to be anywhere near him. "I'm so sorry. I failed you both." he forced the words past his cries, ready to beg her for forgiveness.
Ana winced, this is what she had been afraid of. Her family had a sick habit of blaming themselves for everything and she wasn't prepared to deal with the blame that Connor and, most likely, Dean would place on themselves for what had happened. She'd already played the arguments out in her head; they hadn't moved fast enough, they should have been by her side the entire time, they should have protected her. In truth, it was Ana's fault. Her ego had gotten the best of her. She should have sensed the third witch before they were able to close their circle around her, she should have been able to protect herself and the baby. She had failed. Failed her family, failed her daughter and they had lost three others, she had failed the witches of the High Council as well.
"It's not your fault." Connor spoke, wondering if she had even realized that she had been speaking out loud. As far as he knew she hadn't slept since she had become conscious the day before and he knew for a fact that she hadn't eaten, she seemed dazed and even in his grief stricken state he could tell that she was lost in her head. "It's not your fault." he repeated the words softly as he moved to wrap her in his arms.
Kellen had been sitting on the edge of his bed, staring at a blank space on the wall across from him. Thoughts were rushing through his head, some so fast that it took him multiple times to think about it to understand what he was trying to tell himself. How could things turn so bad so fast? Where was Chuck in all of this? Who the hell had so little heart that they could do something like take an unborn child from it's mother. There was no mistaking that he was furious. Of course he was still sad for Ana, she was family and he understood that she was in pain, but he was mostly just caught up in the rage at the rogue witches that had taken the precious life that had been growing within his friend.
Before that anger could grow any further a knock at his door pulled him from his thoughts. "Come in." he called, standing up as Sam walked into his room. "Hey, what's going on?" He was on friendly enough terms with the older man, but they only ever really talked when they were already in a space together.
"Have you seen Dean?" Sam questioned, he'd already stopped and asked Charlie who had secluded herself away in her room. He had pretended that he hadn't noticed her tattered copy of The Hobbit resting by her side when he left, knowing that she needed time to process what had happened just as the rest of them did.
Kellen shook his head, "No, but I'm pretty sure I heard the Impala start up in the garage." he offered, noticing the dark bags under Sam's eyes for the first time. None of them had gotten much rest the night before, that was obvious.
Giving a small nod in thanks, the hunter turned toward the door to leave, but paused and turned back to look at Kellen. "Hey, if you need anyone to talk to, don't be afraid to come knock on my door." he extended the invitation, knowing that the younger man was closest with Ana and Connor, but that the couple would be focusing on themselves for a while. With a small smile, he left the room, hoping that Dean hadn't left the bunker.
It had only been a few minutes since Sam had left her room and she had picked her book back up, but Charlie just couldn't focus on the words. She had read the book so many times that should could have just flipped through the pages and known what was going on without actually needing to read it, but that took the enjoyment out of it. Maybe that was the problem. There was no joy in her system in that moment and that ruined whatever euphora the book would normally create for her.
There had never been a doubt in her mind that hunting was dangerous. After the incident with her arm the first time she had met the Winchesters it was a lesson she had quickly learned, but even knowing that, what had happened to Ana was so much worse than anything she could have imagined happening. It even contended with being tortured by Lucifer himself. Charlie had no idea if the younger woman she had grown to love would be able to survive it.
For a short period of time Ana gave in to her need to be comforted, letting Connor hold her for a while before she asked him to leave. It hurt too much to know that he was in pain because she couldn't do the one thing a mother was expected to do and that was protect her child. It took a little fight to get him out of her room, but he finally complied and left her alone. Ana closed the door behind him then turned, made her way toward her bed, and fell on it, no longer caring much about her own well being.
The thoughts that began to fill her head were familiar, words unburied from a place they had been hidden in for so long and as she felt like she was falling deeper into the darkness of her pain, Ana welcomed them back with open arms. Weak. Pathetic. Useless. Failure.
Failure.
FAILURE.
That one word repeated over and over and over until it was as common to her as her own name. That's what she was, a failure. Seven digits branding themselves to the skin of her eyelids and she could feel them running through her veins as if they were lit by fire. She didn't deserve to be part of the family that had saved the world countless times, part of a prophetic couple that was meant to put an end to the evil that was Michael and Lucifer. She didn't deserve to be with them at all.
Gadreel had been impatient for news on their plan. He knew that the High Council had confronted the rogue witches who were following his command, but he had yet to hear if the battle had been a success or not. Word had gotten around that Ana and Connor were still alive, but that didn't mean that the entire thing had been a loss. There was one major part to his plan that had to be followed through and as he stood in the same forest he had used for his meetings with the Council witch many times, the angel grew impatient. When the air grew thick with the scent of magic, he tensed. "What took you so long?"
The male witch frowned, "The entire Council is in the process of mourning, it's not exactly easy to teleport out in the middle of it all and keep my cover." he snapped, "That is, unless you no longer need me and you're ready for my cover to be blown."
"Your attitude is unneeded." Gadreel stated, knowing that the witch knew as well as he did that they couldn't risk him being caught yet. The information the witch brought to him would ultimately help him finish his task and that was more important than wasting a little time. "What news do you have for me?"
"The Good and Mohr witch live to see another day, but three of the other witches were taken down in the battle. It's shaken the Council, but also given them something more to fight for should this come back around to them." The witch paused, a slow smile spreading across his lips, "The child is gone, just as you had asked us to do."
Gadreel studied the man in front of him a moment, his plan had not completely failed then, that was good. "That portion of the plan was executed exactly to my demands?" he had to make sure that nothing went wrong, this was going to turn the odds in his favor.
"Down to the reaction of Connor and the Winchesters."
This was it, Gadreel had finally caught the break he had been waiting for after all of his plans had been continued to be ruined by the damned Winchesters. Now he would be able to raise his brothers while the hunters were too worried about the loss in the family and then when the right time came, he would take his place on his brother's' side and give them the weapon that would grant them even more power. The only thing he needed to do now was make sure Connor and Ana were both dead by the time Michael and Lucifer were risen.
He took his time, but when Dean finally returned to the bunker that night and made his way into the library he wasn't at all surprised to see his brother sitting at his favorite table with a book in his hand. There was no doubt that Sam had wasted little time before getting to work trying to find some answers about the spell that had been used against Ana. "Any word from her?" he questioned, taking off his coat and setting it on the back of the chair across from Sam's.
The younger brother looked up from his book and shook his head, "No. I saw Connor walking down the hall toward his room a while ago, but other than that everyone else has pretty much kept to themselves." Furrowing his brow, Sam studied Dean before opening his mouth again, "Where'd you go?"
Heaving a sigh, Dean pulled out the chair and sat in it, his head tipping back and his eyes focusing on the ceiling. "Just for a drive. Needed to clear my head."
Sam grunted in approval, knowing that if he had a fix for the mess of his own thoughts that he wouldn't be adding more to the chaos by reading lore on dark magic. He saw no other path to follow at the moment, nothing about the fact that every sign of Ana's pregnancy had just up and vanished seemed right to him and he was certain that there had to be an explanation for it somewhere in the lore. Maybe he could give Valera a call and see if she knew anything. "Are you gonna go check on Ana?" he questioned, knowing that Dean was itching to do so.
He had been considering the pros and cons of doing just that since he had turned the Impala around to head back home. He probably wouldn't get any rest that night until he did check in on her, possibly try to get her to eat something and then sleep herself, but if the way she had reacted to Connor yesterday was anything to go by she definitely wouldn't want to see him. Closing his eyes, Dean rubbed his hands over his face before nodding, "Yeah, I will." With the decision made, the eldest Winchester stood from his chair and made his way out of the room, down the hall, and to Ana's bedroom door. Knocking softly, he hoped that he wouldn't wake her up if she was sleeping. When no response came he turned the doorknob and pushed the door open slowly, being able to make out the shadow of her resting body laying on the bed.
"I don't feel like talking, dad." Her voice was hoarse from all of the crying and she hoped that he would just leave her alone.
"We don't have to talk." Dean assured her, knowing that she was just as stubborn as he was when it came to talking about feelings and feelings like these were the worst for them to try to talk about. "I just wanted to see if you needed anything. You haven't eaten in almost a full day, can I bring you something?"
"I'll eat something in the morning. Now, please, leave."
His heart broke all over again thinking about the pain she was going through, the sound of her voice giving away that she had been spending most of her time crying. She would never recover fully from this, he knew that, but he hoped that over time she would learn to live with it because if she continued on the way she was now she wouldn't live much longer. With those thoughts in mind he retreated from her room, allowing her to have this time to grieve without feeling as if she had to answer to him. This was going to take time, he reminded himself that, and he would give her as much time as he could before he stepped in to make sure she was taking care of herself.
