Happy almost Supernatural Day! Here's a chapter to celebrate!
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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 Nine: Answers
A lead had come through in the form of Donatello, and Metatron had shown up to help rescue Lucifer from Amara.
The plan was for Dean to distract Amara while Sam, Cas, Metatron, and Donatello got Lucifer, and it had actually worked until things went awry and Amara came back. Metatron held her off and sacrificed himself so they could leave with Lucifer.
Chuck had actually come through and saved them from being caught escaping, transporting the Impala back to the bunker.
After Donatello left, Dean told Sam that Amara wanted him to become a part of her, much to Sam and Castiel's surprise.
Cas left the room to give the brothers some privacy, instead peeking in on Lucifer and Chuck, hoping that the latter was going to expel Lucifer from Amriel's vessel soon. He felt an ache in his chest as he watched Lucifer move and make facial expressions in ways he had never seen Amriel before, and it unnerved him.
He listened as Lucifer asked Chuck where he had been, and the two bickered back and forth until Sam and Dean finally arrived. Dean shot Cas an amused look as he caught the angel spying before heading into the room, interrupting what was sure to be a major argument.
Lucifer continued his digs, trying to get Chuck to apologize for disappearing, and when Chuck wouldn't, Lucifer stormed out of the room.
"You need to do whatever, say whatever it takes to get him out of Amriel's vessel," Cas seethed, pointing a finger at Chuck before storming off as well.
"Kids, huh?" Chuck laughed awkwardly, and Sam and Dean gaped at him.
It took a little coercing on both sides, but Chuck and Lucifer finally sat down and had a civil conversation. It didn't start out civil, with Lucifer accusing Chuck of playing favorites with Cas and Amriel, choosing them to eventually lead Heaven when he was more than capable of doing so himself.
Castiel was surprised by this accusation, but didn't want to interrupt the progress that was being made, so he filed it away for another time and left along with Sam and Dean to give the two some privacy once they were sure that Lucifer wasn't going to throw a tantrum.
"They need to make amends," Cas grumbled to himself as he paced, ignoring the way Sam was looking at him with what he could only identify as pity.
Finally, after nearly an hour, Lucifer and Chuck emerged.
"So… are we good?" Dean asked, looking between the two as they nodded. "Great! Awesome."
"Now what?" Sam tacked on, shooting Cas a look that told him to stay quiet.
"We trap Amara and put her back in the box," Chuck said with finality in his voice.
He explained that while she did need to be destroyed, he wouldn't kill his own sister. Dark and Light needed one another to exist, and destroying one wouldn't be good. However, they needed a lot more power to help put her away, since the last time it was done all of the archangels helped.
Castiel finally spoke up, suggesting that they contact Rowena and Crowley, get everyone on board- witches, demons, angels, and the Winchesters, and attack Amara with everything they had, and when she was weak, Chuck would finish her off.
They would divide and conquer, Lucifer going to the angels, Sam to Rowena, and Dean to Crowley, and Cas would stay at the bunker and prepare.
Chuck ended up staying behind too, and Cas did his best to avoid him as he prepped weapons and touched up the warding around the bunker.
"You're really showing your true colors, you know," Chuck said nonchalantly, watching Cas as he tried to ignore him.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Castiel answered tersely. He didn't even look up as he continued his task.
"You're meticulous. A planner. Able to see the big picture, but also able to focus in on details. It's a wonderful trait," Chuck praised. "Amriel is more… just roll with it, right?"
Cas flinched at the mention of her name, but tried to hide it as he nodded.
"She has an affinity for straying from itineraries- even ones she creates. It can be frustrating at times, but we've seen many places we wouldn't have by adhering to our plan," he finally said.
"That's why Amara liked her," Chuck said with a reminiscent look on his face. "She sees the beauty in spontaneity. I know I haven't been the best… father. But I'm proud of you, Castiel. I'm glad we chose you two."
"I- I still don't think I understand what you mean by that." Cas finally turned to face Chuck. "People keep insinuating that Amriel and I were chosen to be partners and lead Heaven. Sam found lost Renaissance art depicting it, but that's the only thing I've seen confirming these insinuations."
"I guess it's better late than never to tell you, huh?" Chuck motioned for the angel to take a seat across from him. Cas finally sat down after a few moments of hesitation, and Chuck smiled gratefully. "We wanted a pair of angels to… oversee Heaven if I ever wanted to go off the grid. This was before Amara and I were fighting- we planned to explore the universe together, see other creations. Originally, I had just wanted one angel, but Amara suggested two would make more sense. And so we looked at angels that complemented one another. Once we had that pool, we narrowed it down again."
"To angels that were soulmates?" Cas asked, and Chuck shrugged.
"You could say that. Angels don't have souls, but yeah, basically. You were all so new to the universe- it was hard to really sort through all of the choices, so Amara and I decided that we would each choose one half of a pair based on traits we liked in that angel, and see which complete pair was better. Surprisingly, she chose Amriel and I chose you. We didn't have to argue or debate- you were a pair already."
"So we're meant to do what, exactly?" Castiel wasn't convinced that Chuck even knew what his intent was with this.
"Well, if all had gone to plan, Amara and I would have found you when the time was right, taught you both the ins and outs of Heaven, and then gone on our way for however long, knowing that we had left the angels in good hands…" Chuck heaved a sigh and ran a hand over his face, scratching at his beard momentarily. "But then I had to lock Amara away, and that plan went to the back burner. You and Amriel didn't meet in Heaven, and now I don't really know what to tell you."
"That's extremely helpful, Chuck," Cas rolled his eyes.
"I know, I know. But somehow you two managed to meet and share your grace with one another, which is honestly something I didn't see coming. I still think you and Amriel can help fix Heaven," Chuck told him, and Cas shook his head, disagreeing with him.
"How can we fix Heaven when Lucifer is in Amriel's vessel? Judging by what Crowley said, he has a hold on her that we can't break," Castiel frowned, feeling his chest ache at the thought of Amriel staying under the archangel's control.
"Don't worry about that, Castiel. Lucifer will be expelled from her vessel and he'll be dealt with," Chuck reassured him, but Cas didn't feel very confident about it. "When you two are reunited, you can handle Heaven in whatever way you see fit. I trust you both."
Amriel was flipping through channels when everything began to shake, from the television to the furniture to the frames hanging on the walls. She looked around, confused by what was going on, and stood up from the bed, moving towards the center of the room.
"What's going on?" she mumbled to herself, wishing she knew what was happening outside of her mind.
The next thing she knew, everything went black.
When she woke, Amriel's vision was flooded with nothing but tan. What had happened? She vaguely heard voices around her, but couldn't quite make out what was being said. Everything sounded so far away, but she knew whoever was speaking was close.
"Amriel… Can you hear me?"
Castiel's voice broke through and the blonde felt her heart stop momentarily as she realized that he was there. He was the tan she saw, because she was pressed against his chest.
"Cas," she murmured, her voice sounding foreign. "What happened?"
Amriel pushed against his chest, backing up so she was no longer held against him. She looked up and saw her disheveled husband, covered in dirt and blood that didn't seem to be his own.
"Amara banished Lucifer from your vessel," Cas told Amriel, carefully taking her face in his palms and checking her over. "How are you feeling?"
"I-I don't know," she rasped, staring up at Cas, her eyes searching his for any sort of answers that she knew he didn't have. "I'm so sorry."
"Elle, you have to come out sometime," Cas called through the door. "We have to figure out how to help Chuck."
When they had returned to the bunker Amriel immediately locked herself in one of the bedrooms and ignored everyone, especially Cas. She had cut herself off from him completely, including their connection through their shared grace.
She was consumed with guilt after Lucifer had finally been expelled from her vessel, and all she had done the entire way back to the bunker was apologize.
"I thought I was doing the right thing," she said quietly, her voice muffled by the fabric of Castiel's trench coat. "Amara said I had to stop you from doing something stupid."
"So you did it instead," Cas mumbled in response, and she could hear the disappointment clear in his voice.
Sam came down the hallway, frowning when he saw that Cas was still standing outside the door Amriel had slammed in his face days ago.
"Cas, Dean needs you in the library. He needs something translated, I think," Sam told the angel, watching him nod and send one last look at the closed door before him.
The angel headed down the hall and Sam approached the door, knocking lightly and listening for any sign of a response.
"Amriel, it's Sam…" the Winchester called. "I just wanted to see if you were okay. You've been in there for hours. Chuck is dying, and we need to reach out to whoever we can to try and gather enough souls to create the bomb Rowena found a spell for in the Book of the Damned."
Sam pressed his ear against the door, listening for movement and when he didn't hear anything, he went and grabbed his lock picking kit from his room.
He easily unlocked the door and entered the room, looking around and expecting to see Amriel, only to find that the room was empty. His heart stopped when he saw a folded piece of paper at the foot of the bed addressed to Cas, and fear ran through him when he realized that she had left.
"Cas!" Sam called from the room, picking up the note and quickly heading down the hall for the library, calling the angel's name again as he went.
"Yes, Sam?" Cas asked, meeting the Winchester and staring at him in confusion.
"Okay, before I tell you this you have to promise you're not gonna freak out," Sam said hurriedly, glancing over Castiel's shoulder to his curious brother.
"What could you tell me that would cause me to freak out?" Cas looked Sam over, trying to figure out what was going on.
"You have to promise me, man," Sam stressed, and Dean frowned at his brother's insistence.
"Fine, if it will get you tell me what's going on, I promise," Cas finally agreed, and Sam took a deep breath.
"Amriel's gone."
"She's what?" Cas asked, his brows furrowing in utter confusion before finally noticing the folded paper in Sam's hand. "What is that?"
"It- it's for you," Sam handed it to the angel, who quickly unfolded it and began to read.
Cas,
I was a fool to let Lucifer control me.
It seemed like I was doing the right thing at the time, because I did it to protect you.
I can't face you after what I did, so I'm leaving.
Please don't try and find me. I'll come back when I'm ready.
I love you more than anything, never forget that.
I'm sorry.
-Amriel
Castiel stared down at the paper, reading it once, then twice, then a third time before pushing past Sam and heading for the room she had holed up in when they had returned to the bunker.
"Cas?" Sam called after him, and the angel could hear two sets of footsteps following him.
"Come on, man, what did the note say?" Dean asked as he and his brother watched Castiel tear apart the room, looking for anything that would help lead him to where Amriel had gone.
"She felt guilty. She couldn't face me, so she left instead," Cas seethed, pulling out the desk drawers and rifling through their contents, hoping, praying for a clue. "Do a sweep of the bunker. Maybe she took supplies or something before she left."
Sam and Dean stood in the doorway, still staring at the frazzled angel who looked like he was holding back tears as he tore through the closet.
"Cas…" Dean started, but Castiel quickly cut him off, telling him to go before he did something he'd regret.
The brothers did a sweep of the bunker, and Dean discovered that she had taken the Thunderbird he had let her drive months ago. Sam got to work putting the license plates into the systems he could access to see if he could track her down.
They told Cas that all that was missing was the car and what they were doing to find it, and the angel merely huffed, "That's not enough. We have to do more."
"We don't even know when she left," Sam reasoned, trying to calm Cas down. "We have to work with what we've got."
"Can't you use your weird grace connection to find her?" Dean asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
"I- I don't know. Every time I've tried to get a sense for what she's feeling since Lucifer was expelled, she's shut me down," Castiel sighed. "I suppose I could keep trying. She might not be able to focus on keeping me out while doing whatever it is she's doing."
"Okay, well while you do that, Sam will keep working with Crowley on finding some souls and I'll put out an APB on Blondie and call up Jody to see if she can put some feelers out," Dean finalized their game plan, nodding to his brother as he spoke. "We'll find her, Cas. I promise."