It has been too long. Here Celeste and Shadow fight. I hope to continue with The Case That Changed It All soon.

'You're never around!' Shadow pushed past me in the narrow, underground corridors of Hell. Rage manifested. How dare he judge me! He knew my reasons for staying away.

'I have a job to do — saving people, hunting things…'

He whipped round to face me. 'That's not your mantra. That's theirs.'

'They're family, Shadow. And that's a part of me now. I want to save people.'

'I don't doubt that, but you forget who you are. Where you're from. I wish you were here more often.'

I scoffed and looked around this barren place. 'To do what exactly? Keep the demons in line, play princess, live up to a role that makes the very feathers on my wings curl with dread.'

'You used to have a sense of pride about your true home. They've taken that from you.'

'They've taken nothing,' I snarled, 'they've given me everything.'

'Gabriel gave you everything, think about where he is now.'

Before I could even anticipate myself, I had him pinned by his throat against the jagged wall. His multiple fangs gritted together.

'We all lose those we love! It doesn't matter whether you're human or monster. We all do!' I released my hold on his throat. He gasped and spluttered. 'You know I think about him every day. And you know how grateful I am to him. That was a dickish thing to say.'

I started to walk away until his hand fell on my shoulder. 'But it's true. You risk losing more by being with them. What about me? Us? Hell needs you, Cel, but you're too invested in being something you're not.'

With a sharp shrug I forced his hand off of me. I glanced back at him. 'Go on. Say it. You might not see me again.' This last quip made his silver pupils darken.

'You're not human.'

'Pfft, tell me something I don't know.'

'You're not a Winchester.'

My fist sent him reeling backwards. Gravel scratched the ground as he slammed down. Music to my ears. I landed on top of him, pounding, gripping, clawing; every cut fuelled me on. His fist connected with my stomach, it was my turn to reel. Fangs sliced the side of my neck open. Clamping my hand across the gash, I allowed the blood to spurt through my fingers.

I wasn't going to heal myself in front of him. Not after what he said. His eyes did not shift from mine. This empty space, this silence would be our last memory. I flew home.

In my bedroom, I made the wound disappear. But the one in my heart would linger. What had gone wrong? Shadow and I had once been so close. Now, I feared I'd created an eternal divide between us.

If only life had a delete key. I would erase our fight. I would erase my lack of empathy. I would take him in my arms and apologise for all of the times I'd stay away from Hell… But none of that counted now. Our friendship was through. And I was doomed to keep denying the reason for my existence.