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Unfound
Chapter Twenty-Six
Sam's eyes went wide when he recognized Lucifer's voice and he quickly pushed the "speaker" button on his phone so that Dean and Mary could hear.
"What?" Dean asked before Lucifer began to speak.
"Oh, if you're looking for Rowena, she is presently indisposed. Which is a delicate way of saying, I stomped on her face till the white meat showed, and then set her on fire, just in case. Ah. Gingers. It was messy and…screamy, but it had to be done, Sam. I'm about to be a dad. Can't raise the little nipper from a jail cell now, can I? Oh also, I've taken care of my pesky brother – he won't be able to interfere where I put him. And speaking of pet angels…you know where your little pal Castiel is?"
"Go to hell," Sam said heatedly.
"Ooh! Good one. Witty. I'll use that in the future. All right, well, I'd love to chat with ya, but, uh, why waste my time, right? It's not like you matter. I don't need to put on the old Sam suit anymore, do I?"
"You know, if you think we're just gonna let you walk – " Dean began to threaten.
"Oh, hey, Dean! I knew you fellas are gonna try, you know, whatever. Whatever you're gonna try. But you can't kill me. You've never been able to kill me. And with, uh, witch bitch gone, you can't put me back in the Cage, so like I said…you don't matter. Ok? Buh-bye."
Lucifer hung up.
Dean swore. "He's right," he said. "We can't kill him and we can't slam his ass back in the Cage."
"Yeah, ok," Sam said. "So, maybe we play for time. Find Cas and Kelly, keep 'em moving. If Lucifer can't find them, he can't hurt them."
"You think Castiel is gonna go along with that?"
"You think we'll give him a choice?" Dean asked.
"And the baby?" Mary asked.
"Hopefully, we can still siphon off its grace. If not, uh, we'll figure something else out."
Dean looked a bit pale. "We saw what siphoning grace off of Harry did. Do you really think that's the best option, still?"
Sam had honestly not thought of that. It made him feel a little sick, especially having seen the aftermath of just that process now. "Look, it won't be the same. We won't do it to torture him. And we know it can be done and he can live."
No one felt good about that.
"All right, then," Mary said. "Kind of always wanted to punch the Devil in the face. So, how do we find them?"
Sam and Dean exchanged looks. "Harry," they said together at the same time.
Mary frowned. "He can't do any magic."
"No, of course not," Dean said.
"We don't even know if he knows," Sam said, not really wanting to bring Harry into all of this. He was too weak and he was worried that his brother would try to do something risky to help them out. "Gabriel might not have told him. He hid the two of them while Harry was still…" he didn't finish that thought.
"Alright, what other options do we have?" Mary asked, also not wanting to put Harry in any danger.
Sam tried to think quickly. "All right, look, we know Kelly's gonna have that kid soon. Like, really soon. And according to the lore, whenever a Nephilim is born, there are signs. Uh, storms, outbreaks of disease, uh, a plague of locusts."
"Things get Biblical," Dean supplied.
"Exactly. That much power into the world, whenever and wherever it happens, things get weird."
"So, we're looking for something…weird."
Dean snorted. "Yeah. Story of our lives," Dean said. "Well, let's start there. If we don't find anything in a couple of hours, we'll ask Harry."
They all nodded in agreement.
III
Kelly set up the computer in the nursery. This was hard. Harder than anything she had ever had to do in her life. But it was worth it. She hit record.
"Hi, Jack. It's, uh…I'm your mom. I know you're gonna be ok. You are gonna be…amazing. You have an angel watching over you. Two, actually. One – he's a bit like you." She started to cry. "God, I love you, Jack. I love you so much. Sorry. I love you."
She stood up to stop the recording when a sudden pain came over her stomach. She clutched it. "Oh!" she exclaimed. The pain faded.
III
They hadn't found anything. Not quickly and it was becoming evident what they were going to have to do.
Sam and Dean stood outside of Harry's room.
"What's the play here?" Dean asked.
"We just ask him," Sam said.
"And if he wants to come with us?"
Sam took a sharp intake of breath. "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it."
"I can hear you!" Harry yelled from inside.
Sam and Dean entered the room, a little shamefaced, to find their brother sitting up in bed, arms crossed, looking pissed.
"Harry…we, uh, thought you'd be asleep," Dean said.
"I've been sleeping for days," he grumped. "What are you scared to ask me? And where have you been, Sam?"
"Um, Dean didn't tell you?" Sam asked.
"Sam," Dean hissed for Sam throwing him under the bus.
"He did not. For that matter, he also didn't tell me why Neville was here either."
"That doesn't matter," Sam said. "We've got a bigger problem."
"A bigger problem than what, exactly?" Harry challenged. "Look. I'm a little worse for wear at the moment, but I'm still me."
"Yeah, you're still you, which means that you're gonna take stupid risks," Dean shot at him.
"I won't," Harry insisted.
Neither of his brothers believed him.
Sam knew they didn't have a choice. "It's Lucifer," he said reluctantly.
"Lucifer?"
"Yeah. He's out."
Harry looked confused. "You already knew that," he said.
"No. He wasn't in Hell, but he also wasn't loose in the world. Now he is. And he's looking for Kelly and Cas. Do you know where they are?"
The look on Harry's face gave it all away.
"You do!" Dean exclaimed.
"Maybe."
"We're not going to hurt them. Please, Harry, you've gotta tell us so that we can protect them," Sam pleaded.
Harry sighed. "Alright. But first, you have to tell me what is going on. Then I'll tell you."
Another look between Sam and Dean. Silently, they argued, Dean against telling him, Sam for, until, eventually, Sam won.
"So, it's like this…"
III
"You killed her?" Harry asked, amazed. He didn't normally wish people dead, but, in this one case, he was thrilled to hear about the untimely death of one Joanne Hess.
"Not me, specifically, that was actually Jody," Sam said. "She shot the bitch in the head."
"It's done then. The Men of Letters are gone?"
"I believe Hermione is putting the last nail in their coffin now. It's why most of your friends had to leave so quickly after we burned their compound to the ground. She called an emergency session of the Wizengamot to completely dismantle their entire organization. The elders are all up on war crimes. They'll never bother us – or more importantly, Teddy or Mom, ever again."
Harry let go of a breath that he didn't even know that he had been keeping in. "Thank you," he said, looking specifically to Sam. "Thank you for getting him safe. I – I doubted that the plan with Rowena would work but you were right."
Sam didn't know what to say. He wasn't used to being thanked. And, in this case, he wasn't sure he deserved it, but getting praise from an older brother still filled him with pride.
"Alright, that's enough girl crap for now," Dean said, ruining the moment. "We're all happy that the Men of Letters have been blasted to hell, but we have a bigger problem on our hands now. Where are Cas and Kelly, Harry? We're running outta time here."
"Oh," Harry thought for a second. He knew that his brothers were no longer trying to kill Kelly but he didn't feel great sending them into the line of fire either.
"Mom's already researching weird signs that would help us find them without you," Sam said, understanding where Harry's mind was going. "But it would be much quicker if you could just tell us. Please, Harry, we've got to get there before Lucifer does."
Sam's puppy eyes for the win again.
"Alright," Harry said, sitting up a little straighter. "I'll do one better. I'll take us – that will cut down on the time it takes to travel. The sting from the poison has faded. I think I can handle it."
Sam and Dean exchanged looks.
"Uh – Harry, can you even stand?" Sam asked, wanting to be sensitive. Which was more than what could be said for Dean.
"Fuck no," he said. "Dude – there is no way in hell we're taking you to where Lucifer might be."
Harry locked his jaw. "I feel much better," he insisted. "I think I can handle one little flight."
This time, Harry didn't miss the sheer alarm that passed between his brother's silent communication.
"What?" He asked. "I know that my wings haven't gone back to…" He stopped a second. "I don't feel my wings," he said. Even though he knew it might hurt, he used his magic to try and feel them. He didn't feel anything. He didn't feel his magic. Freaking out, even more, he risked trying with his grace.
"Harry, don't panic," Sam said in his best please-calm-down voice.
"Don't panic about what? What do you know? What did you do?"
"Well, strictly speaking, it was Gabriel who…" Dean started.
"No. Gabriel wouldn't have. What did you do?" Anger was beginning to build on Harry's face. He knew that Gabriel trusted him. This had to be something cooked up by Sam and Dean.
"It was Gabriel's idea!" Dean defended. "And his spell, but he needed Sam to…"
Sam glared at Dean for throwing him under the bus.
"Sam?" Harry asked, surprised out of his anger for a moment. This had Dean written all over it. He never imagined that his younger brother would be the one responsible for whatever this was.
"Look – you almost died – again. Just because you thought that we were in danger," Sam pleaded, eyes begging for Harry to understand.
"You got shot!" Harry's anger was back.
"Well, yeah, but…"
"No. Sam – what did you do?"
Sam took a deep breath. "We, uh…we bound your grace."
"You did what now?" Harry felt…he didn't know what he felt.
Sam looked at Dean desperately, but his oldest brother just shrugged. "It's temporary! When it's all better – all restored from that poison Asmodeus gave you, you'll be able to break the binding yourself."
"Go get Gabriel," Harry demanded. "Tell him to reverse it."
"Uh – he can't do that," Dean said. "He, um…well, we think that Lucifer has him."
"WHAT?"
"Harry, I know, this is a lot. And we're sorry. But we've got to go. We have to get to Cas. Please – tell us where he is. And then we'll come back and get you better. But you've got to sit this one out," Sam pleaded.
Harry's mind was jumbled. He couldn't seem to wrap it around that he was not only injured, but now powerless, as his brothers went to face someone as dangerous as Lucifer. And Gabriel… "I can still go with you. Just give me a couple of minutes…" He had to go. That's all he knew.
"No, man, you can't," Dean said with finality in his tone. "You'll just slow us down."
There was a brief look of hurt before fury clouded Harry's entire face. Dean flinched a little – expecting something to explode. But, of course, nothing did.
"You don't have magic powers and you're still going!" Harry winced internally. He sounded like a child.
"Yeah, I know, but I'm also not half dead. Harry, you can't even walk to the door of this room right now. Look at you. You are barely able to stay awake. Let us handle this. We've got it. You just have to tell us where to go."
Harry felt ready to explode. He wanted to rage. He wanted to punch Dean in the face and have a go at Sam too. And that rage was almost enough to propel him out of his bed. But before he could even take a deep enough breath to start yelling, he felt like the wind was knocked out of him. Exhaustion just took him over. Suddenly, even sitting up was a struggle.
Dean was right. And he hated that more than anything.
"Alright," he conceded, surprising both his brothers who had been gearing up for a fight.
"Alright?" Sam asked.
"Yeah. They're at my safehouse in Washington."
"I've been there!" Sam said. "Ginny took me there when…" he stopped talking.
Harry quirked an eyebrow. "Ginny took you there when?"
Sam blushed. "After I got my wand," he said.
Dean was very tempted to say something suggestive but decided against it. "So, you know where to go?"
"Yeah," he said. He and Ginny had taken a portkey there but he had later found out the specific location because it had seen like a good hiding spot.
"Then what are we waiting for. Let's go," Dean said.
"Harry – we'll call. But just rest. Get better," Sam ordered.
Harry scowled. "When I'm better I'm going to kick both your arses for doing this to me. And Gabriel's."
Dean smirked. "Sure, you will, buddy," he said.
"Wait," Harry stopped them on their way out.
They turned.
"Save Gabriel. If you can. You can't let Lucifer have him. I know that he's not your favorite but…"
"We won't leave a man behind," Dean promised.
Harry nodded, knowing that Dean meant it. His brothers left the room. Harry slumped back in bed. While his body was exhausted, his mind wouldn't stop spinning. He cursed himself for giving into exhaustion earlier. What was he thinking? He should have fought – demanded to go with them. He could have slept in the car. Giving up on rest, he started to plan. There was no way that he was going to miss this fight. With or without his magic.
III
"You find out where they are?" Mary asked, speaking out from behind the pile of maps and books that she had been using to try and pinpoint the location of Cas and Kelly.
"Yeah. We're headed there now," Dean said.
"We, uh, told Harry about, the whole…magic binding thing," Sam informed her.
Mary sucked in a breath. "How'd he take it?"
"Not well," Sam said grimly. "But he's too injured to do a whole lot about it. But you're going to have a hell of a time keeping him in bed."
"I'm what?" Mary asked.
"I'm just saying, he's pretty determined, I have a feeling like he's going to be trying to walk within the next couple of hours but…"
"I'm going with you," Mary explained, leaving no room for argument.
"Mom…" Dean said.
"No. You need me. I'm not letting you go alone."
"You're very good, but it'll be dangerous, and Harry…"
"Harry will be fine," Mary argued, although her stomach dropped a little at the thought of leaving him in his current state. "But you two are going to face the Devil. You need all the help you can get."
"Mom…" this time Sam started.
"At the very least, Kelly could be going into labor. Have either one of you ever had a baby before? Are you prepared to help her?"
They both flinched at that. And they didn't answer.
"That's what I thought," she said. "Let me go grab my bag, and we'll head out."
"Who's going to stay with Harry then? He can't even get out of bed!"
"I can do it," came a voice from the hallway. They looked up, startled. They had completely forgotten that Teddy was still here. "I can watch over Harry," he said.
"You sure, kid?" Dean asked.
"I'm not a kid," Teddy insisted. "And he's my father. He's been looking after me my whole…well, most of my life."
"Alright," Dean said.
"Dean!" Sam chided.
"What? Kid's right. He's an adult. And he currently has more magic than Harry anyway. I'm sure he can keep his old man in line for a couple of days." Of course, Dean had no idea of knowing if it would only be a couple of days. That was what he was hoping. "Come on, Sam, we've got to hit the road."
Sam was still skeptical about putting Harry's health and safety in the hands of someone who was practically just a teenager. It wasn't fair to Harry or Teddy. But he couldn't see any other options. All of Harry's friends and Charlie were in London. Anyone else they knew was hours away.
"You two pack the car," Sam said. "I'm going to help Teddy erect some more wards. And make sure that he has all the contact numbers he needs before we leave."
Dean nodded and headed to the armory to grab some additional weapons while Mary went to get her stuff.
"Ok, Teddy, let me show you…."
III
"Hello, boys."
Sam, Dean, and Mary were at a gas station filling up on their way to Cas and Kelly, when Crowley appeared.
Dean didn't hesitate. He punched Crowley in the face and held the demon knife to his throat. "Did you do it? Did you let Lucifer out?"
"I didn't "let" – "
"Don't!" Dean growled.
"Moose, a little help here," Crowley begged.
"Dean, wait," Sam said, seeing sense in Crowley's desperation.
"Seriously?" Dean asked.
"Seriously?" Mary repeated.
"Look, just don't kill him. Not out here in the open." They glanced around the mostly empty gas station lot, but Dean had to concede that Sam had a point.
Dean inclined his head to move them to the backside of the station out of the view of the road and the clerk that was inside, all the while, keeping the knife firmly lodged near Crowley's back.
"Well?" Dean asked when they were out of view.
"He worked the cage spell with Rowena," Sam explained. "Maybe he can help us."
"And if he can't?" Mary asked.
"Well, then we kill him," Sam said.
"Cage spell? Thought you had my mother for that."
"Rowena's dead," Dean growled.
"Really?" Crowley asked, slight excitement in his voice.
"Yeah, really. Lucifer," Sam said.
"Funny. I always thought I'd be the one to kill her."
"Crowley…why did you do it? Save Lucifer – what did you want?"
"I wanted to win," Crowley explained. "I perverted mother's spell, put Lucifer in a vessel of my own making because I wanted to win. You have any idea how many people have made a play for my throne over the years? Lucifer, Abaddon, blah, blah, blah, blah. Too damn bad. I thought if I could put the Devil on a leash…my own personal nuke, no one would ever dare challenge me again."
"Yeah, that worked out great," Dean said sarcastically.
"All ended with me narrowly escaping death by hiding in a rat."
"Wait," Mary said. "In an…actual rat?"
"Wasn't too bad really," Crowley mused. "Gave me time to think. You know, I've been focused for so long on keeping my job. Never realized I hate it. All those whining demons, the endless moans of damned souls, the paperwork! I mean, who wants that?"
"You."
"Unh-unh. Once, maybe."
"So, why are you here?"
"Well, whenever there's a world-ending crisis at hand, I know where to place my bets. It's on you, you big, beautiful, lumbering piles of flannel. So, if you'll forgive my transgression, I'll make it worth your while."
"Which means?" Dean asked.
"I've…reignited my allyship with a good friend of yours. We struck a deal. I helped him and now I'll help him, and you. After we put Lucifer back in his cage – together – I'll seal the Gates of Hell. You'll never see another demon again, apart from, of course, yours truly."
"You would do that?" Mary asked.
"What good friend?" Dean wanted to know, having a sneaking suspicion.
Crowley looked at him, surprised. "Hmm, I was sure that he would have told you. Or Harry would have. Gabriel came to see me not that long ago."
"You made a deal with Gabriel?" Sam asked.
"Yeah. Thought you'd lot would like that."
Sam and Dean exchanged a glance but didn't say anything. They didn't know how to feel about Gabriel making a deal with Crowley. They only trusted the archangel marginally more than the demon.
"So, do we have a deal?" Crowley asked.
III
"Cas?" Kelly called out. "Cas? Castiel?" Each iteration of the name came out more desperate.
"Kelly," Cas called back, confirming his presence.
"I, umm, uh, nowhere. Um, is everything ok?" He asked when he finally came and found her upstairs.
"No. The baby…it's…I think it's time."
Her body shook with a contraction.
"Oh, my God," she said.
"Look at me," Castiel commanded.
"Oh, God," she repeated as the pain washed over her.
" – Everything's gonna be fine," the angel tried to soothe her.
"Oooh," she said.
Castiel got her on the bed as she continued into her labor.
"You're all right," he said. "The pressure waves are still far apart."
"Pressure waves?"
"It's what they – it's what they called contractions in my doula class. I – I took it online. For first-time mothers, labor can be 12 to 18 hours, sometimes, longer. It…although, given this is the child of Lucifer and a quasi-celestial being…"
"They didn't cover that online?" Kelly laughed dryly.
"They did not."
Cas got up and went to the window. The rift that had led him to the other dimension was still there. But nothing had come through. It appeared to be glowing more brightly.
"Cas?" Kelly asked pulling his attention back to her. "Thank you," she said sincerely. "For everything."
"Of course," Cas said, and moved back to her side.
III
They allowed Crowley to get in the Impala with them as they raced to get to Castiel and Kelly. Sam had to change some of the wardings on the Impala that had barred demons from being able to enter, but it hadn't taken more than a couple of minutes and some grumbling by Dean that anyone had done magic on his baby.
They pulled up in record time and Sam knew for a fact that it was only thanks to Harry's anti-Muggle enchantments on the car that they hadn't gotten pulled over.
"Hey, Crowley," Dean said, calling the demon to come over to the trunk of the Impala.
"Yes, Squirrel?" He asked.
With quick, brutal action, Dean shoved him into the trunk and closed the lid.
"Ahh!" He yelled out. Dean smirked.
To the trunk, he said, "Did you really think we're gonna trust you in there after what you pulled? No. You stay here, you lay there, and you shut up."
III
Kelly grabbed Cas's hand as another contraction rushed through her.
"Kelly," he said.
"Tell me again," she begged. "Tell me again what you saw."
"Right," Cas said, he looked Kelly in the eyes. She was looking at him like he was her only lifeline in the world. And he might have been. "I saw – I saw the future. I saw a world without pain or hunger or want. I saw this world that this child…that your child…"
She nodded, entranced.
"…will create."
Her eyes begged him to continue.
"And it is a world without fear and without suffering and without hate."
"Mm," she was really beginning to feel it now.
"I saw paradise," he finished.
The lights started to flicker. Castiel heard a car pull up outside. He took a deep breath – he thought this moment might come – especially with the rift that had been created. But he was ready to defend this baby. He took out his angel blade and headed down the stairs.
To his relief, standing in the front hall were Sam, Dean, and Mary.
"Dean?" He asked, not quite believing what he was seeing.
"Cas, is this place warded?" Sam asked, not wasting any time.
"Yes, heavily," Cas said.
"Heavy enough to stop Lucifer?" Dean asked.
Castiel's eyes widened. "Lucifer?"
"He could be right behind us," Mary said.
"I don't…what are you doing here?" Cas asked.
"Saving your ass," Dean said curtly.
"You and Kelly just taking off was a stupid move. But there's no way we're letting Lucifer get his hands on that kid. It ain't happening."
"Look, Sam's right, ok? We'll work through our crap. We always do. But right now, we are here to get you, get Kelly, and get gone."
"She can't be moved," Cas said with panic. "She's having a – "
They all heard Kelly groan with pain upstairs.
"I'll go check on her," Mary said, running up the stairs, not wanting to leave the woman alone.
"How much time do we have?" Castiel asked.
"We don't know," Sam responded.
"Hey, if he shows, can you flame on again? Can you torch Lucifer like you did Dagon?"
"I don't know," Castiel said honestly. "No," he realized. "That wasn't me. That was the child. And in case you haven't noticed, he's a little busy."
"Alright, we should double-check the warding," Sam said, rushing to run out the backdoor. Castiel immediately followed behind him.
"Wait," he said, realizing what Sam was going to see.
"Right. So, listen, if we uh…" Sam started before looking up. "Cas? What is that?"
"It's a tear in space and time," he explained like that would mean something to either Winchester brother.
"Uh, and that means?" Dean asked.
"It's a doorway to another dimension," Cas explained.
"Anoth – what, like Narnia?"
"No. More like Purgatory."
"That's Purgatory through there?" Dean asked, alarmed.
Cas shook his head. "No. That's not Purgatory, it's Limbo." At the blank looks, he continued his explanation. "It's another realm. One created by Lucifer to create demons so that his actions wouldn't be noticed by our father. Of course, it was sealed off when he was locked in the cage."
"If it was sealed off, how did this get here?"
"Well, the child being born, his power, it seems to be puncturing the fabric of our universe."
"Awesome," Dean said sarcastically.
"Yeah. And what exactly is on the other side?" Sam asked.
"You don't wanna know."
"Probably," Dean agreed. "But we need to."
The three of them stepped through the rift.
Sam and Dean looked around at the lush, rainforest-like environment. It was almost as if the air was a different color. Everything was so green. And wet.
"Whoa. Cas, what is this?"
"As I said, it's – it's like Purgatory. Without the creatures that inhabit it. It's still mostly demons. Old demons. No Leviathan here. No dragons. Just – "
"How do you know that?"
"A friend told me," Castiel said. Although he realized that friend was not a great word to use for this particular person.
"Oh, good. Now you're makin' friends? That's… all right, on a scale of 1 to 10, how bad is this?"
"I don't know," Sam said, stressed. "I gotta say, a, uh, hole in reality to a demon dimension? I'm gonna go with 11."
"Sounds right," Dean agreed.
"You don't have to worry," Cas said. "The child, he opened this door. He'll close it."
"You sure about that?" Dean asked, skeptical.
"I have faith."
"Really? In your unborn baby-God?"
"Yes."
"Well, then, you're a dumbass."
A hooded figure moved through the brush towards them. Sam pulled out his gun. "Guys, guys," he said, calling attention to the figure. Dean quickly drew his gun too.
"Hey! Hands in the air!" Dean demanded.
"No. Don't," Castiel said, trying to stop them.
The figure removed the hood that had obscured his face.
"Sirius?" Sam asked
III
Harry slipped carefully out of bed. Ouch, he thought as he put weight on his feet. Everything still hurt. Not for the first time, he wondered if he should stay out of this fight like Sam and Dean wanted. Like he had agreed to. He shook his head (which was pounding). They were going to square off with Lucifer – this time without him. The last time that they had done that the two of them had landed themselves in a secret government prison for a month.
Sure, he didn't have his angel powers right now. Or his wizarding ones, but he was a Winchester, damnit, and he knew how to shoot a gun.
And how dare Dean say that he would slow them down?
Fury alone fueled him as he went in search of some proper clothes. The flannel pajama bottoms and loose t-shirt he was currently wearing were hardly appropriate for a fight.
He missed his ability to just magic clothes on him, as removing the ones he currently had on was a bit of a trial. It was hard to move with his broken ribs aching in his chest. He was going to have to find some painkillers before he headed out of there.
If it weren't for the fact that it would have cost him dearly, he would have at least pumped his fist when he successfully stripped down to his pants. (He also tried not to think too hard on that being a victory.)
There was a chest of drawers just a couple of feet from where he was standing. He took a deep breath. And some annoyingly painful steps towards it and pulled out the first piece of clothing that he could find – a pair of jeans.
That would do.
Now to figure out how to get them on.
"Hey, Harry," came a voice from the suddenly opened door.
Damnit, Harry thought as he struggled to stay upright while he pulled up the right leg of the jeans.
"No!" Teddy shouted, quickly putting a tray down to run to Harry's side. "You shouldn't be doing that," he said as he reached his godfather in just a couple of steps.
The movement startled Harry so much that he lost his balance and fell to the floor before Teddy could reach him. "Ow," he said, fire burning through his body. Fire from injuries, not from the poison that he had been fed by Asmodeus. That was an improvement, at least.
"Let's get you back to bed," Teddy said, trying to lift him up from his bum.
Harry batted his arms away.
"I'm fine Teddy," he practically growled. With great effort, he managed to right himself. And then he went for the left leg of the jeans.
"Harry, why are you trying to get dressed?" Teddy asked carefully, although he had a pretty good idea of why that might be. It made his stomach drop.
"I'm sick of lying about all day," Harry responded. "Figured I'd make myself useful around the Bunker. Maybe do some research, call in some favors," he lied, to hide his true intentions.
Teddy wasn't buying it.
"Harry, you are barely standing right now. And how are you going to call anyone without magic?"
Harry scowled. "I have a mobile."
"Great. That will help you call who, exactly? Everyone is still busy cleaning up with Men of Letters business with the Wizengamot. And, unlike you, even if you could get them on the phone, by the time they got here it would be too late."
"Hunters," Harry clarified. "And believe it or not, Edward, I can call in more than just my friends in Great Britain."
Ted had put up with a great deal of bullshit for the last couple of months and he had known Harry his entire life, but he was having a hard time coming up with an argument against that. "Fine, but you're out of breath from putting on a pair of trousers. You can make those calls from bed."
Harry was exhausted and the bed, although far from the most comfortable he had ever slept in, did seem inviting at that moment. With as much bravado as he could muster, he moved towards the bed and sat.
Ted's face softened. "Good. I brought you breakfast, by the way," he brought the tray over to the bed.
Harry looked at it.
"What's this?"
Teddy blushed. "It's scrambled eggs and toast."
Harry looked down at the blobs on the plate. Somehow, the eggs had become an unappetizing grey color and the toast looked like it had never seen a toaster.
"Thanks, Teddy," Harry said with fake enthusiasm. "It was…nice of you to make this for me."
Ted wasn't really paying attention to the tone, however. "I was happy to," he said. "But – uh, that's not the only reason I came in here."
Harry looked up sharply.
Ted looked slightly away, not really wanting to deliver this news. "I came in here to tell you that I just got off a call with Uncle Ron."
"Ron called?" Harry perked up.
"Yeah. He's worried about you. Everyone is. If things weren't so terribly cocked up at home, he'd be here, and would Aunt Hermione and Aunt Ginny. Aunt Hermione is already having to pull strings to stop me from being called in front of the Wizengamot. But she is doing her best to keep me out of the political circus." Ted was grateful for that. Plus, Harry needed someone to watch over him.
"I'm glad that she is," Harry said. "Is Ron alright?"
"He's fine," Teddy said quickly. "Relieved that you're not…uh…"
"Being tortured by a demon?" Harry filled in.
Teddy went red. "Yeah. That. But you know, he was at the Burrow to check-in to make sure that everything was set for Rosie and Hugo who'll be coming home from Hogwarts soon. Well, that's what he told me, but I think that…"
"Teddy, please, get to the point."
"Well, he's not the quietest bloke in the world and Gran Weasley overheard our conversation."
Harry paled. He had a feeling that he knew where this was going.
"And?" He dared to ask, even though he already knew what was coming.
"She, erm, wasn't very happy that, uh, Sam and Dean left you here with just me. And because she's not involved in the trial at all, she's…well, she's on her way," Teddy looked at Harry nervously.
Harry did his best to hide his panic. Not that he didn't want to see Molly. If he were planning on staying here in the Bunker while his brothers were in danger, it would have been ideal. But Molly would be a great deal harder to get past than Teddy. With a sigh that might have been a little over-the-top, Harry said, "That's fine." He tried to make his voice sound resigned. Acting really wasn't his strong suit. "Honestly, I'm a little surprised that Dean didn't call her in himself. This is probably for the best. You won't have to take on the burden of looking after me all yourself."
Teddy's face fell. "I could've done it!" he protested.
"Of course, Teds," Harry said, pointedly not looking at the breakfast that he had been brought. "I'm not doubting you. But you've just been through your own ordeal. This will allow you to relax a little more. But I know that Molly will appreciate any help you can give."
Teddy looked a little mollified by that.
"When will she get here?" Harry asked as casually as he could manage.
"I think it'll take a couple of hours to get her a Portkey. Then I'll meet her in town. We wanted to make it as secure as possible and didn't want the Portkey office to have the location of this Bunker."
Harry appreciated their attention to that detail. Anything to keep Sam and Dean off as many radars as possible. He nodded and tried to think quickly. Which was much harder now that he didn't have angelic grace. "Good. Alright. Well, then, I have a job for you."
Teddy's face brightened.
"You need to go around the common rooms of the Bunker – particularly the kitchen and try and remove anything that is…too Muggle occultist. Sam tends to leave ingredients everywhere, and I don't want Molly to accidentally come across something that could hurt her. Or you."
"I can do that," Teddy said with confidence.
Harry gave him an encouraging nod. He yawned. "You're right, I'm exhausted. But I'm glad I got dressed at least. Why don't you go do that and let your old godfather get some rest?"
"You are ancient," Teddy said cheekily.
"Go on, get," Harry said with a smile. Teddy did.
Harry laid back in the bed thinking. The kitchen was a little close to Dean's room for Harry's taste, but he figured that would be the best bet for finding some guns before leaving on the trip. While he had Teddy scouring the Bunker, he would gather supplies. Once it was time for him to go get Molly, he'd make his escape.
He might not be able to fly either with his wings or by broom but he could drive a car. Probably. He'd never really bothered to learn past a lesson or two from Hermione right after the war. He'd watched others do it, and how hard could it be? He had seen the collection of cars in the garage so he'd have plenty to choose from. And then he'd drive as quickly as possible to his brothers. They had only left a couple of hours before, so he should be able to catch up with them easily enough. He wouldn't let his brothers face this threat alone. Not while he was still breathing.
III
"Sam, Dean," Sirius said greeting the two men. "I didn't expect to see the two of you. Ever again." Neither brother could tell if he was happy or not.
"We didn't expect to see you either," Sam said with caution. "How'd you get here from Purgatory?"
"Wait," Dean said. "You know who this is? How the hell do you know him?"
"We met with I went through Purgatory to save Bobby," Sam said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"You never mentioned that to me!"
"Well, you never mentioned that you practically spent a year with him either, did you?" Sam shot back. "I figured we were just not sharing tales of Purgatory."
"That was…you didn't…I…"
"Are they always like this?" Sirius asked Castiel.
"Pretty much," Castiel responded with a shrug.
"How do they get anything done?"
"They don't," came a fourth voice. "They're pretty much useless, all things considered."
Everyone's eyes snapped up.
"Gabriel?" Sam asked, recognizing the Archangel immediately. "We thought that Lucifer had gotten you."
Gabriel snorted. "Yeah. I'm sure you did. He did too, by the way. But my brother has always underestimated me. He thought that his pathetic Prince of Hell could capture me? That he could hold me? He's a bigger moron than either one of you and that's really sayin' something."
They all just stared at him.
"Look, we don't have a lot of time for stories," Gabriel said. "So, long story short, after Asmodeus' last stunt I knew that he and my brother were using Limbo for their dastardly deeds. I devised a plan with Crowley to get me here so that we could permanently lock Lucifer away, in the dimension he created himself. It was quite ingenious. But, of course, that's what you'd expect from me, isn't it? Now, where is our favorite demon?"
"Crowley?" Sam asked, dazed by this whole thing. "Cas did you know about this?"
Castiel frowned. "No. But if it would work…"
"What do you mean if, you dimwit? It's foolproof."
Dean groaned. That was never a good sign. Nothing was foolproof.
"What does Sirius have to do with this?" Sam asked.
"Oh, Padfoot and I go way back, don't we?" Gabriel asked.
"Oh yes. A whole 24 hours," Sirius said. "Gabe's gonna help me with my cause."
"Which is?" Sam asked.
"You know Samuel, creating a safe place for those of us condemned to wizard hell. All wizards, regardless of blood status."
"It's Sam."
"Ha! You owe me ten galleons, Padfoot," Gabriel said, gesturing as if he was asking for money.
"Yeah, yeah," the wizard grumbled. "I'll get right on that."
"I'll just take it out of your account when I'm topside. Teddy won't miss it."
Sam and Dean exchanged a look. They may not have told each other about having met Harry's godfather while in Purgatory, but they both silently agreed that him teaming up with Gabriel was an incredibly bad idea.
"Sam, Dean, we need to get back to Kelly," Castiel said, silently agreeing with his friends about the Gabriel and Sirius team-up. Sirius hadn't mentioned anything about it when they had first met."
"Yeah, yeah, of course," Dean said. "You want to talk us through this plan of yours?"
"Not really," Gabriel said.
"Gabe thinks you'll just arse it up," Sirius added. "I have a little more confidence in you."
"That's because you haven't spent enough time with them," Gabriel insisted.
"Want to make another bet?"
"You're on."
Sam rolled his eyes.
"I do, unfortunately, have a job for the two of you," Gabriel said.
Sam and Dean looked at them.
"Get Crowley here."
"Crowley?" Sam asked.
"Yeah, you heard me. Limey Bastard. Sometimes King of Hell."
"Why do you want him here?"
"That's for me to know and you to find out," Gabriel said. "Honestly, we don't have time for this. My brother is going to be here any minute now. Crowley's prayers can't reach me here so I need you to fetch him for me."
"Crowley prays to you?" Sam asked incredulously.
Gabriel smirked.
"Working with Crowley is…ill-advised," Castiel said with a frown. "He can't be trusted."
"No shit, Sherlock," Gabriel said. "Only a complete idiot would trust him at all. But I've got him by the gonads and he knows it. Now, stop arguing with me and mush!"
No one liked that, but they couldn't argue the point. Sam, Dean, and Castiel went back through the portal.
III
"Why couldn't we could have taken care of Castiel just now? It would have been easy," Sirius said seriously to Gabriel after the Winchesters had left with their angel.
"It would have, but it's all about timing," Gabriel said. "We need Lucifer trapped more than we need Castiel dead. Once we have Lucifer we'll take him out."
"I still can't believe that Sam and Dean would let him live after what he did to Harry," Sirius said, rage in his tone. "I thought it was bad enough with what Castiel told me, but with what you added…"
"Well, you're a very good actor," Gabriel said. "I was impressed. He won't see it coming."
"Wish he would," Sirius said. "I want him to suffer. Like Harry did."
"Oh, don't worry, where he's headed there will be plenty of suffering," Gabriel said. "And yours will be over."
Sirius smiled. It had been a no-brainer working with Gabriel. As soon as the archangel had told him about his adventures with Harry, he was in. If Harry trusted him, so did Sirius. But the icing on the cake was that Gabriel had promised that he could be with his godson again. Which meant going to Heaven. Finally.
"You really think, after all this time, I'll be able to get in?" Sirius asked.
"You, my friend, have it more than the next hundred wizards," Gabriel said. "But I promised you that I would help you get justice for Harry. This just has the added bonus of also sealing Lucifer in for good."
"I can't believe that I'm going to finally get to see Harry again," Sirius said. "I have so much I want to say to him. And to Lily and James. And Remus. All of them really. Do you think he even wants to see me, after all this time?"
"Padfoot, I don't think there is anything he would like more," Gabriel responded sincerely. And this was just what he needed to finally get Harry to break away from his brothers.
"I can't wait to see my friends again," Sirius couldn't help but repeat. "You said that you haven't seen him since he died right? You're sure that…"
"I'm 100 percent sure that Harry went to Heaven when he died," Gabriel said. "You'll be with your family again."
"Good. And Castiel will be dead."
"Exactly."
III
"Are you alright?" Castiel asked when they had returned through the rift.
"No, Cas," Dean responded. "Pretty far from all right. I mean, we've got Lucifer on this side, and we've got Limbo on that side. I mean, yeah, we've been down before, but this? I – I mean, I don't even know where to start."
Crowley appeared in the yard.
"Oh, come on!" Dean said.
"Hello, boys," the demon said. "Again."
"Wait a second, how the hell did you – "
Crowley cocked an eyebrow. "I improvised. Lucky, I did. Turns out I'm the answer to all your problems."
III
Castiel left Sam and Dean talking plans with Crowley in the backyard. He was more concerned with Kelly and he trusted his friends to handle the situation. Which could be foolish, he supposed.
He knocked on the woman's door. "May I speak to her?" He asked Mary, who was holding the young woman's hands.
"Sure," Mary said.
"Mary," Kelly said, not wanting her to leave.
"I'll be back," she assured her.
"Ok. Cas…what's wrong?"
III
"You ready?" Dean asked as he handed Sam his gun. They had talked it through with Crowley but it all seemed insane. And he didn't like they hadn't had more time to do anything other than to hear the plan. But, at this point, he didn't think they had any other option. He just had to hope that Gabriel and Crowley were on the up-and-up. Which was a big hope.
"Nope," Sam said in response. "When has that ever stopped us?"
"Yeah. You know, Cas has faith in this kid."
"Mm."
"Harry too. They're right. But me? I have faith in us. You, me, Mom, Harry, and Cas. And Crowley. Sometimes."
"Mm."
"This is gonna work. It has to."
III
"Well…this is a fun surprise," Lucifer said when he arrived in the front yard of the safehouse, where Sam, Dean, and Cas were standing out front. "I gotta hand it to you guys. You never give up, even when you should. Even when it would be so stupid not to."
"Look, whatever you're planning on doing, Chuck…God will stop you, just like he did last time," Sam said with confidence.
"You're right? What should I do? Oh, God! Don't strike me dead!" He said with fake fear. "Come on, Sam. You sound like a virgin in Jesus Camp. 'We can't. God is watching.' No. Chuck, 'walked.' He's gone."
"So, you're gonna smash his toys?" Dean asked.
"Exactly. 'Cause every time I look at this sad, trash fire of a world, you know what I keep thinking? I could do so much better."
"So, Apocalypse, take two. That's your plan?"
"When in doubt, go with the classics. That's what I always say. Well, boys, enough with the foreplay. Let's do this."
"See you on the other side boys," Dean said, nodding his head to Sam and Cas.
Castiel charged at Lucifer, angel blade in hand. Lucifer swatted him off as if he was nothing – he landed with a thump just a couple of feet away. He didn't get up.
Sam and Dean looked at Cas and then at each other. They both took off running towards the back of the house.
"Mature," Lucifer said. "Real mature!" He started walking towards where the Winchesters had run to. "You guys? I really want to enjoy this. Really wanna savor just ripping you apart, gettin' all up in there, and gettin' all gooey. But, you know, little slugger's almost here and, uh…Well, I'm on the clock."
On the back side of the house, Sam and Dean were standing on either side of the rift in wait for Lucifer. As soon as they saw that he could watch, they disappeared to the other side.
"Interesting," Lucifer said, following them through. He looked disappointed when he got to the other side. "Limbo, guys? Really? I thought you were trying to make this harder on me, not easier. This is my world, you know."
He looked around and couldn't see the Winchesters anywhere. He sighed. This was a ridiculous waste of his time. This was his realm and quickly, Lucifer realized that he could just go back through the rift and seal it on the way back, taking care of his little Winchester problem. At least, for long enough to get his boy.
He turned to leave, only to find his path blocked.
"Gabriel?"
Gabriel smirked. "Surprised?"
Lucifer tilted his head. Surprised wasn't the word he would use. More than anything he was almost…impressed. It was too bad that he was going to have to kill Gabriel – he could have made things more interesting. "How did you escape Asmodeus' cage?"
"I was never in it," Gabriel said. "But I did follow him here. Clever how you disguised the entrances. Don't worry though. I've sealed them all now. That rift behind you? That's the last one."
Lucifer wasn't worried. He let his blade fall into his hand.
Gabriel did the same.
Sam and Dean used the impending fight as the distraction they needed to make their way over to where Sirius and Crowley were working.
"Took you long enough," Crowley groused.
"Not now, Crowley," Sam snapped. "What do you need to get this done?"
"Well, first, I'm happy to have you here Moose, this twat can barely hold two thoughts in his head at the same time," he indicated to Sirius. Dean couldn't help but smirk.
"Hey, who are you calling twat, you wanker?" Sirius quipped back.
"Now is really not the time," Dean said, watching as Gabriel and Lucifer started to circle each other. He was concerned that Gabriel wouldn't last long in the actual fight.
"He's worse than that brother of yours," Crowley continued to complain as he worked. "And I didn't think that was possible."
Sirius stopped working to look up directly at the demon. "You knew Harry?"
"Knew?" Crowley asked, confused. "That twerp has been…"
"Enough," Sam cut him off. He didn't know why Gabriel didn't tell Sirius that Harry was alive, but now was not the time for that revelation to come to light. "Do I need to remind you of what is at stake here?"
Crowley stopped work long enough to glare at the tallest Winchester. "We do this ritual, we seal that rift, and we lock the Devil in this godforsaken place. Two birds, one spell."
"Right, just hurry," Sam urged.
The archangels were now locked in battle – no more circling. Dean's heart went up and down with each action. Gabriel managed to scrape Lucifer's face with his archangel blade, only to be pushed down. He only just recovered from having his head slammed to the ground enough to roll out of the way as Lucifer came in for the kill.
"Guys…" Dean said to the trio.
Sam started narrating what they needed to add next. "It's Dead Sea Brine, uh, mercury, lamb's blood, holy oil. Oh, and – uh – blood from…" he looked up at Sirius, who nodded and pulled out a knife. He cut his hand and bled into the bowl that Crowley was mixing ingredients in. Sam and Crowley did the same. "That's the last of it," Sam said, relief filling his voice, "that's everything."
"No, it's not," Crowley responded.
"What?"
"If we wanna seal that rift, we need one more minor ingredient," he said matter-of-factly.
Sam looked down desperately at his list. He didn't see anything else. " – What?" he asked, dread making him feel sick.
" – A life," Crowley said. He turned to Sirius, who nodded.
"No!" Sam called out. He might not be a fan of Sirius, but he couldn't go back to Harry knowing that they had allowed his beloved godfather to sacrifice himself. "Sirius you can't, Harry…"
"Look!" Dean called out, turning all their attention back to the fight. Gabriel was now down on one knee on the ground, covered in bruises and blood.
"You lose," Lucifer said to him. "Surrender. You've proven to be interesting. More resourceful than I ever gave you credit for. I think you could be useful to me still. And to my son. We could keep you as…a…court jester of sorts. After a suitable punishment, of course. And some groveling. A lot of groveling, actually."
"Bite me," Gabriel ground out.
Crowley hadn't wanted to pull this card yet, but he knew what he needed to do. Lucifer was thrown away from the kneeling Gabriel by an invisible force as Crowley stepped out from where they were hiding.
"Surprise," he said.
"Crowley!"
Sam rushed over to help Gabriel and the two of them moved towards the rift. Sirius stayed hidden. Dean carefully made his way over to the wizard.
He leaned over and whispered to him. "Hey – Sirius, I know that you and I didn't leave on the best of terms, but I gotta warn you."
Sirius gave Dean an evaluating look. "Yeah?"
"Gabriel – he's not who he pretends to be."
"And what exactly does he pretend to be?" Sirius asked.
"A good guy," Dean said. "But at the end of the day, he only cares about two people. And if you aren't one of those two people, you're expendable."
"Who are they?"
"Himself and…" Dean hesitated. "It doesn't matter. I don't know what he has you doing, but whatever it is, be assured that he is only doing it for himself. Watch your back."
Sirius barked a laugh. "I have nothing left to lose. Don't worry about me, Dean. Go, help Sam get Gabriel back to the other side. I'll be fine. I gotta help the tosser." The two of them turned their attention back to the showdown happening in front of them.
"You sneaky little… So, I guess I get to kill you twice, huh, Crowley?" Lucifer taunted.
"I doubt it," Crowley said.
"Oh, no, no. You had your chance. You could've put me back in the Cage, but…you had to make it personal, didn't you?"
Dean quickly made his way over to Sam and Gabriel. Sirius stayed in his hiding place.
"You're right. It is personal," Crowley said to Lucifer. "You humiliated me. I – I hate you. Deeply. Truly. I'm gonna enjoy wiping that smug, self-satisfied look off your face. Personally."
"You mean…this one?" Lucifer pointed to his smiling face.
Crowley dropped an angel blade down into his hand.
"Come on, Crowley. You know whatever you try, you're gonna lose."
"You're right. But even when I lose, I win," he said. He turned to Sam and Dean, but before he could do anything else, Cas came through the rift, storming past them, angel blade in hand.
"Cas?" Dean asked.
"'Bout time Feathers," Crowley muttered. "Mutt?" He looked back at Sirius, who crossed over to the King of Hell in just a couple of strides, steely determination on his face. Crowley handed him the angel blade.
Sam's eyes widened, realizing what was happening just a second too late. Of course, Crowley wasn't going to sacrifice himself. "No!" He shouted.
Sirius, with the angel blade clasped in his hand, started running towards the fight. He watched as Castiel charged at Lucifer. He wanted to Devil gone, of course, but not as much as he wanted the no-good son-of-a-bitch who killed Harry dead.
The two of them fought, hand-to-hand. With sheer force of will, Castiel seemed to be holding his own, which Sirius couldn't believe.
Then Lucifer got fed up and blasted the angel back, towards the rift.
Castiel got up, ready to go back through.
Over Sirius' dead body was he going to let that angel win.
"No!" Sam yelled again.
"This is for Harry!" Sirius roared. He took advantage of the fact that Castiel had fallen prone from Lucifer's spell. He swiftly stabbed him in the chest.
"Cas! Cas! Cas!" Dean yelled out as he watched his friend slump over.
Gabriel seemed to regain strength. He drew the angel blade out of Cas' chest and threw it to Crowley to complete the spell, while he went back to fighting with Lucifer.
"No, no, no, no, no, no!" Sam shouted while he had to physically restrain Dean from going to Cas's side. "We gotta go! We gotta go!"
Dean fought him off. He rushed over to the fallen angel and with strength that he didn't realize he had, pulled his body back to the rift.
"Take Cas back – we'll get him back," he said. Fury was running through his veins. He was going to kill that baby-stealing son-of-a-bitch.
"Dean. No, come on," Sam said, urging Dean towards the rapidly closing portal. He helped his brother with their friend's body. Just to make things easier. "Come on!" Dean was no longer fighting him. The three of them returned home.
III
Kelly screamed as she pushed.
Mary was doing her best to be supportive, but having been in this position herself, she knew that there was very little she could do. She was sitting on the edge of the bed just to be a supportive presence.
The woman was moaning until…she wasn't. A look of peace came over her face as it started to glow gold.
"I love you," she said, with a smile.
The golden light exploded and knocked Mary off the bed and onto the floor.
III
Harry had a problem as he looked at the available cars in the Bunker's garage. First, it had taken him far longer than it should have to limp down here, but second, Dean had never made good on his promise to teach him how to drive. In the Impala or otherwise.
He hadn't thought it would ever be a problem. After all, even if apparating was too far, he could fly on a broom. And, once he was an angel, he could just use his wings. But Sam, Dean, and Gabriel had seen to making that impossible.
Even if he had a broom readily available, he was pretty sure that with his magic bond, he wouldn't be able to fly it anyway.
But time was of the essence. And once Molly was here, there would be no sneaking out.
His eyes landed on a motorbike. After the war, Mr. Weasley had taken great pains to repair Sirius' motorbike that Hagrid had crashed while they had been fleeing Death Eaters. When it was complete, he returned it to Harry. In honor of his godfather, Harry had learned to ride it, frequently taking long drives into the countryside when things got overwhelming.
Sure, these ones probably couldn't fly, but in principle they should be the same. And that would be far less dodgy than trying to drive one of the ancient cars.
Grabbing the helmet on it and turning the key, Harry smiled.
He could do this.
He had to do this.
III
Gabriel realized that he was likely about to die in combat with his brother. He was fighting with everything he had, but Lucifer was stronger than him. He always had been. But he wasn't going to go down without doing something for Harry first. He couldn't leave his friend, his love, to be without protection from his brothers.
"Crowley!" He shouted as the two of them fought together.
"What?" Crowley asked. "Little busy," as he danced out of the way of an attack from Lucifer.
"I've got this," Gabriel said.
"But the deal…"
"I know what's in the deal," Gabriel snapped as he managed to sock Lucifer in the stomach. "Your debt to me will be completely forgiven if you get Sirius out of here."
"But he can't go through the portal!" Crowley said.
"Yeah. Before he couldn't. Couldn't let him out too soon. Needed his help. But I promised to reunite him with Harry."
Lucifer had a near miss on Crowley's head. With a thunderous roar, Gabriel used all the grace he could to fly at his brother and knock him away.
"Go, now!" He yelled.
Crowley didn't need to be told twice. He dropped the angel blade with Castiel's blood on it into the spell bowl.
Sirius, who had just been staring at where the angel's body had been with amazement, was surprised to find himself being pushed towards the rift.
"Let's go, mutt."
"Take care of Harry!" Gabriel yelled.
It was the last thing they heard before they both tumbled out the other side.
III
"We have to get Gabriel back," Dean said immediately after they went through the rift.
"You think that this isn't what he had planned all along?" Sam asked angrily.
"Yeah. Maybe. But he's the only one who can bring Cas back," Dean said. "We've got to go get him. He can bring Cas back and then we can kick his ass."
"Dean – you can't go back through that portal," Sam said desperately. "It's almost closed. And the spell we just did. It will permanently seal the whole dimension off. No one will be getting in and out ever again."
Before they had a chance to argue further, Crowley and Sirius came crashing back into their world.
"You!" Dean shouted, ready to charge the wizard.
"Nah uh, Squirrel," Crowley said and he disappeared taking Sirius with him.
"No!" Dean yelled in frustration.
It looked like the rift was seconds away from closing. Lucifer came striding through, cleaning his hands, covered in blood, off on his jeans.
"That was fun," he said with a smirk. "You know – you two had me going for a second. You'd think that between you two, the wizard, the demon, and my brother you would have been able to take me. I guess luck is just not on your side today. Seriously, guys, points for trying. Super impressed, but uh…playtime's over."
Mary came charging out into the yard, Enochian brass knuckles clenched in her hand. "Get away from them!" She yelled.
"Mary, right?" Lucifer said. "Yeah, I've heard about you. You, uh, are certainly living up to the hype. Look, seriously, I just wanted to say thank you for everything. I owe ya, kid."
Mary stepped towards the Devil. Sam tried to stop her.
"Mom, Mom, Mom," he said.
"I love you," she said to him.
She punched Lucifer in the face.
"Cute. Is that all you got, mama?" Lucifer taunted.
Mary punched him again, and again. With each blow, red grace lit up under his skin. Her punches start pushing him back towards the rift.
Lucifer started to tilt back towards the rift, but before he fell through completely, he grabbed Mary and pulled her in with him.
The rift disappeared.
END OF PART ONE
Well folks, there you have it! I think I've spent more hours on this chapter than I ever have on any other single chapter of this fic. Fight scenes are hard. And I rewrote many of the scenes multiple times. Thank goodness for D&D, which has taught me how battles should go.
I can't wait to hear what you think! Did you like it? Are you going to rage quit reading this fic? Were you surprised to see Sirius and even more surprised at what he did? I tried to hint that he was on his way but I may have been too subtle. I can't seem to find the place between not smacking people over the head but still making it clear that I'm foreshadowing.
From here on out we are going more off-book than ever before. Throwing canon straight out the window. I'm excited.
I have been on a writing hiatus for the last couple of weeks as I prepared this ending and now I am back at work writing the next, and dear god, hopefully, the last part of this fic. I plan to be back on September 9th! In the meantime, I will be attending my first ever Supernatural convention in August, doing GISH, and going to DragonCon!
From the bottom of my heart, thank you all for continuing to read. This fanfic is keeping me sane and I appreciate each and every one of you for letting me share this with you. Can't wait to bring you the finale!
