Disclaimer: Crimson Peak is Guillermo Del Toro's property, Supernatural belongs to Eric Kripke, The Lodgers to Brian O'Malley. Emma, Constance and I are self-inserts. The old lady from Camden Market belongs to Chibimelodee.
Summary: Ghosts are real and everything happens for a reason. Is this why Marina and her friends find themselves trapped in Allerdale Hall a few days away from Christmas?
Author's note: This story was written for me by « Emma » and « Constance » from Chibimelodee as an Advent Calendar two years ago. Please note that all three of us are french and while we do know our way around English, we might still make some mistakes. Feel free to let us know! As the three girls are french and start to speak from this chapter, I'll put the translations of their sentences right next to them so you know what they say.
At the Candlelight
Chapter 7: The Prophecy
Sean mumbled under his breath, his hand gripping firmly the remote control of the old television :
« I'm mostly confused. I'm not sure how orange correlates with black in a way that's new »
« Step away from the Netflix. » Castiel grumbled, walking slowly into the dusty motel room his sibling had chosen.
« Sorry » the other angel whispered sheepishly, turning off the television before turning to greet his brother. « First time, in Earth since decades… I'm glad you could come so fast ! »
« What's the problem ? It's the first time you called me… The trouble must be huge » Castiel sat on the crappy bed, not bothering to take off his trench coat.
« Something called me here… on Earth… Something's happening… Something bad… Really bad ! We need to stop it, brother » Sean answered, a flash of fear striking his blue eyes.
Castiel stared at him for a moment, frowning, his head slightly cocked on the side, seeming lost in his thoughts.
« I am not like you, Castiel… I wasn't always like that ! Do you know why I became an Angel, brother ? » he asked with his singing Irish voice, an imploring look on his bright eyes.
When his heavenly brother shook his head no, he ruffled his short hair and sighed before beginning to narrate his story, his former life.
Regarde-toi assise dans l'ombre
A la lueur de nos mensonges
Une main glacée jusqu'à l'ongle
« I was not born an Angel, like you… I was born human in the early 1900s in a loving family. My parents owned a little shop in a small village in Ireland. My name was Sean Nally. I fought in the Independence War, for the English side. It's where I lost my leg… I had a good life, full of events, despite my young age. When I came home after the war, the local folks rejected me but I carried on and helped my mother and sister in the family business. Then, I met her. She was different from the rest. Beautiful. Pure. Innocent. Her name was Rachel. »
Regarde toi à l'autre pôle
Fermer les yeux sur ce qui nous ronge
On a changé à la longue
« She lived in seclusion, on a huge mansion, with her twin brother. I had already met her when she was a child but… One look and she got me wrapped around her finger, even if she didn't realize it… Sure, she was mean to me at first, but, who could blame her to reject an invalid… My mother tried to warn me to stay away from her with all the awful stories that were spread in the village but I didn't listen… I was drowned to her… So I broke into her garden and… Those are the best moments of my life as a human, Castiel ! She opened up to me, told me her dreams… She wasn't afraid of my missing leg… She didn't care I fought against our country… She told me about her love for poems… But she was scared… Scared of her house… Scared of the past… So we planned to go away, to start a new life… At this time, I didn't believe in the supernatural. I was just a regular human who walked into horror… But I didn't know that. All I knew was that she was afraid of leaving. So I came on one night to free her but her brother attempted to hurt me. My memories are fading, I don't remember well but I guess I might have wound him to death… Or was it him who impaled himself ? I don't know anymore… All I know is, when midnight struck, Rachel fell in the water, drowned by the spirits under the house. She couldn't get out, she shouldn't get out… I… I had to save her… I had promised her I'll save her… So, I dived under… For her… To save her… Begging in my head they let her go, they took me instead… Everything but to see her die… Skinny white hands pulled me further into the water, drown me… And then I realized… Rachel and Edward couldn't leave the house. They were fated to bear their ancestors' sins, sentenced to repeat their mistakes… Adultery… »
Je vis dans une maison de verre
A moitié rempli de ton eau
Sans s'arrêter le niveau monte
« And I did it, Castiel… I saved her ! I died to save her. She broke the curse by running away and I was the price for her freedom… I don't blame her, you know… After all this time, I can still see clearly her face. But we weren't meant to be… »
Sean's eyes were lost in the past while he talked, a sad smile gracing his lips.
« When I awoke in Heaven, the first thing I asked was if Rachel had made up… Turned out she had a wonderful life. She found quickly a good husband, gave him two beautiful children… She had banished every memory of her past, me included… Even if I forgave her, I was only a way to escape her brother, her house… Her destiny… »
Je suis le fantôme qui s'égare
Je suis étranger à ton cœur
Seulement regarde comme on est seul
« I agreed to be an Angel to avoid anything like that to ever happen again…. I became an Angel for those who lost themselves in the path of adultery… »
« Why are you telling me all of this, Sean ? » Castiel asked, confused about his revelations. « You're no less my brother if you were born human… »
« That is not the point, Castiel ! » Sean sighed, a bit confused about his Angel sibling's reaction. « I've been brought down to Earth because it's happening ! »
« What is happening ? » Castiel looked like he didn't understand a single thing.
« When Father gave me my wings, he said that I would come back to Earth when the prophecy will be about to be fulfilled ! »
The souls of two siblings
who killed for their forbidden love
will be reunited in hate when three pure-hearted women
will trespass the mansion on the hill.
One will be cured.
One will be saved.
One will be murdered.
Brothers will come from a faraway land.
One whose soul had been lost.
One who was chosen by Angels.
A broken Guardian will find
what he thought he had lost forever.
If the sister pushed the brother away,
than the Gates of Hell will open
in the House of Lies and Betrayal,
unleashing the Demon himself.
On the hill, where snow becomes blood,
the deads come alive at the candlelight.
« So, you're telling me that Lucifer can be free again ? » Castiel frowned, the words of their Father's prophecy echoing but meaning no sense.
Well, for now, anyway…
« You've got to help me, Castiel ! » Sean said desperately. « Will you help me, brother ? »
Bobby entered the kitchen, mumbling, barely seeing Sam and Dean, lost in the open books in front of them.
« So did you sleep well, Sleeping Beauty ? » Dean asked without looking at him, a smirk on his lips, chewing a pen.
« Dean, leave him alone ! » Sam answered « he is old, he needs his beauty sleep. »
« Ah, ah, ah, very funny ! You hid from me your comical talent… Boys, time to get to work now ! Things won't fix themselves ! » Bobby grumbled.
« Oh, he is grumpy this morning… I told you we should never have let him sleep that long ! » Dean said, winking at Sam.
« While you were sleeping, we were searching for a new case » Sam continued seriously. « But, nothing… It seems the supernatural creatures had taken some days off. »
« Yep, just say you haven't found a single case worth of your time… » the old hunter grunted, taking a beer in the fridge.
« We did search ! But truly, there's nothing supernatural going on ! We did a pretty good job here ! Not like you, grandpa. Give me a beer too ! I deserved it ! » Dean argued.
« You deserved nothing, idijt ! Because I'm so old, I need all the beers… Dehydration can be fatal for a person of my age. »
The kitchen lights suddenly flickered. The hunters stood up, ready, while a wing rustle filled the room. Behind them stood now two men. Dean yelped when he finally spotted them.
« Cas, don't do that ! » the hunter grumbled.
« Hello, Dean… Samuel… Bobby… This is Sean, my brother » Castiel said with his monotonous usual voice, showing a tall man beside him.
Clearly uneased, the other Angel had small blue eyes and short brown hair. He looked shy in his three-piece suit and when he took a step to greet the hunters, they all saw him almost tumbled, his pants showing a wooden leg.
« Great ! » Dean mumbled « Another douchebag with wings and a harp… »
« No, I don't have a harp. Neither does he ! » Sean corrected, his voice clearly sounding Irish.
Bobby had to repress a laugh when he saw the puzzled look on the Angel's face.
« We need your help » Castiel interrupted, looking at no one but Dean like he was the only one in front of him : « There is a prophecy about you and Sam. You need to stop the Apocalypse. »
Now that I know that the right time has come
My prediction will surely be true
The impending disaster, it looms
And the whole of the village is doomed
« How… original ! » Dean sighed, rolling his eyes. « Seriously, guys… Couldn't you announce us something nice for once… I don't know, something like… Something like free pies for the coming month ! »
« The Apocalypse ! Again ? » Sam asked, pushing his brother away to catch Castiel's attention. « Is this why every monster is waiting ? »
« Sean will accompany you in your journey to stop it… He is the one who's received it in the first place and… »
« Wait ! » Dean interrupted, sipping on his beer bottle. « I'm not going to go God-knows-where with a feathery dickhead until you tell me exactly what is happening ! I have nothing against you, buddy but I absolutely don't trust you… You just show up like that, unannounced, and we should help you… because of your blue eyes… all that because you're supposedly the brother of this prat ! »
Sighing, Sean repeated the dreadful prophecy, closely watching the hunters' reactions. Disbelief… Fear… Anger… Bravery… Determination… Dean's face showed mostly incomprehension, much to Castiel's amusement.
Suffering and pain, impending disaster
Souls crying, the Devil's laughter
I heard the cry of the seven whistlers
Lucifer smiles, looks on and waits
Purgatory beckons, souls lost forever
Life after death or heaven hereafter
Heard the call of the seven whistlers again
Now Lucifer laughs, Hell awaits
« Okay ! I have no idea what you're talking about… Do you really have to do that… To code your message like we're in the Da Vinci Code… I'm pretty sure even you don't get what you've just said ! Wouldn't it be simpler to just tell us what we need to do ! I'm just saying, but think about it… It would really be simpler… » Dean mumbled
« And where's the bloody house ? » Bobby mumbled between his teeth. « No way I'm letting these two idjits deal with the bloody Apocalypse alone again ! »
« Allerdale Hall, Cumberland, England » Sean answered softly, worry making him frown.
XXXXX
« I can't believe Cas convinced me to take an airplane to fucking England ! » Dean mumbled, his large hands clinging at his armrests for dear life, his face paled. A small jolt made the airplane shook slightly, causing him to whine : « Come on, that can't be normal ! »
« Hey, hey, it's just a little turbulence. » Sam tried to reassure while fighting the smirk that threatened to grace his lips.
Luckily for Dean, he and his brother were sitten far away from Bobby, or else Dean would have been treated like a small child.
« Sam, this plane is going to crash. Okay ? So quit treating me like I'm frigging four. » Dean muttered, pearls of sweat trickling down his forehead.
« You need to calm down. » His baby brother said softly, sending apologetic looks to the people who surrounded them.
Despite his age, Dean could act like such a baby.
« Well, I'm sorry, I can't ! » the hunter roared, his jaw clenched.
« Yes, you can. » Sam whispered between his teeth, clearly losing control.
«Dude, stow the touchy-feely, self-help yoga crap. It's not helping ! » Dean tempered out.
« Did you try to do that Die Hard thing ? You know, take off your shoes and your socks then walk around on the rug barefoot and make fists with your toes. » Another passenger said, trying to calm him too, the child next to her beginning to freak out thanks to Dean's behavior.
« Fists with your toes ? » Dean asked, closing his eyes.
« I know, I know, it sounds crazy. But it works ! It's better than a shower and a hot cup of coffee… Well, unless you plan on walking barefoot on glass afterward… » The passenger chuckled before turning away and tried to reassure her kid.
« Calm down ! You're getting all the attention to us ! » Sam said with a firm tone. Dean took a deep breath and exhaled longly and with exaggeration.
Dean grumbled loudly, clearly uneased by all the situation.
« You know what's the worst part of it, Sammy ?... I had to leave Baby… »
The woman who had previously talked to them turned again, whispering in a connivance way, staring at Dean with understandable and tender eyes :
« I was just like you when I took my first flight without my kid… Don't worry, I'm sure his or her mother will take great care… ».
Sam repressed a laugh and nodded gratefully at her before saying a little louder than he should :
« Don't worry about Baby, Dean ! Castiel said he would take care of her… And if, by bad luck, he scratches her, all we will need to do is paint her ! »
The look of pure horror of the woman before them made Sam burst out of laughter. Dean, however, stayed tense on his seat. A calloused hand made their neighbor jumped and the rocky voice of Bobby resounded loudly :
« Sorry for the idjit ! He just worries about his damn car ! »
Then, turning to Dean, he scowled :
« Man up, princess ! You kicked countless of asses but you're afraid of a flight ? Really ? »
Waving at the woman and her child to go away under the eyes of a very confused and uneased Sean, Bobby sat on her seat and whistled at the Angel to do the same before he began to speak :
« So, he's been briefing me about all this crap of a prophecy ! Bloody pain in the ass… Well, if you two had bothered to pull your heads out of your asses, it all would've been pretty clear for you too ! Something big is going down. End of the world big. »
« Well, then let it end ! » Dean grumbled, eyes closed shut to try relaxing.
« You don't mean that, do you ? » Sean asked with disbelief.
« Everything to feel the damn ground under my feet… » the hunter mumbled, breathing deeply.
Once they arrived at the London Airport, Dean almost kissed the ground, so relieved to leave the blasted airplane…
« Now, do you know how can we do to go to the haunted mansion ? » Dean said with a smug. « Where can we rent cars ? »
« Close your eyes… » Sean whispered before putting his fingers on their foreheads.
They both landed close to some gates. It was beautifully engraved « Allerdale Hall ». The snow was falling heavily around them, their surroundings seeming magical in white.
« What was that ?! » Dean screamed. « What did you do ? »
« I transported us » the Angel replied, shrugging his shoulders. « Why ? Doesn't Castiel do that ? »
« You fucking bastard ! You could have transported us right here in a blink of an eye ! Why didn't you ? You let us believe we needed to take a goddam plane…. And you know what, douchebag ? I almost died on that fucking plane ! » Dean began to yell, his scream echoing in the vast landscape.
« I didn't think of it… I really wanted to test the airplane… » Sean shrugged shyly, lowering his head.
« Great ! Castiel has left us with a half-brained Angel whose biggest dream was to take an airplane ! Just like we had time to lose granting the wishes of this featherhead ! » Bobby grumbled before waving at the group to move.
They went out on a road covered with snow, leading them to the mansion. It was difficult to walk, the snowmaking it hard by its thickness. Everything was desert, smoggy, lifeless… Not even a singing bird or a noisy beetle… Bobby had a nasty feeling, coming closer to the house.
Once I rose above the noise and confusion
Just to get a glimpse beyond the illusion
I was soaring ever higher, but I flew too high
Though my eyes could see I still was a blind man
Though my mind could think I still was a mad man
I hear the voices when I'm dreamin', I can hear them say
Carry on my wayward son
For there'll be peace when you are done
Lay your weary head to rest
Don't you cry no more
His heart beating with adrenaline, Dean shook away his bad feeling he had about the house. Yep… It was just another creepy haunted house like the ones he had de-ghosted… Nothing he should truly fear… Just another case… Except for this time, he knew something's big was going to happen… He didn't know what, he didn't know when, he didn't know how but he sure knew it was going to happen inside of this house.
Expelling his bad feeling, Dean elbowed slightly Sam, winking at him before bending down to catch a huge handful of snow. Straightening slowly, he put his finger in front of his mouth, mimicking his brother to stay silent and pointed their new friend. Sam repressed a chuckle and tried to keep a straight face, shaking vigorously to stop his sibling… The snowball flew and went crashing violently on the back of Sean's head who turned back, looking shocked. Dean took a false innocent look, putting his hands behind his back and, frowning, lectured his brother :
« Sam, come on !... Tsk ! Tsk ! Tsk ! Stop annoying Lucky Charm ! It's not nice… I'm highly disappointed by your childish attitude…»
Sean looked confused and sad at Sam, taking off graciously the snow off his hair :
« Why did you hit me, Samuel ?... »
Bobby interrupted the conversation and waved them to keep moving. What a bright idea he had had to come… Like he was not old enough for this crap ! They stopped in front of the impressive front door. The old hunter glared hard at his sidekicks and was ready to knock…