Hi and welcome to another chapter of After The Fall. I saw the big announcement the other day about Season 15, and while I'm sad, I'm kind of relieved at the same time? I'm excited to see the Winchesters (and Cas) ride off into the sunset, and while I don't have any plans on stopping now, it makes me consider Cas and Amriel's ending too.
Thank you all so much for reading, favoriting, following, and reviewing! It means the world to me that you enjoy this story as much as I do!
Disclaimer: In no way do I have any rights to Supernatural or any of the characters you are familiar with. I only own Amriel and any OCs that pop up along the way.
Chapter Forty Six: There's Something Wrong With Amriel
Lucifer tapped around on an iPad, draped lazily on the throne that once belonged to Crowley.
He had chosen to wear a more fitting outfit for his attractive, female vessel, now donning an expensive, thin strapped, deep red dress that left little to the imagination. The female human body was a wonderful tool of distraction, and Lucifer had no issues with using that to his advantage. The clerk at the high-end shop had let him walk out wearing it- not that he had planned on paying anyways. Lucifer hummed as he thought about what else he could do with his new vessel, ignoring the demons that stood before him in an awkward silence, until finally a brave one approached the Prince of Darkness.
"Uh… Sir? Would you like to hear the latest soul numbers?" the demon asked, and Lucifer shook his head.
"No, because I don't care," he answered casually, not looking up from the iPad.
"How about an update on Amara?" the same demon continued, and this time, Lucifer looked up with interest. "Well the update is… There is no update. We still haven't found-"
Another demon, Simmons, interrupted, "Sir, if I may. Since you've claimed the throne, we could use some direction."
Lucifer rolled his eyes as Simmons continued, "Any direction. We could deploy a force! Real boots on the ground, shake some trees to find her! With you leading the charge, of course. We have had a coward and a fool, at the helm for too long."
A muffled noise came from somewhere nearby, and Lucifer looked towards it, shushing Simmons who was still trying to talk.
"Doggy wants to speak," Lucifer smirked, motioning for one of the demons to open a cage door that was off to the side of the chamber they were in. "Now, do you have the weapons I asked for earlier?"
Demons presented him with weapons he had requested from his crypt, and Lucifer was disappointed with what he had been brought.
Crowley rolled out dressed in a Hawaiian shirt and khaki pants, and Lucifer watched carefully as the demons all stared at their former king.
"That's a good doggy," Lucifer said with a small grin on his face as he rose from his throne, walking over to where Crowley sat. "How are your wounds, doggy?"
"They are… no less than I deserve," Crowley finally answered, and Lucifer gave a pleased hum, scratching the demon's head affectionately.
Lucifer asked Crowley what kind of treasonous thoughts were running through his head, nodding when Crowley asked if he wanted the truth.
Crowley replied that he wasn't strong enough- that even though he'd had weapons delivered that he thought could defeat Amara, he realized they wouldn't be enough.
"If you thought you could beat Amara, you'd be taking the fight to her! Right now." Crowley finished, and Lucifer stared down at the demon thoughtfully.
"You're a clever little doggy," Lucifer patted him on the head again. "You're right. At the moment, I may be a bit under-equipped. Maybe defeating Amara is a bit more of a team effort than I led certain people to believe. All that said, I'm still your master. Did I let you out of that kennel too soon?"
Lucifer heard the familiar ringing of a phone going off on the throne he had been seated in, and he picked up the device, looking down at the name on the screen and smiling.
"No…" Crowley whispered, knowing exactly who it would be.
"No barking. It's showtime," Lucifer snapped before answering the phone, grimacing as he sat down in the throne and pitched his voice to imitate Amriel. "Hi Sam."
Cas was worried. His communication with Amriel was minimal- over the past few weeks she only texted him if he reached out first. Her answers were short, to the point, and she didn't engage him. He had given up on calling after being sent to voicemail a dozen times.
At first he had been searching diligently for a way to kill Amara, keeping in touch with the Winchesters periodically to give them updates. But as it seemed apparent that he wasn't going to find anything, he had slowly started to give up, spending less time researching and more time watching Netflix.
Sam had found information about a possible weapon called The Hand of God that had been stolen by Nazis and lost on the way to Berlin. A woman named Delphine had made off with the weapon, and was allegedly a Women of Letters. She had escaped on a submarine that sank halfway through its trip across the Atlantic. Cas told Sam to call Amriel and let her know, since she wasn't taking his calls.
"She hasn't been in contact with you?" Sam asked, and Cas shook his head as he scrolled through Netflix on the laptop.
"No, and it's causing me some concern. She'll respond when I text her, but I don't know… Perhaps her fight with Lucifer has really affected her?"
"Well, I can give her a call. Would you be able to come to the bunker and help us out with this Hand of God thing?" Sam sounded desperate on the other end of the line, making Castiel frown.
"I'm rather far from the bunker. How about asking Amriel if you can get in touch with her?" Cas offered, "I'll finish up what I'm doing here in New Mexico, then reconvene with you all in Lebanon."
"That's fine. I'll call and let you know if I get through to her," Sam said, and the two said their goodbyes before hanging up.
"Well, I guess I'll start season three of Dexter," Cas mumbled to himself, clicking on the title and starting the next episode.
Sam was surprised when Amriel had answered his call after his talk with Cas. He was even more shocked when she showed up to the bunker not an hour later, claiming that she had been on her way to begin with.
Dean had been the one to ask about the revealing red dress she had been wearing, since Sam had glued his eyes to the papers in front of him since she had walked in.
"I, uh- I was taking some photos for Cas when Sam called and didn't really have time to change- I can if it's making you both uncomfortable?" Amriel shot Sam a pointed look, and the man coughed and nodded.
When Amriel returned wearing a pair of shorts and a plain, white t-shirt, Sam and Dean filled her in on everything they had discovered about Delphine and this object.
"There were several God-touched objects, but I never thought that any of them survived the flood, let alone the twentieth century," she said, trailing off as she looked over photos that were taped to a whiteboard.
"Do you think we can use it against Amara?" Sam asked, and Amriel nodded.
"It's perfect. I can get you back there," she said confidently.
"Without wings? Amriel, you can't teleport. Cas can't teleport," Sam was confused, staring up at the angel from his seat.
"Time travel is a… It's a whole different system," she explained, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Told ya!" Dean yelped, shooting his brother a triumphant look.
"So, these are the last coordinates?" Amriel asked as she tapped a map on the board, and Dean nodded.
"That's the Bluefin's last transmission to shore, yeah," the older Winchester answered, and she nodded thoughtfully.
"Wait a second, aren't there still risks with time travel?" Sam asked, "I mean, aren't there consequences?"
"Sam, this is the ideal scenario," Dean argued. "That sub is a tin can floating in the middle of the ocean doomed to go down. You can't really mess with history at 20,000 leagues. So we get in, get the weapon, get out. It's a milk run."
"That's not a very good plan," Sam huffed, and he saw Amriel roll her eyes in his peripheral.
"Well, if things get outta hand, then Blondie will just zap me right back," Dean reasoned, and then the brothers bickered over who was and wasn't going back in time.
"I won't let him out of my sight, Sam," Amriel intervened, setting her hand on his shoulder and squeezing gently. "I promise."
"Fine. Be safe," Sam resigned, "But I'm gonna call and tell Cas what's going on, just in case."
"Don't worry about it," Amriel said quickly, moving over to stand next to Dean as she spoke. "I talked to him on my way over here and he's pretty busy with his own stuff in Fresno."
"Wait, I thought Cas was in New Mexico?" Sam asked, shooting the blonde a confused look, noticing her eyes widen for a split second before a look of realization crossed her face.
"Oh, right. He was in Fresno last week. He's been all over the place lately, I can hardly keep track," she said with a small shrug.
"Let's do this, Blondie," Dean said before sending a nod to his brother and grinning, "Bon voyage!"
Amriel set her hand on Dean's shoulder and then the two were gone.
"I don't know Cas, she seems a little off, but maybe she's just in a rut or something?" Sam said as he was on the phone with the angel, who was still in New Mexico, a few hours after Dean and Amriel had traveled through time. "She came to the bunker wearing this.. This dress and said she had been taking pictures to send to you. Then she said you two had talked earlier and that you were in Fresno… Maybe she's just stressed about this finding Amara thing?"
"I- I don't know either. This is concerning, though." Cas said, and Sam could hear him rifling through papers. "I'm going to finish up here and get on the road. Try and keep her at the bunker until I arrive."
Sam hadn't told him about how she and Dean had gone back to 1943, so he said that he would try before hanging up as the door to the bunker opened.
A soaking wet Amriel walked down the stairs, dripping water everywhere. Sam stared at her for a few seconds, noticing that her white shirt was completely see through. He quickly looked back down at the photograph of the USS Bluefin he had been inspecting in a book, trying not to seem too embarrassed.
"Amriel? Why are you here- wait a second. Where's Dean?" Sam asked when he didn't hear another set of footsteps.
"We made the leap," she answered with a sigh. "He got on, I didn't."
"Wait, what?" Sam gaped, and Amriel said she couldn't make it past the hull.
"Someone must've warded the ship!" she growled, taking the towel Sam had offered out of his hands and leaning against the table as she wiped herself off.
"Delphine? It has to be, I mean she's protecting the weapon, right?" Sam asked, "Amriel, just go back to their last port, before she boarded! Leave a message so Dean knows!"
"Where?" Amriel asked condescendingly. "Where would Dean see it that the crew wouldn't? He's as likely to find the warding as he is any message I'd leave him."
"Then send me! You got Dean past the hull" Sam tried, but she shook her head as she toweled her long hair.
"Right. We'll double down on what screwed us the first time. You're really bringing your A-ideas today. I can't believe I lost it," she sighed, but then quickly corrected herself, "Him. I can't believe I lost Dean. Well, it's up to him now to find and clear the warding."
Sam stared at Amriel as she sat at the table, saying that they could help. That there had to be something in magic or angel lore that they could find to clear the warding.
"We'll call Cas and tell him to hurry up if we have to. He's finishing up in New Mexico and he'll be on his way anyways," Sam told her, and Amriel froze, staring up at Sam with a look in her eyes that he had never seen before.
"I told you I could handle this myself!" she hissed. "I don't need Castiel to help me all the time! I'm not as weak as everyone seems to think I am!"
"Is that why you've been so distant? Why you haven't been calling Cas? Why you lied about calling him? What was the deal with that dress anyways? What have you been up to?" Sam continued to ask her questions until she finally answered.
"I've been looking for a way to kill Amara! I've been using this vessel as a means to an end, and I didn't need Castiel telling me that I shouldn't be using this attractive body to get the answers we're looking for!" she snapped. "We're not always attached at the hip, you know."
Amriel hung her head, and Sam was taken aback by her outburst. Unsure of what to say, he suggested that they start looking through the lore.
Lucifer was sick of reading books. He was sick of pretending to be this meek little angel that only got fired up when at her wit's end. So he was glad when Sam came into the main room of the bunker holding a book, saying that he had found something.
"The spell of gathering," Sam read from the book as he sat beside the archangel. "It's an incantation used to focus the power of celestial beings, angels, against all drawn forms of evasion. The spell is designed to clear all mystical or occult blockages. I mean, this is highly theoretical magic, never been used before, but it sounds like it could work."
"And the ingredients?" Lucifer asked, and Sam read over the list.
"Uh, all but one. That's why it's never been used before, it requires the power of an archangel," Sam said, closing the book and running his hand over his face in disappointment.
"Well Sam, we might as well try," Lucifer said as he stared down at the table in thought.
"We don't have time for long shots, Amriel. Even at full power and connected to Heaven's host you wouldn't be powerful enough."
So, Lucifer thought to himself, Sam and Dean didn't know that the two angels had shared their graces. If Amriel and her trench coat wearing husband performed the spell together, they would probably be able to succeed. But he was an archangel. He could do this alone.
Sam got up and headed towards the kitchen, leaving Lucifer alone at the table. He opened the book again and turned to the spell, memorizing the ingredients and heading off into the bunker to find them.
By the time Sam came back, Lucifer had cut up ingredients for the spell and put them into a metal bowl in front of him.
"Hey Elle, what's this for?" Sam asked, and Lucifer glanced up at him before going back to cutting.
"It's your spell of gathering," he answered simply, shrugging as if it was obvious.
"Are you nuts? You're not strong enough, Amriel, you could get hurt!"
"Did you find a better option?" Lucifer snapped back, and Sam frowned in response.
"Well, no, but.. Without a serious boost to your angel power, that spell won't even work!" Sam tried to reason.
"My strength may surprise you," Lucifer answered calmly as he continued to work.
"Wait a second… I remember Bobby told me that when Cas needed strength to retrieve us from the past, he used him to power up. He touched his soul, I think," Sam said quickly, and Lucifer nodded.
"That's right, he told me about that. But that procedure can be fatal, Sam," he said in response.
"Use my soul. That way maybe you'll have enough power to wield the spell," Sam continued to try and convince the archangel.
"That isn't necessary. You're my charge, I can't let anything happen to you," Lucifer said in as genuine a voice he could muster, even though he wanted nothing more than to hurt Sam.
"It's worth the risk, Amriel. Dean needs our help, and I trust you with my life."
Lucifer listened to the desperation in his voice and couldn't take it anymore. He smiled, unable to help himself as he started to laugh.
"What?" Sam asked, clearly confused.
"Oh, it's just… I don't need you anymore. I mean, Dean's the one with the link to Amara, why have I been trying to spare you?" Lucifer shook his head, a wide smile on his vessel's pink lips as he let his voice slip out of Amriel's and into a lower tone. "I mean, maybe it's because you're like the girl who kept turning me down at the prom."
Lucifer grabbed Sam and slammed him up of one of the bunker's support columns.
"I will touch your soul. Just because you asked me so nicely, and I'll use your spell to blast through the warding to retrieve Dean and the uh- Hand of God, and then when Dean comes back and he finds the place decorated with your guts, I'll tell him the truth, Sam. I'll just say, Dean-" Lucifer paused and smiled before putting on Amriel's voice again. "Dean… He knew the risks. I tried to talk him out of it, but he wouldn't take no for an answer."
"Lucifer," Sam hissed, and the archangel grinned.
"In the flesh!"
Horror flashed over Sam's face as Lucifer pushed his hand in to touch Sam's soul. Lucifer felt the raw power of a human soul course through his entire being, and savored the moment until suddenly he felt something pushing back at him.
He withdrew his hand and released Sam, watching him fall to the ground before he looked down at his hand.
"Hello, Amriel," he said with a strained look on his face as he tried to fight against the angel that was trying to gain control of his borrowed vessel.
Sam regained consciousness as Amriel fell to the floor beside him, and Sam tried to get away from her quickly.
"No! Leave me alone!" Sam yelped.
"Sam, it-it's me," Amriel stammered as she tried to hold Lucifer back.
"Amriel? Why?" the Winchester asked, staring at her with wide eyes.
"I wanted to help with the fight, and only Lucifer can beat her. I didn't want Castiel to have to do this, so… I said yes," she explained, tears streaking down her face due to the sheer agony it took to keep Lucifer at bay.
"You chose this? You have to fight, Elle!" Sam told her. "Eject him now!"
"I can't," she explained, "It's taking all of my strength to keep him from killing you. And besides, we need him!"
"No Amriel, we don't. We'll find another way to stop Amara," Sam pleaded with her.
Amriel shook her head, saying that they needed him to save Dean.
"You can't time travel," Sam stated rather than asked, and she shook her head again.
"Only Lucifer can," she said sadly, a pained look suddenly crossing her face, "Tell Cas… Tell him-"
Amriel's eyes darkened and Sam knew that she was gone and Lucifer was back in control. Lucifer disappeared and returned with Dean, who had the Hand of God with him.
"Dean, that's not Amriel!" Sam told his brother, who stared back at him before turning to look at Lucifer.
A faux-apologetic look crossed his face as he said, "Cat's out!"
Lucifer threw Dean across the table and watched as he landed on the floor on the other side of the table against the wall.
"I feel a burden lifted. You know, this whole, deep cover thing… It wasn't terribly well thought out. Donning this… This Amriel mask? This effervescent face of angelic hope? It just.. Ugh! And then, teaming up with you two. I mean, I thought you boys were insufferable as mortal enemies, but working with you? That's the soul crusher! And don't even get me started on how needy and hopelessly in love Castiel is," Lucifer complained, shivering in disgust.
Dean tried to stand, but Lucifer threw out his hand and pinned him to the wall.
"Why the faces boys? You should be cheering. We have a common enemy, and with this," he said as he held up the Hand of God, still wrapped in cloth. "She will be no problem. I mean, I will have killed you both and the idiot that is Castiel by then, but still. Come on."
Lucifer unwrapped the Hand of God and touched it, holding onto it as Dean yelled for him to stop. With closed eyes, Lucifer waited for the effects of the power to come. But when nothing happened, he frowned.
"It's kicked!" he hissed, tossing it onto the table.
"Well, who'd've thought the Hand of God would turn out to be a one-hitter?" Dean said with his eyebrows raised, and Lucifer turned on his heel and stormed over to the older Winchester that was still pinned to the wall. Before he could do anything, Sam slammed his hand down onto an angel-banishing sigil, and Lucifer disappeared.
Castiel was still in New Mexico watching Dexter. He had been planning to go and help the Winchesters, but he still had a few more episodes to watch in the season and he figured there wouldn't be any harm in him staying a few extra hours, despite his concern for his wife's wellbeing.
He thought about that for a few moments, a frown crossing his face as he did so. Was he really putting a television show above his wife? Cas heaved a sigh and sat up, pulling his shoes on and tying the laces.
When he looked up, Amriel was standing before him, wearing a white t-shirt and shorts, a look on her face that he had never seen before.
"Amriel?" he asked, confusion coursing through him. "H-how did you get in here?"
"Nevermind that, Cas… I just needed to see you," she said, before a giant grin crossed her face. "I need her to see the look on your face when I tell you before the Winchesters can."
"What.. What's going on?" Cas asked again, and his phone started to ring.
"Ooh, this will be even better. I bet it's Dean calling. Go ahead, answer it," she told him, nodding towards the phone that was on the bedside table.
Castiel picked up the phone and answered it with a confused hello, only to hear Dean's frantic voice on the other end of the line.
"Cas- Lucifer is possessing Amriel! If you see her, run! It's Lucifer in control, not Amriel," Dean told him, and Cas almost dropped the device.
"I have to go, Dean," he said, hanging up without waiting for a response.
He stared up at the body of the angel he loved, realizing it was just that. A body, and not Amriel.
"You know, Castiel," Lucifer said using Amriel's voice, contorting her face into a smirk Cas had never seen before. "She did this for you. To save you because you wouldn't be strong enough to handle it yourself. But here you are, binge watching Dexter when you should be doing something. Some husband you are."
Cas had to remind himself that this wasn't Amriel talking - this was Lucifer. How had he not known when he had first possessed her? It had been weeks. He had fooled them all for weeks, and that made Castiel feel sick to his stomach.
"She misses you, in case you're wondering. But she knows it was for the best," he continued to goad the angel in the trench coat, watching him carefully. "It's kinda sickening, how much she loves you. It's a shame you obviously don't feel the same."
"Don't you dare presume to know how I feel about Amriel," Cas seethed, straightening his posture so he stood a little taller, towering over the 5'6" vessel Lucifer was occupying.
"Then how was it so easy to fool you? Oh Castiel, I love you more than all of creation, but you can't tell when Lucifer himself is possessing me," he mocked, using her tone and speech pattern perfectly. "I'm quite the actor. I think I deserve an Academy Award, honestly."
"You're sick, Lucifer," Cas said, shaking his head. "Give her back... Take me instead. I'm sure my vessel is stronger than a mere girl."
Lucifer looked like he was contemplating the idea, but then he laughed and rolled his eyes, Amriel's eyes, at the younger angel.
"I quite like this vessel, to be honest. Being a young, attractive, blonde woman certainly has its perks." He sent Castiel a wink. "I can get a lot more done in this than I ever could in yours."
Cas felt bile rising in his throat as he thought about Lucifer using Amriel's body to his advantage. Everything that was happening made him furious, but he had no idea where to focus his rage. If he tried to fight Lucifer, he risked hurting Amriel.
"You know, you were really onto something before your little wife let me inside her… You two could have had the Heavenly host eating out of the palms of your hands, just like dear old Dad intended." Lucifer told Cas, "You were this close to reaching your true potential. Sorry I had to ruin the fun and take over Amriel's perky little body."
"Shut up," Castiel growled, "I will get you out of her vessel."
"I'd like to see you try," Lucifer grinned back. "She's gorgeous, isn't she? But of course you know that. I can see it in your eyes. The love, the devotion... The lust. Kinda sorry I had to turn down all of your advances... From what I've gathered you're quite the time in bed."
"Just stop talking," Cas tried again, but Lucifer only kept going.
"You know what she asked me before she said yes and let me inside her?" Lucifer paused, leaning in before continuing, "She asked if you'd be safe. Of course, I said yes, but I'm surprised it's actually worked out. I really wasn't even trying."
"I'm gonna get rid of you if it's the last thing I do," Cas told him, squaring his shoulders and rushing forward, only to be thrown back by an unseen force.
"You seem to forget, Castiel, I still have my powers. I wasn't affected by the Fall," Lucifer said from right beside him. "She's trying so hard to fight me so she can say something to you. Too bad she wasted all her strength to tell Sam that she said yes to me to keep you from doing it. Maybe she thought you were too weak?"
"Amriel would do anything for me, even if it meant sacrificing herself. She knew I would save her, and I will!" Cas growled, and Lucifer rolled his eyes.
"I'm gonna let you say goodbye to her, seeing as you two are hubby and wife. Make it count," Lucifer said to the angel and before Cas knew it, Amriel was in control.
"C-Cas?" she asked, looking around in confusion before finally settling her gaze on him. "Please, don't be mad! I had to do it. Amara told me I had to stop you from doing something stupid."
"And so you did something stupid instead?" Cas asked, setting his hand on her cheek and brushing her soft skin with his thumb. "I will do everything in my power to get Lucifer out of your vessel. I promise you, Elle."
"I know you will. He… He's doing something in Hell. He has Crowley on a very short leash, and I mean that literally. He keeps me in a memory of the bunker, but I still get bits and pieces of what he's up to when I have the energy," she told him quickly. "Tell Sam and Dean that I'm sorry."
Cas went to say something, but Amriel surged forward and connected her lips with his for a long, emotion-filled kiss, trying to tell him just how much she loved him without actually saying it.
She pulled away and whispered that she would see him soon, before her posture completely changed and Cas knew that Lucifer was back in control.
"Ugh, I definitely told her not to kiss you before I let her take the reins. Looks like someone's gonna have nothing but infomercials to watch for the next two weeks," Lucifer laughed to himself, ignoring Castiel as he watched in horror. "Well, it's been fun, but I have things to do, ancient beings to kill. You know how it is."
Before Castiel could even think to say something in return, Lucifer was gone.