Chapter 3

"What the fuck?"

Both brothers stared at the severed head with shock. Aside from baring its teeth, it hissed and snarled dangerously. Its body also twitched, but without its head, it could not move coordinately.

"I take it you've never seen anything do that before," Jody remarked wryly.

"Actually... no."

Dean just stared.

They were so fascinated by watching the still undead head that nobody noticed that somebody closed in on them from behind. Out of the blue, another man lunged at them with a wild roar and a blade in hand.

"Whoa!"

By a hair's breadth, the blade swished past Dean's shoulder. Sam intercepted the weapon arm and twisted it, trying to use the attacker's momentum to bring it down. Screaming, the man reared in the hunter's grasp and kicked at him. Momentarily unbalanced by the foot hitting his calf, Sam let go. In his stead, Dean charged at the creature. Forgoing punches, he slashed at it with the knife right away. Jody brought up her gun but could not risk shooting for fear to hit Dean.

Injured by the hunter's blade, the monster howled. Unfortunately, the wounds only slowed it down but did not stop it. Once more, Dean stabbed at it, burying his hunting knife deep into its chest. A second later, Sam was by his side. Between the two of them, they managed to decapitate it. Headless, it slumped against the wall and fell to the ground, its head lying in the snow beside it.

"For heaven's sake, what are those creatures?" Dean panted. Bending down, he drew his knife through the snow and over the trouser of the fallen but still not dead monster to clean it before putting it back in its sheath.

"Hope Cass can find something," Sam muttered and pulled his phone out. While he waited for the angel to answer, Jody entered the cabin and crossed over to where the two young children huddled in a corner. Both hunters glanced at her as she knelt down to try and comfort the kids. "Oh, yeah... Cass? Can you hear me?"

Alarmed, Dean looked over at his brother.

"Yeah, we caught two of them," Sam reported. "They're pretty hard to kill, though. Dean beheaded one and it's still alive." Pausing to listen to Castiel, Sam shrugged at Dean, gesturing at the body beside them as if to say 'you tell me what's going on'. "Right, quite vicious fangs. They tried to just grab and bite us. Yeah, I'll take a picture. Just a second..." Putting the call on hold, he photographed the head of the second man who attacked them and sent the picture to Castiel. Then he waited.

"What did he say?" Dean prodded.

"He's still researching," Sam explained. "I can hear him turn pages... Wait... Yes, Cass, I'm listening... You want us to what?" Apparently, Castiel repeated his latest suggestion. "Alright..."

Snapping the phone shut, Sam forwarded, "Cass wants us to tie one of them up and then place the head back on its shoulders."

"Great," Dean scoffed. "What for?"

"To try and confirm his theory."

"What's supposed to happen? Does he think it grows back to the body?"

"Actually, yes, that's what Cass believes."

"You're kidding, right?" Studying his brother closely, Dean came to the conclusion, "No, you're not." He groaned. "Hey, Jody! Can you give us a set of your handcuffs?"

Catching the one that the sheriff threw at him, Dean grabbed at the body at his feet and turned it around to cuff the hands behind its back. Then he leaned it against the wall. Scowling, he contemplated the wisdom of their actions. Indicating Sam to wait for him, he went to the car to get rope and tie the feet as well. Once done, he put on the heavy-duty leather gloves he had brought as well. Only then, he reluctantly moved over to where the head lay.

"I so don't want to do this," he complained, grimacing at Sam.

"Don't look at me!"

"Why don't you try it?" Dean suggested. "It was your idea after all."

"I just told you what Castiel asked us to do."

Grimacing again, Dean agitatedly shook his head. Throwing his hands up, he groused, "Seriously, man?"

Sam shrugged.

Groaning, Dean rolled his eyes and bent down, taking the head between both hands and turning around to the body. Carefully, he set the head down on the neck, keeping it in place...

…and watched with morbid fascination as the usually mortal wound healed itself.

Writhing in its bonds, the creature tried to bite.

"Son of a bitch," Dean cursed.

"That's Arthur Nolan," Jody let them know as she reappeared in the door. "I didn't think... It's horrible what happened to him. He was supposed to be at his sister's in Wichita."

"I'm part of something bigger now," Nolan surprised them by speaking up. "Byron's just waiting for winter to pass, then we'll move on... find others who'll join our family."

"This Byron guy," Sam said, "Is he the one who turned you?"

"He's the head of our family. We love him. That's why Bill went to get his wife and children. We want them to be with us. Be like us."

"I see..."

Skeptically, Dean eyed the shackled man.

"He and Potter are still alive," Sam turned to Jody, dialing the angel's cell. "Maybe there's a way to save them. Let's see what Cass has to say." Though the call connected, Sam had some difficulty to understand the angel as there were interferences due to the storm. Readily, he followed the others inside when they dragged Nolan into the cabin.

"So..." Sam began once he stuffed his phone back into his jacket. "Cass said they're so-called Nachzehrer. They live in packs and, according to a note in the book he got the information from, the transformation can be reversed by killing the pack leader."

"That's great!" Dean cheered mockingly. "Did Cass also tell you how to kill the pack leader?"

"You've got to place a copper coin in his mouth before beheading him," Sam replied dryly.

"Ah, for the ferryman, so to speak," Jody speculated.

"So he can take them over River Jordan," Sam nodded, reaching into his pockets. "I don't have any coins. Do you?"

"Who's got coins nowadays?" Dean scoffed, patting himself down as well. "No, nothing."

"I have a few," Jody threw in, producing her wallet. "The pennies are copper, right?"

"Yeah, but it should be an older one," Sam explained. "Newer coins have a zinc core if I remember right."

"How old should it be?" she mused, looking at the dates on her coins. "These are relatively new ones."

"I'm not sure, but older than these."

Momentarily at a loss, the hunters stood together in contemplation until Sam turned and began to search the drawers of the sideboard. The other two crossed over to other pieces of furniture and a couple of minutes later, Jody announced a find.

"Looks promising," she cheered as she came out of the kitchen area, producing a whole bottle filled with small coins.

Taking her find from her, Sam pulled out the cork and shook the money out onto the dining table.

"Looking good," he muttered as he pushed the coins around, sliding a few to the side. "Some of those are from the early 80s or even older."

"The older the better, right?" Dean queried as he pocketed a handful of pennies. With determination, he crossed over to where former Mr. Nolan sat, asking, "What's your alpha's name and when did he want to be back?"

"Screw you."

"Why did I even bother?" Rolling his eyes, Dean used a towel to gag the Nachzehrer. Then, he turned to Jody, "You know the case best. Who would you suspect to be the alpha?"

Shaking her head, Jody sighed, "No idea. We could bring Potter in and ask him."

Both Winchesters shared a look of trepidation as questioning Potter first included mending head and body.

"I'll go and check on the kids," Jody declared, climbing the ladder to the bedroom under the roof.

xXx

Back at the sheriff's house, the girls were currently busy with a huge Christmas tree that Castiel had carried in for them from the garage. After fitting it with fairy lights, they opened all the boxes that Jody had hidden behind the sofa and began to pick out ornaments for the decoration while an old Christmas movie ran on the television.

"What?" Alex asked with confusion, "Not even his mother recognizes him?"

"Don't you pay attention?" Claire huffed her exasperation. "The angel made it so that George was never born, so he's got no mother."

"Is that what you're doing, Castiel?" Alex wanted to know.

As the angel was much more interested in the movie than the girls were, he missed her curious question. To him, it was strange and confusing to see how the film's creators imagined angels to be. Though he understood the concept of revealing possible consequences as a means to teach somebody a lesson, he had trouble to get the implications for the angel.

"Hello!" Claire snickered, "Earth to Castiel!"

"Huh?"

Turning his head at hearing the girls giggle, Castiel tried to figure out whether they were laughing about the movie or him.

"Are you like Clarence?" Alex prodded. "Claire mentioned that you got no wings anymore."

"I fell," he grudgingly admitted. "All angels fell."

"Why?"

"We were cast out of Heaven," Castiel gravelly told her. "Betrayed by one of us."

"So you once could fly?" Alex asked with innocent curiosity.

Though he got the impression that she did not mean to gloat, Castiel glared at her.

"Sore subject," Claire murmured, pulling on her foster sister's arm. "Let's get back to the tree."

As he did not intend to explain that he was NOT a second class angel, Castiel returned his attention to the screen where George just was confronted by his brother's gravestone.

'Your Brother, Harry Bailey, broke through the ice and was drowned at the age of nine,' the TV angel explained, triggering George to say, 'That's a lie! Harry Bailey went to war!'

Apparently, the man was devastated, and of course, he had every reason to.

"I love when he realizes what Clarence intended to show him," Claire mused aloud as she hung up a shining ornament in shape of a bird.

Fascinated, Castiel watched as George Bailey begged the angel and God to bring him back to life. A friend of George stopped with his police car, telling him he had searched the whole town for him. Realizing that he was alive, George ran the whole way through town, shouting at everything and everyone Merry Christmas. At his house, trouble was waiting, but suddenly a lot of townspeople showed up, collecting money for George and in the end, his bank was saved. George and his family were happy.

"This is so cute," Claire smirked, grinning at the angel behind his back.

"The movie or him?" Alex snickered.

Claire cocked her head at Castiel.

On the screen, the people were singing Auld Lang Syne and George discovered a book that the angel left for him, a note inside, thanking him for the wings. In the tree, a bell rang and the little girl on George's arm declared, 'Teacher says every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings.'

"Awww," the girls cooed.

Scowling with annoyance, Castiel focused on the movie.

'Atta boy, Clarence,' George said to himself, smiling.

Clarence? Castiel started. Wait a second, Meg used to call me Clarence.

Heat burnt in his cheeks as it fell like scales from his eyes that the demon had referred to this movie.

Dean and Sam must have known. Why didn't they explain it to me?

Reaching for the remote control, he switched the TV off. As so often, he was frustrated that he did not understand quotes that Dean used or other references to movies or series that the brothers had watched. Metatron once wanted to pass his cultural knowledge on to him, but Castiel had refused, too angry at the scribe of God for betraying him. It had been pure luck that he knew the works that led him to where Gadreel had hidden his grace.

I don't want to know what would have happened if Metatron got a hold of it.

Shaking the thoughts off, he turned to see what Alex and Claire were doing. Stunned, he took in the big tree, sparkling with fairy lights from the bottom to the top where a silver star crowned the colorful decoration.

"What do you think?" Alex asked.

"It's..." cocking his head to the side, the angel searched for the adequate term, "overwhelming."

"Why does that feel as if it's not a compliment?"

"Guess because Castiel is unfamiliar with white lies," Claire replied, glancing at the angel. Her insides twisted at seeing her father's face, knowing that he was not in there anymore.

"I was supposed to tell the truth, was I not?" Castiel asked back. "In its entirety, the tree is a well-balanced concoction of shapes and colors that develops a momentum in combination with the tiny lights that is easy on the eye and yet intense in its impact."

The two young women looked at each other with utter confusion.

"I still don't know what to make of his statement," Alex whispered.

Of course, Castiel could understand her and wondered how he could simplify his response, finally settling on:

"It's... surprisingly pretty."

Seeing the beaming grins that lit the girls' eyes as well, he knew that he got it right this time. Inwardly, he heaved a sigh. Living with Dean and Sam, he had learned a lot about humanity, but despite his extensive knowledge, some things still went over his head.

One thing he knew for sure, though, was that the weather turned from bad to worse and that he had not heard from the hunters since Sam had asked about how to kill the creatures they were chasing. With a pang of regret, he stretched his ruined wings, knowing he had no means to get to the hunters fast in case they needed him.

"What else did Jody ask you to do?" he queried in order to distract himself. "Can I help?"

"We're going to prepare dinner next," Claire told him. "It should be ready when the others get back."

"If they get back," the angel murmured to himself.

"Pardon? I didn't catch that." Expectantly, Claire awaited his answer.

Not wanting to worry her, Castiel said, "I was just wondering what you and Jody have planned for tomorrow."

"Oh, that's a secret," Claire smirked. "And I won't tell you, because you can't give accidentally away what you don't know."

"I saw a turkey."

"Yeah, well, Jody insisted on the bird," Claire shrugged. Noticing his discomfort, she suggested, "Why don't you put away those boxes? Then we can set the table together."

Nodding, Castiel set to work.

xXx

After questioning Potter, the hunters now knew that they were dealing with three more freshly turned members of the pack as well as its leader, Scarlett, and her mate Byron whom she had turned decades ago. When they were going to return was anybody's guess, though, especially as the weather became worse by the minute.

"It's really turning into a blizzard," Sam sighed after a look outside. "I bet the Impala will get stuck in this weather if it isn't already. That car isn't made for snow. We might have a chance to get back to town with the jeep."

"It might be best to stay here," Jody replied. "The storm's only bound to get worse. You could take the jeep while I stay with the kids, but..."

"But we won't leave you on your own with those two," Dean cut her short emphatically. "The pack will come back. We'll wait and take them down here."

"I'm voting for Jody taking the children back to town," Sam countered. "They already trust the sheriff and the last thing we need is to worry about the kids when the pack gets back."

"The kids are alright upstairs," Jody argued. "You'll need my help against the alpha."

"Sam's not wrong," Dean agreed with his brother. "Right now, you might still have a chance to make it to town. We can't leave Nolan and Potter here. Taking them with us would alert the others..."

"Just as much as the car in the driveway does," Sam cut in.

"How bad is it anyway?" Jody wanted to know and pushed past the brothers to take a look outside. When she opened the door, a gust of wind swirled a thick flurry of snow inside. Instead of throwing the door shut again, she kept standing for a couple of seconds, the flakes dancing around her into the cabin. When she finally shut the storm out, she looked at the Winchesters with trepidation. "No need to decide, boys. None of us should be driving in this storm."

"What took you so long?" Sam queried. "Did you see anything?"

"I thought there was a light on the road," she shrugged, "but I must have been mistaken."

"So we're stuck here," Dean groused. "Awesome."

"Well, it could be worse," Sam remarked, a grin tugging on his lips at seeing his brother's consternation. "Imagine the place was a shack without any heating."

"Keep going, bitch, and I'll kick you out."

"Empty threats," Sam snickered.

Instead of continuing the argument, Dean crossed over to the fireplace to apply more wood and fan the flames anew. Soon, the fire crackled and warmed the hunters who settled on the sofa and armchair near it. The satellite TV only showed as much snow as they saw outside the window. Luckily, Sam found a pack of Uno-cards and for lack of other options, they played. Hours passed and to the brothers' dismay, Jody won one round after another.

Dean was just checking the cards for marks when Sam suddenly got up, listening intently.

"What's up?" Dean asked, instantly alert.

"I think someone's outside," Sam told them. "Maybe it's them."

"Alright..."

Dropping the cards and picking up their weapons, the hunters moved to the front door. Though it was unlikely that the creatures made it back to the cabin in this blizzard, they were on guard. Sam wanted to peek out the window next to the door, but it was caked with snow.

As soon as the door opened and white glistening shapes moved inside, the hunters acted, trying to incapacitate the newly turned people and taking down the woman that had bitten and condemned them to become monsters.

Two bullets from Jody's gun felled Byron. Using the moment he was stunned, Sam and Jody put handcuffs on him.

At the same time, Dean fought with Scarlett. The leader of the pack turned out to be more than a match for the hunter as she hit him so hard he staggered backward. On him in a second, she straddled his waist, pummeling him. Pausing for just a moment, she glanced around at the other threatening forces before she grabbed her intended victim and dragged him bodily out the door and into the storm.

tbc...