DISCLAIMER: I only own my character! Anything you might recognize is courtesy of the CW.
WARNING: Some of these episodes/chapters may contain graphic violence, cursing, mentions of suicide or assault and other triggering aspects. Proceed with caution please.
Episode Summary:
Someone found Lucifer's sword and is using it to kill angels. Castiel and Uriel have captured Alastair and enlist Angel to use the torturing skills she learned in Hell to extract information from him so they can stop the murders. Angel agrees, however, when Alastair reveals some shocking information, her world is shattered. Meanwhile, while Dean enlists Asa to help search for his now missing sister, Sam is concerned she can't handle the job and takes things into his own hands.
On the road, at night…
"Ruby will meet us outside Cheyenne." Sam said, causing Angel's grip on the steering wheel to tighten, "She's been tracking some leads. I know she's not exactly on either of your Christmas lists, but if she can help us get to Lilith-"
"Look Sam, the last thing I want to be talking about is you and your demonic keychain, alright?" Angel sniped, "In fact I couldn't really give a rat's tiny ass about whether you work with her or not. Do what you want."
Sam gave her an exasperated look, "What's your problem?"
"What's her problem?" Dean scoffed as he looked back at Sam with his own glare, "How bout the fact that Pamela didn't want anything to do with this and we dragged her back into it, Sam."
"She knew what was at stake."
"Right! How could I forget? Saving the world." Angel shook her head, "Yeah, we're definitely overachievers on that one." Sam rolled his eyes and was about to comment but she cut him off again, "I'm just- I'm tired of burying friends, alright? I'm tired of being the reason why everyone around us dies."
"Look, Ang." He pushed forward again, "We catch a fresh trail-"
"And we follow it." This time Dean cut him off, giving him a 'shut the hell up and read the room' look, "We all know that."
"Well, then stop being tired and get angry. Both of you because we have a job to do."
"Whatever you say." Angel cut a glare to him through the rearview before turning the radio back on, "Dad."
In a motel room…
"Ah…" Dean let out a heavy and still irritated breath as they walked into their room and turned the lights on, "Home crappy home."
"Winchester and Winchester." Uriel's voice sounded, alerting them to his and Castiels waiting presence, "Oh, and Winchester."
Dean scoffed, "Oh, come on!"
Uriel's eyes immediately met Angels, "You are needed."
"Needed?" Her temper was tipping dangerously to infuriated, "No, we just got back from needed. Right now, we're just severely annoyed, but as soon as you two leave I'm sure that will be somewhat relieved."
Uriel nearly growled with his own anger, "You mind your tone with me."
"No." Dean stepped up beside his sister with just as much patience lost, "You mind your damn tone with us."
Sam stepped forward to quell both of his siblings as he spoke to the angels, "We just got back from Pamela's funeral."
"Yeah, I'm sure you guys are familiar. Brunette, yay high, pretty, psychic." Angel's eyes cut to Castiel's blank stare, "Well, I know Cas remembers her. At least I would hope he did. He burned her eyes out after all."
"Good times." Dean added just as upset, "Yeah, then she died saving one of your precious seals. So maybe you can stop pushing us around like chess pieces for five freaking minutes!"
Ignoring him Uriel stepped closer to Angel whose demeanor towards him didn't change at all, "We raised you out of hell for our purposes."
"Right, you guys keep saying that but never really get to business on what those purposes are." She crossed her arms, "Care to share what exactly you want from me?"
"Start with gratitude."
"Fat chance."
"Angel…" Cas walked forward, earning her glare, "We know this is difficult to understand."
"And we-" Uriel gave Castiel a significant glare of his own, something Angel certainly saw the tension in, "don't care. Now, seven angels have been murdered, all of them from our garrison. The last one was killed tonight."
"Demons?" Dean asked, earning a nod, "How they doing it?"
"We don't know."
"I'm sorry, but what do you want us to do about it?" Sam's brows furrowed at them, "I mean, a demon with the juice to ice angels has to be out of our league, right?"
Uriel scoffed, "We can handle the demons, thank you very much."
Angel suppressed an eyeroll, "You wouldn't be here if that were the case now would you?"
Castiel elaborated, "Once we find whoever it is we can handle it."
"Guessing that's where we come in." Angel looked between her brothers, "You need our help hunting."
"Not quite. We have Alastair."
"Okay, this is making less sense the more you talk. Stop giving us the spark notes." Angel quipped, "If you've got Alastair then you've got your trigger man. Won't be easy, but if you press the right buttons he'll start singing."
"But he won't talk. Alastair's will is very strong. We've arrived at an impasse."
"Yeah, well, dudes a black belt in torture. I mean, if all you're doing is a couple slaps here and there you guys are out of your league if you think he's gonna give anything up. Like I said, right buttons."
"That's why we've come to his student." Uriel glared at her directly causing her to clench her jaw in anger, "You happen to be the most qualified interrogator we've got."
His words caused her to break her mask and look away from everyone in the room. Flashes from her time in hell filled her mind as the rest of her was filled with guilt and disbelief. The boys were equally silent as they watched the exchange between their sister and the two angels. Neither of them were sure if saying anything would help or hinder her.
"Angel…" Castiel pressed softer, "You are our best hope."
"What are you asking exactly? What, you want me to torture it out of him?"
"No!" At Castiel's nod and incredulous Dean immediately shut it down, "No freakin way is that happening." He scoffed at Castiel, "You can't ask her to do this, Cas. Not this. Not after all the bullshit she's already been through because of this schmuck."
Uriel walked up to Dean, as if challenging him, "Who said anything about asking?"
In the next second, Uriel, Castiel and Angel had all vanished. The boys spun around in shock before anger and worry quickly filled them.
"Angel!" Dean's glare met Sams, "Damn it!"
In an abandoned building…
Alastair was visible through a window in a door, chained to a hexacle standing in the middle of a devil's trap. Angel glared directly at him. All of her hate bubbled to the surface as everything from their past came to the forefront of her memory. She had to admit, the sight of him bound, bleeding and ready for her to take her revenge out on was very tempting. However, as tempting as it was, she didn't think it was a good idea to start chopping him up, angels' orders or not. That would put them both on the same level. And that wasn't something she was willing to come face to face with just yet.
"This devil's trap is old Enochian." Castiel explained, "He's bound completely."
"Fascinating." With a final glare, Angel irritatedly turned away from him and Alastair's door, "Where the hells the exit?"
"Where are you going?"
"Away from here. I'm not doing this." She walked past Uriel then stopped when he was all the sudden blocking her path, "Move."
"Angels are dying, girl."
"You guys aren't special. People die everyday, it seems more and more lately." Her head lifted as she once again challenged Uriel, spiting a hateful glare from him, "I get that you guys say you're all-powerful and that you can make me do whatever you want." As much as she hated herself for it, emotion leaked through her face, "But you can't make me do this."
"This is too much to ask, I know." Castiel walked to her, this time his face soft with understanding, "But we have to ask it."
Angel silently watched Castiel for a second as she pulled herself together, and placed that perfect Winchester mask back on her face.
"Let me and Cas talk for a second." Her eyes flashed to Uriel, "Alone."
"I think I'll go seek revelation." After a second of another glare off, Uriel nodded in appeasement before looking to Castiel, "We might have some further orders."
"Good." Angel crossed her arms, "Fly by Starbucks while you're out. I'm thinking it's gonna be a double-shot type of night."
"Ah, this one just won't quit, will she?" Uriel barked out a laugh before vanishing, "I think I'm starting to like you, girl."
"You know you guys should start walking places." Angel sighed deeply as she shook her head, "You fly everywhere and you're gonna get flabby." She raised a brow when Castiel didn't react to her attempt to lighten the mood, "Cas, you're starting to make me think Captain Douche-Rocket has a better sense of humor than you do."
"Uriel's the funniest angel in the garrison. Ask anyone."
"Well, I don't know if that's a scary thought or a sad one." Getting back to business, Angel walked up to Castiel with a softer yet confused look, "Cas, what the hell is happening? Why is Uriel trying to leash you? Since when is that a thing?"
He looked pained, "My superiors have begun to question my sympathies. I was getting too close to the humans in my charge… You." Her brow lifted curiously at that, "They feel I've begun to express emotions. The doorways to doubt. This can impair my judgment."
"Look, Cas…" Angel took what he said in as she ran a stressed hand through her hair, "You need to tell Uriel and your superiors that it's not a good idea to have me doing this. You do not want me doing this, trust me."
"Want it, no. But I have been told we need it." His hand came up to rest on her upper arm in a form of comfort she'd never seen him do before, "For what it's worth, I would give anything not to have you do this."
His words caused her to close her eyes in defeat.
Later on, in Alastairs room…
With no emotion showing, Angel wheeled a loaded and covered cart covered into the room where Alastair was imprisoned. The demon watched her enter with a sickening grin before starting to sing. He moved within the chains almost as though he was dancing.
"Heaven, I'm in heaven, and my heart beats so that I can hardly speak. I seem to find the happiness I seek, when we're out together dancing cheek to cheek…" Angel pulled the tarp off the cart revealing the assortment of torture implements and earned a a chuckle from Alastair, which she actively ignored, "I'm sorry. This is a very serious, very emotional situation for you. I shouldn't laugh, it's just that- I mean, are they serious? They sent you to torture me?"
"I'm giving you one chance to give me a name. One." Angel said, ignoring his baiting, "Tell me who's killing the angels."
His rolled his eyes, "You think I'll see all your scary toys and spill my guts?"
"Alastair, I know that one way or another you're gonna start singing. I'm just tryna keep the cleanup hassle free."
"Right."
"Name, Alastair."
"Or what? You'll work me over?" His face turned to a sneer, "But then, maybe you don't want to. Maybe you're…" Again he began to sing, but this time in a low menacing voice, "Ah, scared to."
"Now, if I was scared why would I be here?"
"Youre not entirely here are you? You left part of yourself back in the Pit. Let's see if we can…" Smiling he inhaled deeply, "Get the two of you back together again, shall we?"
A blank face Angel walked over to the cart, "You're setting yourself up for disappointment, Alastair."
"You have not disappointed me so far, little Angie. Come on. You gotta want a little payback for everything I did to you. For all the pokes and prods. Hm?" Angel remained impassive, "No? Then…" His next words had her head snapping up, "How about for all the things I did to your daddy?"
Back in the Winchesters motel room…
Sam was there alone as he opened the door for Ruby to walk through.
"I can still smell them." Ruby scoffed, "Seriously, Sam, I'm not exactly dying to tangle with angels again." When her eyes crossed the empty room she turned back to him curiously, "Where's Dean?"
"He and Asa are out looking for Angel. Which is why I called you. I need you to find out where they took her."
"Not sure I see the problem. You know they have Alastair strung up six ways from Sunday. Angel cuts herself a slice, Al's reduced to a quivering heap, and the good guys get the goods. What's wrong with that?"
"She can't do it."
"Look, I get it. You don't want her going all torture master again, but-"
"No. I mean, she can't do it. She can't get the job done. Something happened to her downstairs, Ruby. She's not what she used to be. She's not strong enough."
Her eyebrow cocked up, "And you are?"
"I will be."
Back in Alastair's prison room…
"I had your pop on my rack for close to a century."
"Stop stalling, already." Angel shook her head, "You're not gonna be able to keep it up forever."
"John Winchester. Made a good name for himself. A hundred years. After each session, I'd make him the same offer I made you. I'd put down my blade if he picked one up."
"Just give me the demon's name, Alastair."
"But he said nein each and every time. Oh, damned if I couldn't break him." With a head shake, Angel took her jacket off to prepare for her next move, "Pulled out all the stops, but John, he was, well, made of something unique. The stuff of heroes. And then came Angel. Angel Winchester. I thought I was up against it again." Trying to take the edge off this tense situation Angel took a swig from the waiting whiskey bottle in the room, "But daddy's little girl, she broke. She broke in thirty. Oh, just not the woman your daddy wanted you to be, huh, Angie?" Rage filled her at his words and she put the bottle down instantly and picked up a jigger and filled it from a large bottle of water that had a rosary in it, "Now we're getting somewhere. Holy water?" He scoffed, "Come on. Grasshopper, you're gonna have to get creative to impress me."
"You wanna know a little secret, Al?" Angel looked up at him with dark eyes, "I could still dream. Even in Hell. Over and over and over again I dreamt about the same thing. You know what that was? The exact moment i'd get revenge." A dark humorless smile overtook her lips, "This exact moment." Alastair began to look nervous as Angel picked up a large needle, "And believe me, I got a few ideas." She filled the needle from the jigger, sprayed a little water from it, and walked over to Alastair, "Now, enough with the monologuing. Let's get started."
In the next room over, Castiel frowned once he heard Alastair start screaming.