Author's Note: I realized that Chapters 15 and 16 were the same, so I replaced Chapter 16 with what it was supposed to be... I'm sorries! Thanks babygirlz for the tip! Seriously, please review people!

This part, where Sam takes Dean along on "faith", always annoyed me. He's got a lot of faith in Dean, I get that... but he's also not stupid. I like my way better. Let me know. Reviews make me SQUEE.

I don't own Supernatural.

***Ember POV***

April 15, Night

It was less than a week later, and not much had changed. Dean had been locked in Bobby's panic room for much of the previous five days, after admitting that his plan was to agree to become Michael's vessel. He had even somehow managed to banish Castiel and break out of the panic room. It hadn't been Ember who had found him and brought him back, but Castiel, who had returned staggering inside half-carrying a very bloody Dean Winchester.

"What happened to him?" Bobby said with surprise.

"Me," Castiel answered.

"Good," Ember said, rolling her eyes, and nobody commented further.

To make matters worse, the angels had brought back the third Winchester brother, Adam, from the dead. Adam reported that Zachariah had offered him a chance to be Michael's vessel as well, and he had accepted because Zachariah had promised him that he would be reunited with his dead mother.

"What do you think," Sam asked Ember, Bobby, and Castiel late that night. "Do you think they've given up on Dean, or they're just using him as bait?"

"Bait, definitely," said Ember.

"Yeah, I think so too," Bobby said.

"I'm out of ideas," said Castiel. "How about you three?"'

There was silence. Ember sighed. "I've got one," she said, "but it's… terrible, frankly."

"Well, let's hear it," Bobby said.

"Well, we can't storm the gates, right? We know where Zachariah is holding Adam, but we need all the help we can get to break him out."

"Right," said Castiel.

"Dean would be the most helpful in storming the gates, because they won't try to kill him. But we can't get any help from Dean, because if he gets inside he'll simply offer himself up as a sacrifice, right?"

"Right," said Sam.

"So… reverse psychology."

"What?" asked all three men together.

"Reverse psychology. You know… pretend we have faith in Dean to continue to turn Michael down. Lay it on really thick. Sam, you could use lines like, 'You're still my big brother. When push comes to shove, you'll make the right decision.' And I'll use lines like, 'You're smart enough to know that it'll make Sam and I feel guilty for the rest of our lives if you do this.' You know, crap like that."

Sam appeared to mull the idea over for a bit. "You know, that's not a bad idea."

"It's a terrible idea," Castiel said. "But it's the best we've got."

Bobby sighed. "So we're going to attempt to convince Dean to continue refusing Michael by playing on his sense of guilt, then ask him to help us break out Adam?"

"I'm all ears if you have a better plan," Ember said.

Bobby sighed. "Well, I guess it's a good thing Dean's got a lot of guilt."

***Dean POV***

April 16, Day

Dean Winchester was positive that Ember and Sam had lost their minds. If it had been him – if it had been any sane person – they'd've kept him in the panic room. The two of them allowing him to go help break Adam out of the angel room was ludicrous. They trusted him to make the right decision? Didn't they understand he planned to turn himself in to Michael?

Even as he thought this, though, he wondered if he was doing it for the wrong reasons. When Sam had talked to him about his decision to turn himself in to Michael the day before, Dean had come up with a load of crap about not trusting Sam. "I don't know whether it's gonna be demon blood, or some other demon chick, or what, but… I do know they're gonna find a way to turn you." At the time, he'd thought he'd been over Sam's actions from a year ago, and that he'd just said what he'd said to get Sam to leave him alone or even stomp off in a huff and let him out of the panic room. Now, he wondered how much of his desire to turn himself over to Michael was because he didn't trust Sam, versus how much of it was really a desire to save Sam, Ember, and the universe as a whole. But weren't they the same thing?

And how angry would he be if Sam or Ember had taken the sacrifice route? Hadn't all of this trouble started in the first place because Dean had sacrificed himself for Sam and gotten himself sent to Hell? Dean had been so sure of his actions yesterday, but Sam's belief in him had shaken him.

Once they had been "Team Free Will" – one ex blood junkie, one drop out with six bucks to his name, a half demon, and Mr. Comatose." Dean remembered calling them this one time early in the apocalypse, when Castiel had rebelled against the angels and paid the price. Dean smiled at the memory fondly.

Now, "Team Free Will" (if they could still call themselves that) walked slowly toward the abandoned muffler factory in Van Nuys, California where Adam was being held by the angels. "There are at least five angels in there," Castiel said.

"So?" Dean said. "You're fast." He still bore the scars from the angels' beating the previous evening.

"They're faster," said Castiel. He sighed. "I'll clear them out. Ember, you can help, like we discussed last night. You two grab the boy. This is our only chance."

"Whoa, wait," said Dean. "You're gonna take on 5 angels?"

"Yes," said Castiel.

"Isn't that suicide?" asked Dean.

"Maybe it is," said Castiel. "But then I won't have to watch you fail."

Dean's heart sank a little further. When he'd first decided to agree to Michael, he hadn't realized it would mean letting his friends down quite this much. "I'm sorry Dean," Castiel said. "I don't have the same faith in you that Sam and Ember do."

There was that faith again, the unwavering faith of his brother and his girlfriend. Dean watched, his heart full of guilt, as his best friend carved a banishing sigil into his own chest so that he could banish as many angels as possible, including himself.

He watched with guilt as his girlfriend and his best friend fought the four angels guarding the door to the room where Adam was being held, but his girlfriend was stopped by specific warding on the door to the room, and only Sam and Dean could pass.

He realized, full of guilt, that the whole thing had been a trap to get him to the room where Adam was being held, and that Adam had been used as bait.

He watched with guilt as Zachariah tortured his two brothers, and his girlfriend watched, unable to help, from outside, through a glass wall that Zachariah had created.

Fuck Zachariah. Fuck all the angels, except for Cas, who may be dead.

So in the end, perhaps Sam and Ember were right to have faith in him. He had been right in the first place. He would kill demons, and angels, and everything that came in his path, for family and for free will. And he started with Zachariah, with an angel blade through the face.

But the room was shaking, and Michael was coming, and Sam and Dean were hurrying through the door, and somehow, in the end, Adam was still too slow. The door shut on him and turned white-hot. When Dean was able to open the door again, it was no longer a beautiful room containing a dead angel, but simply the abandoned office of the abandoned muffler factory.

***Dean POV***

May 5, Day

After Adam disappeared with the angels, things seemed to happen much faster in regards to the apocalypse. Near the end of April, the angel Gabriel fought Lucifer and was killed, but he left Sam and Dean with information: "Without me, you've got zero shot at killing Lucifer. Sorry. But, you can trap him. The cage you sprung Lucifer from is still down there. And maybe, just maybe, you can shove his ass back in.

"Not that it'll be easy. You gotta get the cage open, trick my bro back into it, and uh – oh yeah – avoid Michael and the God squad. But hey – details, right?

"And here's the big secret," Gabriel continued. "Lucifer himself doesn't even know. But the key to the cage – it's out there. Actually, it's keys - plural. Well, four rings. From the Horsemen. You get them all, you got the cage."

And so they had their plan. The group had already obtained the rings belonging to War and Famine, so they already had half of what they needed. Thanks (ironically) to the demon Crowley, by the end of April the brothers were also able to nail down a location for Pestilence, one of the two remaining Horsemen.

Finally, at the beginning of May, Sam approached Dean with a proposition.

"Assuming we do get all of the rings," Sam said one afternoon on the way to Bobby's, "How the hell are we going to trick Lucifer into the cage?"

Dean looked at Ember in the back seat, who met his eye, but said nothing.

"No idea," Dean responded to his brother. "But we'll think of something." Worst case scenario, Sam could drink demon blood, and between Sam, Ember, and Crowley, perhaps they could get the job done. He wasn't going to suggest that idea, though.

"Well, I've got an idea," Sam said.

"Go on," said Dean with trepidation, pulling into Bobby's in South Dakota.

"Now don't get mad, Dean-…"

"No. No, you are not about to suggest that you let Lucifer wear you to the prom," Dean said, growing increasingly irritable. He slammed the door to the Impala and walked up to Bobby's, Sam and Ember in his wake.

"Well, I was just thinking that sometimes people can resist possession, like that demon Julia last year who exorcised the demon after she had Jesse-…"

"Yeah, after nine months!" exclaimed Ember. "Sam, that's a ridiculous idea!"

"She's right," Dean said. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Dean-…"

"No, don't 'Dean' me! I mean, you have had some stupid ideas in the past, but this – Did you know about this?" Dean asked, looking at Bobby.

"What?" Bobby asked.

"About Sam's genius plan to say yes to the devil?"

Bobby looked downward, and Ember admonished, "Bobby! Why didn't you call us?"

"Well thanks for the head's up!" Dean yelled at him.

"Hey, this ain't about me," Bobby defended.

"You can't do this," Dean told Sam fiercely.

"That's the consensus," Sam said, noncommittally.

"And you promised you wouldn't do it unless we agreed," Ember told Sam. "You promised."

Sam nodded.

"Alright, awesome!" Dean said. "End of discussion."

It was the end of the discussion, because at that moment Castiel called. It was the first time the group had heard from him since he had been banished with the other angels in California, so Dean was glad to learn that he was okay.

The day after that, "Team Free Will" got the ring from Pestilence. It was a close battle, with Castiel being still very weak, and Pestilence spreading disease everywhere, but in the end it was still successful, and they were one more Horseman's ring closer to ending the apocalypse.

***Ember POV***

May 7, Day

The next day, the group met up again at Bobby's to regroup. It was at this point that Bobby told them that Chicago was "about to be wiped off the map. Storm of the millenium. Sets off a daisy chain of natural disasters. Three million people are gonna die."

"Huh," said Dean nonchalantly. He had driven most of the night and was half-asleep.

"Lovely," said Ember, rolling her eyes. They were all feeling a bit worse for wear by now. They had really hoped to get some sleep before going out again.

"Well, Death – the Horseman – he's gonna be there," Bobby said. "And if we can stop him before he kick-starts this storm, and get his ring back…"

"Yeah," Dean said, "You make it sound so easy!"

"Hell, I'm just trying to put a spin on it," said Bobby.

"Bobby', how'd you put this all together, anyways?" asked Sam.

"I had… you know… help," said Bobby evasively.

Ember narrowed her eyes. Suddenly Ember heard the chink of glass behind her, and realized that Crowley had appeared in the room. "Don't be so modest," he said, pouring himself some whiskey. "I barely helped at all."

"Bobby!" Ember admonished him.

Bobby rolled his eyes. "Hello, boys," Crowley said. "Half demon." He nodded at Ember.

"Bite me," she said.

"Pleasure, et. cetera," he said, ignoring her. "Go ahead. Tell them," he prompted Bobby. "There's no shame in it."

"Bobby?" said Sam in a warning voice. "Tell us what?"

Bobby took a long time to answer, shooting Ember a guilty look first. "Bobby, you didn't!" Ember said, jumping up.

"World's gonna end," Bobby said, shrugging. "Seems stupid to get all precious over one little… soul."

"You sold your soul?!" Dean asked him aggressively, and Castiel gave them all a look of frustration.

"Oh, more like pawned it," Crowley said. "I fully intend to give it back."

"Then give it back!" Ember and Dean shouted at the same time. Ember's anger at her father was rising. Dean had talked about his father selling his soul to save Dean, but Bobby had promised her once that he'd never do the same thing.

"I will," Crowley said.

"Now!" Dean yelled.

"I swear to God, I'll kill you," Ember threatened him.

"Did you kiss him?" Sam interrupted.

Bobby looked arrested. "No!" he exclaimed, but Crowley had a picture showing otherwise.

"Why'd you have to take a picture?" Bobby asked.

"Why'd you have to use tongue?" was the demon's response.

There was silence in the room for a second, before Ember said, "This is ridiculous. I'll kill you," and she jumped up.

"Uh-uh-uh," said Crowley. "That won't get his soul back. Relax, I'm just keeping it as insurance."

"What are you talking about?" asked Dean.

"You kill demons," Crowley said. "Gigantor over there has a temper issue about it."
He nodded at Sam, then at Ember. "And you've got a half demon with a Heaven complex over there that won't hesitate to kill me just to free my host the moment I'm no longer useful," he added. "But you won't kill me… as long as I have that soul in the deposit box."

"You son of a bitch," Bobby grumbled.

"'I'll return it," Crowley said, "After all this is over, and I can walk safely away. Do we all understand each other?"

Ember straightened herself, and shot at Crowley with her force powers, knocking him backward against the wall. Though he could heal easily, it helped her get her anger out. "Remember this morning," Ember said, glaring at Bobby, "When we were all worried about the apocalypse, and none of us were worried about going to Hell?" Then she stormed out of the room.

***Ember POV***

May 11, Day

Ember took a nice long shower. By the time she got out, the Winchesters and Crowley had gathered even more news. The same day that Death was due to arrive in Chicago, the Croatoan virus was scheduled to distribute in the form of vaccines simultaneously to civilians. The scheduled date was nearly a week away, but the week went quickly as they rested, gathered ammunition, and prepared.

Castiel spent the week of preparation with them, which was both good and bad. It was bad, because the reason for his stay with them was that Heaven had stripped his powers and he was nearly entirely human. It was good, because it allowed them to pick his brain about Heaven, Hell, and everything in between. Ember also enjoyed spending time with Castiel, which was something she'd never really had an opportunity to do before.

Two days before the date they would arrive in Chicago, Ember and Castiel spent most of the day together for the first time ever. Bobby, Dean, and Sam had left on a long trip to go get ammunition, and weren't back for nearly 7 hours. Castiel and Ember practiced their shooting and sparring, but took several long breaks to relax.

"Can I ask you a question?" Ember asked Castiel over sandwiches in Bobby's office.

"Shoot," he answered.

"How human are you, exactly?"

"I'm still entirely angel," Castiel said. "Just without most of my powers. I'm cut off from Heaven, I've lost the ability to fly and teleport, and I've lost most of my power."

"Do you… do you still feel my demon attraction?" Ember asked. She wondered if this question was too personal, but she was also very curious.

"Yes," he said, not looking at her.

"Oh," Ember said, shifting awkwardly.

"I'm sorry if I make you uncomfortable," Castiel said in his low voice.

"It's okay," Ember said. "I am who I am."

"It's… never mind," said Castiel, looking away.

"What?" Ember asked.

"It doesn't matter," said Castiel. "I'm just… I feel like I'm a burden here."

"Castiel, you could never be a burden," Ember replied, turning in her chair to look at him.

"How?" he asked. "I'm not as strong as you anymore. I'm not as good at fighting as Dean or Sam. I can barely shoot a gun. How am I helpful?"

"Are you kidding? You're still as strong as the average demon," Ember said. "And it's not like our lives are chalk full of friends," she added.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

She laughed. "Humans need more than just the same two or three people every day to make them feel like they're worthwhile," she said. "Sam, Dean, and I… we've cut almost all of our friends out of our lives. I get to see my Mom, and Mike once in awhile, but… it's too dangerous for me to see anyone else. You're a friend, Cas… and that means more to Sam, Dean, and I than they'll ever be willing to tell you."

He looked at her with a smile on his face, for the first time since he'd returned from the fight with the angels nearly a month ago. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure," she told him.

***Ember POV***

May 13, Night

The five of them (Bobby, Castiel, Ember, Sam, and Dean) had made the trip to Chicago. They'd decided to go in two groups – Dean, Crowley, and Ember would face off with Death, and the other three would stop the distribution of the Croatoan virus. They'd been delighted to find out, shortly before they went their separate ways, that Crowley's deal with Bobby had come with the perks of him getting his legs back, at least for the time being. Although Ember was irritated with Crowley for not mentioning this to Bobby sooner, she also thought that it was beautiful to see her father take his first steps again. It was a fitting end, almost, since she and Dean were almost certainly going to die that night.

Apparently Dean was thinking the same thing. "Sammy, are you sure you don't want Ember on your team? Last chance, you know…"

"Dean," she admonished.

"I mean, don't you think you're going to need the extra-…" Sam began.

"Dean will need her," Castiel said. "Having her come with us would be a waste of her powers. The three of us should be able to handle the demons doing the distribution."

This was the truthful answer to the question, and everyone knew it. "Thanks Cas," Ember said.

"Yeah, thanks, Cas," Dean said sarcastically. Ember knew Dean had wanted her to go with the other group because she'd have a better chance of survival, not because he wouldn't need her. Thankfully, Castiel hadn't picked up on this.

Ultimately, the groups remained the same, and everyone said heartfelt good-byes. And then they were off.

Ember didn't remain at Dean's side for long, though. When they found Death, he was in a pizza parlor in Chicago. He barely looked at either Dean or Ember as he invited them to sit down for pizza.

"Hmmmm," he said, studying her closely. "You've really made Lucifer angry."

"I… I guess so," she said. Was he going to kill her? Why wasn't he making a move? Why was he just staring at her, the way a human would stare at a particularly interesting bug specimen?

"You don't need to try quite so hard, you know," Death said. "You'll get into Heaven regardless, at this point." Then he seemed to study her for another minute, his dark eyes boring into hers. She could feel Dean's hand around hers, and knew that his other hand was on his gun, poised to strike, poised to do anything-…"

"Too much of a bleeding heart," Death said finally. "Be gone." He waved his hand, and the next thing Ember knew, she was sitting on Bobby's couch, roaring with anger.