Ch 32

"Earth to Dean, come in Winchester," River waived her hand in front of Dean's face several times. He stared unfocused out of the grimy window in Bobby's sitting room. Powder soft snow flakes were drifting lazily down from the heavens, clinging to the dead branches of the tree in front of the window. "Are you even listening to anything we've been saying?" Dean blinked several times, turning his jade eyes away from the window.

"Yeah, I'm listening. What were we talking about?" He turned to face River and Bobby. River sighed and walked away from him.

"Jesus Christ, Bobby, he's all yours I need a drink." She sighed walking into the kitchen. Dean heard the angry slam of Bobby's refrigerator a second later and a loud 'pop' as the seal on a bottle of beer was opened.

"Sam, ya' idjit. We were discussing the phone call you need to be making about now." Bobby said.

"I'm not calling him, Bobby. I ain't doin' it," Dean said remembering the argument they had been in the middle of.

"I'm not making apologies for what he did. But he's your-"

"Blood? Is that what you're gonna say? 'Cause he's my blood?" Dean answered shaking his head.

"He's your brother and he is drowning," Bobby said gently.

Dean shook his head, "I tried to help him, Bobby. Look what happened? He beat the shit outta me, beat the shit outta River." River returned and handed Dean a bottle of his favorite beer. The giant fist sized bruise on her face had faded to an ugly shade of yellow and green. "I'm not goin' through this with him again," he said looking down into River's bright blue eyes.

"What are you talking about, son?" Bobby gruffed.

"He never wanted to be a part of this family, Bobby. He left for Stanford the first chance he got. Ditched me and dad in the middle of the night…This is deja vu all over again. I'm done chasing him. I got all the family I need right here." He sat down heavily on the sagging couch loosely clutching the beer in his hand.

"Dean, baby, you don't mean that anymore then Sam meant any of the things he said to us," River sat next to him, "He's your brother. Nothing is going to change that."

"No, screw him. I'm done. He's not my brother anymore. I don't know if he ever was," Dean passed the bottle back to River, the smell of the alcohol turning his stomach. Bobby drew a loud, angry breath through his nose and turned towards his cluttered desk. The older man let out an angry yell and swiped his arms across the desk sending books and papers falling to the floor then stalked aggressively towards Dean. The younger hunter stood back up warily.

"You know what? Boo hoo! I'm sorry your feelings are hurt princess!" Bobby yelled at him. "Are you under the impression that family is supposed to make you feel good! Maybe bake you an apple pie?"

"Bobby-" Dean started.

Bobby raised his voice to drown out Dean's half hearted interruption, "Family is supposed to make you miserable! Thats why they're family!"

"Bobby, I told him if he walked out that door he better not come back and he walked out!" Dean yelled back, brushing past Bobby to put some distance between himself and the older man.

"You sound like a whiny brat!" Bobby spat. "No, you sound like your dad! Let me tell you something, your dad was a coward!"

Dean spun on his heels the reflexive need to defend his father taking precedent over his anger as Sam, "My father was a lot things, Bobby, but he was not a coward."

Bobby stood his ground, "Your father pushed Sam away instead of trying to reach out to him. That don't strike me as very brave." He took a shaky breath, willing his voice not to crack, "You are a better man than your daddy ever was." Dean rolled his eyes. His self loathing and the persistent feelings of inadequacy had ratcheted up to an all time high. His father may have been a bastard but he didn't start the apocalypse, he didn't lose his youngest son to a demon slut. "Do us all a favor and don't be him." Bobby quietly added.

Dean shook his head and turned to look at River. The sagging couch was empty. He opened his mouth to call for her turning to look into the kitchen. Except the kitchen was gone. All of Bobby's sitting room was gone. Instead he found himself in an ornately decorated room. The walls a pristine glossy white with bronze colored crown molding ('I need to lay off the HGTV' he thought disgustedly) and several old and expensive looking paintings hung on the wall. "What the hell?" he muttered closing his eyes.

"Hello, Dean." Castiel's familiar gravelly voice sounded behind him. "It's almost time."

River shivered in her sleep pushing her ass back searching for Dean's warmth. She groggily opened her eyes to small slits, the motel room still dark, her eyes too blurry to focus on the iridescent clock on the nightstand next to her. She patted the bed behind her finding it completely void of the giant warm snuggling octopus she had gone to bed with. "Baby?" she called climbing out of bed. Her eyes settled on the closed bathroom door and she knocked quietly. Dean had more than once locked himself in the bathroom for a semblance of privacy after a particularly bad nightmare. Usually if the dreams got too bad River woke with him and waited for him to come back to bed. The bathroom was empty except for their toothbrushes laying next to each other on the chipped countertop. She caught her reflection in the mirror over the sink, half her face swollen and bruised from Sam's attack. Her heart started to beat faster as she scanned their empty room.

Deans jacket was gone from the back of the chair near the door, the Impalas keys were however still sitting in the middle of the table. She slipped her boots on over her bare feet and grabbed her gun from under her pillow. Heedless of wearing nothing but the long 'Pink Floyd' shirt she had fallen asleep in she headed to the dark parking lot. She did a quick perimeter check and found nothing exceptional out of the ordinary before returning to her empty room. "God damn it. Where the hell did you go?" she muttered angrily calling Dean's phone. She paced the small room as the phone rang. 'You've reached Dean's phone you know what to do.' River sighed caught somewhere between anger and panic, "Where the fuck are you?" She hung up and left a similar message on his other three numbers. River set the phone down on the table and finished getting dressed.

"Hello, Dean. You're looking fit," the smug angel Zachariah appeared in the room next to Cas. Castiel dipped his head quickly and crossed his hands behind his back.

"Of course," Dean muttered. "You kidnapped me while I was sleeping, right?"

Zachariah gave Dean a thin smile, "Well, it's so much easier if you don't cause a scene. I didn't want to wake your companion, she sure looked like she needed the rest."

"Where the hell am I? What is this place?"

The Angel stepped forward waving his hands around the opulent room, "This? Consider this a Green Room. We've brought you here to protect you. It's almost showtime and we need you in tip top shape for the grand finale." Castiel shifted uncomfortably on his feet, blue eyes darting between Dean and Zachariah.

"Listen to me idjit, this better be a big damn emergency to be callin' me this early!" Bobby grumbled still half drunk from the night before.

"Bobby? You heard from Dean?" River said, ignoring Bobby's surliness and kicking the motel room door shut behind her. She balanced her phone on her shoulder, her arms laden with maps, jars of ingredients and candles. She dumped the contents onto the table and began sorting through them, organizing them by spell.

"What? No, sweetheart. I thought you two stopped for the night." Bobby's voice suddenly softer and a shade more sober.

"We did. Went to bed together. I just woke up and he's gone. The car's still here," She adjusted the phone on her shoulder and heard Bobby curse, "He didn't leave on his own Bobby. He would've taken the car…Shit. I gotta go Papa Bear." She ended the call before letting Bobby voice his concern and tucked the phone into her back pocket. She unrolled a piece of parchment on the table and began her tracking spell.

"Have some refreshments." A platter of cheeseburgers and a giant bucket full of ice cold beers appeared on the table in the center of the room. "These are your favorite; I believe from that seaside shack when you were 11." He held a burger out to Dean.

Dean's stomach growled audibly but he turned away from the Angel. "I'm not hungry."

"No? How about something else to help pass the time? Ginger from season 2 of 'Giligan's Island'?" Zachariah asked raising his eyebrows. "You have a thing for her right?"

"Yes. I mean no, no! Don't do that!" Dean stuttered.

"Wrong red head? How about this one?" Zachariah snapped his fingers. River muttered the last word of the incantation and ran the match she held between her fingers along the rough surface of the matchbox. The flame caught glowing a bright orange, she blinked and when she opened her eyes she found herself in a bright room. Standing across from Dean who stared back at her with wide eyes.

"What the shit?" River asked dropping the match before it burned her fingers. "Dean? Cas?…Who the fuck are you?" Her eyes darted around the room quickly taking inventory of her new surroundings.

"I'm Zachariah, pleasure to finally meet you in person. Honestly, I feel like I already know you having picked through Dean's subconscious." Zachariah gave her an oily smile. "The things he has filed away in that brain of his. Like that little sound you make when he uses his tongue-" River darted to the table, grabbed a bottle of beer and sent it flying towards Zachariah's face. The beer bottle disappeared mid flight and the Angel gave her a condescending smile. "You're a guest here, young lady. I expect you to behave with some decorum."

"Eat a dick." River retorted, "You're the asshat that shoved us in Mad Men, right? Had Mr. Wesson here ordering rice milk lattes and seaweed smoothies. Why are you with this ass-clown, Cas?" She chucked another beer at Zachariah's stupid face.

Zachariah sighed. "Castiel, if you would be so kind." Castiel stiffened and looked towards River. In an instant he crossed the room and stood in front of her.

"Don't you fucking dare, Cas!" she threatened. Castiel wrapped his hand around her upper arm and before she could yank it out of his grip they landed in the front seat of the Impala. "Son of a bitch!" she screamed slamming her fists on the steering wheel. The car, herself and the Angel now appeared to be in front of Bobby's house. "What the fuck is going on?" she yelled.

Castiel let out a long breath, "I'm sorry."

"Take me back to Dean."

"I can't."

"No, you won't. That's a big fucking difference." River slammed her hands into the steering wheel again, "What did they do to you? You were our friend…you saved Dean. You saved me. Why are yo doing this?"

"I have my orders."

"You went against orders before. Please just tell me whats going on," she reached across the seated squeezed his hand. The Angel looked down at her hand, she let go of his fingers and shook her head angrily.

Castiel caught her retreating hand and grasped it firmly. He slowly turned to face her, "The last seal is falling tomorrow night. The end is upon us."

"So how do we fucking stop it?" River demanded.

"I'm sorry. I have my orders." Castiel disappeared from the front seat and River let a frustrated scream. Bobby ambled onto his porch holding a steaming cup of coffee staring dumbfounded at the car that should still be a few hundred miles away. River climbed out of the car and carefully closed the door behind her.

The older man walked down the steps and headed towards her, "How the hell did you get here so fast?"

"I might let her come back if she cools down a bit," Zachariah told Dean. Cas reappeared behind Zachariah his brow furrowed and avoiding Dean's eyes.

Dean ran his hands through his hair, "That was her cooled down. Can we just bail on the holodeck? I wanna know what the game plan is."

"Let us worry about that," Zachariah told him, "We want you focused, relaxed."

"Well, Chuckles, I'm about to be pissed and leaving. So start talking." Dean growled.

Zachariah sighed and began walking slowly around the room, stopping to admire the Ming Dynasty Vase that sat on an ornate cabinet from Versailles. "All the seals have fallen. All except one."

Dean whistled, "Wow thats an impressive score. Right up there with the Cleveland Browns."

"Sarcasm, such a…human response," Zachariah clapped Dean on the shoulder as he walked past him, heading for the door where Cas still stood guard, "The last seal is different."

"Ok I'll bite: why is it different?" Dean sighed, tired of the angelic douches spiel.

The Angel turned to face the hunter, his smug face driving Dean insane, "Lilith has to break it. She's the only one that can. She's planning on doing it tomorrow night- midnight to be exact."

"Ok, where?" Dean demanded.

"We don't know but I assure you we're working on it."

"Well work harder!" Dean yelled.

"We'll do our job, Dean. Just make sure you do yours when the time comes." Zachariah replied.

"Yeah, my job is stop Lilith right? How? With the knife?"

Zachariah took a calculated step towards him, "All in good time."

"Isn't now a good time. The end being nigh and all?"

"Have faith, Dean." Zachariah countered with another smug smile.

"What? In you? Why should I?"

"Because you swore your obedience. So obey," Zachariah said coldly. Dean looked over his shoulder and briefly met Cas's shame filled eyes before the trench coated angel bowed his head.

At an abandoned farm house in the middle of nowhere Oklahoma, Sam was busy torturing a demon that held the high distinction of being Lilith's personal chef. Ruby looked on smiling as the other demon screamed and writhed in pain. Sam was strong enough now to hold the demon without the aid of a devils trap. "I can keep this up as long as we need to…or you can tell me where Lilith is and I'll kill you quick," Sam told the crying demon quietly. The demon was currently wearing a NICU nurse and had been using the position to 'procure' dinner aka newborn babies for Lilith's feast. Sam and Ruby had caught the demon attempting to wheel a baby right out of the hospitals loading dock. The demon took too long to answer and Sam reached out with his psychic powers, the pain that flowed through the demon felt like her blood had been replaced with holy water.

"Please…please stop! I'll tell you. Just please let me die," she sobbed. "Tomorrow night…midnight. She'll be at St. Mary's Convent in Ilchester, Maryland." Ruby smiled up at Sam.

River paced circles in Bobby's kitchen. She'd used every tracking spell she knew, tried a scrying board and even called a psychic hotline and she had no leads on where the angels were keeping Dean. "This ain't helpin' anybody sweet heart. Why don't you just sit for a minute?"

"No. No. God damn it. We are running out of time. None of this is right, Bobby." She swiped the tarot cards she had been attempting to read off the kitchen counter. "I need to make a phone call."

"You already tried that." Bobby said gently.

"I'm goin' outside. Just give me a few minutes," she stormed out of the house and raced down the steps pulling out her phone. She found Gabriels number and punched it in, "You better fucking answer." The phone rang twice before it switched to an automatic message, 'I am sorry but the number you have reached is no longer in service-'. River pulled the phone away from her ear with a frustrated growl. "You son of a bitch! You fucking coward! I need your god damn help!" she screamed at the pre-recorded voice.

Back in the Angelic Green Room, Dean paced restlessly. Zach and Cas had left him alone hours ago. He had even broken down and called Sam, leaving him a message when his brother didn't answer. He pleaded once more with him to stand down, come home and they would figure out their next step together. Everything in the bright, garish room was getting on his last nerve. Especially the stupid porcelain angel statue on the table next to him. He knocked the statue off the table and enjoyed the noise it made as it shattered. "You wanted to see me?" Castiel appeared before Dean a disapproving frown on his face as he looked at the broken statue on the floor.

"Yeah, uh," Dean smiled nervously a slight blush making the freckles on his nose stand out as he tried to sweep the shards of broken angel under the nearest table with his boot. "I need something."

Castiel smiled, "Anything you wish."

"I need to see Sam."

The Angel stopped smiling, "I don't think that's wise."

"I didn't ask for your damn opinion. I want to see my brother." Dean said taking a step towards the Angel.

Castiel shifted on his feet, glancing around the room as if checking for eavesdroppers. "Have you already forgotten how your last meeting went?"

"No. That's what I want to see him about. I need to tie this one thing up. Ok? Then I'll be a good little soldier and fall in line."

"No." Castiel answered firmly.

Dean's eyebrows shot up, "What do you mean 'no'? Am I trapped here?"

"Of course not. You can go wherever you want," the Angel answered.

"Fantastic. I wanna go see Sam."

Castiel sighed, "Except there."

Dean closed his eyes and shook his head, "Fine I want to see River."

"I'll bring her here," Castiel offered turning back towards the door.

"No, Cas, I want you to take me to her," Dean clarified.

"Why?"

"Because I want to fuck her on the hood of my car. Come on, times a-wastin'." Dean walked towards the door.

"I can't let you go alone. If you want her, I will bring her here," Castiel said again.

Dean shook his head turning back towards the Angel, "I knew it. Fuck this noise. I'm outta here."

"Through what door?" Castiel taunted. Dean quickly turned back towards the door to find it gone, replaced by another wall and another porcelain angel statue. He spun back around to yell at Castiel and found himself alone again. Hours passed in solitude. Dean was beginning to regret turning down the entertainment Zachariah had offered. So he broke every stupid statue and priceless vase in the room. He picked up a candlestick and was going to throw it across the room, the weight of the candlestick caught him by surprise and he turned towards the wall. He hammered the edge into the wall, chunks of plaster falling away and leaving a small hole. Dean smiled triumphantly and raised the candlestick for another assault when the wall suddenly became whole again. He blinked in disbelief and ran his fingers over the unmarred surface, "Son of a bitch."

"Stop throwing feces like a howler monkey," Zachariah condescended. Dean tossed the heavy candlestick on the wood floor.

"I want outta here. I want to see my brother," Dean demanded.

"That's ill-advised." The Angel shook his head and crinkled his nose.

"You know what? I am so sick of your stupid, fat, smug face. I am sick of getting crumbs. What the hell is going on, huh?" Dean yelled. Zachariah for once looked uncomfortable, he shifted his shoulders nervously. "Why can't I see my brother? How am I gonna gank Lilith?"

Zachariah let out a long suffering sigh, "You're not-going to 'gank' Lilith."

Dean's green eyes widened, "What?"

"Lilith is going to break the final seal. Trains left the station, the ship has sailed, Elvis has left the building, et cetera." Self-satisfied smile plastered to his face as he sat proudly on the upholstered Divan.

"But…me and Sam we can stop it," Dean shook his head, the last several months of Angelic bullshit crumbling. "You don't want to stop the Apocalypse."

Zachariah smiled broadly, "Never did! The end is nigh, kiddo."

"All the crap about saving the seals?"

"We needed something to keep the grunts on the ground distracted. We couldn't just tell them the whole truth. It would've been chaos."

"But Cas? You tried to have him killed?" Deans hands clenched and unclenched, he felt a thin sheen of sweat break out on his upper lip.

The Angel nodded serenely, "We were afraid Castiel was becoming too attached to his charge. He was beginning to question things way above his station. But then wowza!" Zachariah raised his fists triumphantly, "The way he handled that bitch Adhira and her little party. I remembered why Castiel had climbed the ranks so quickly in the first place. He is a very determined warrior, one of our most decorated Captains. I knew with the right…guidance he could see reason. We're going to need skilled soldiers such as Castiel in the fight to come."

"When the apocalypse happens? I haven't read much of the Bible but I get the gist of Revelations and it doesn't sound too great." Dean said.

"I know how it sounds. 'The Apocalypse', 'Armageddon', the Great Cataclysm. It's all just bad marketing," Zachariah saccharine voice was beginning to grate on Dean. "What it really is going to be, when our side wins because we will win, is paradise on Earth."

"What happens to all the millions of people that are gonna be caught in your little pissing contest?"

"Dean! Enough, lets not dwell on minor unpleasantness-"

"River and Bobby are find a way to bust me out of here," Dean said.

"River, that foul mouthed, mentally uncorked, grace thief. And Bobby Singer, the mans more alcohol than human at this point. I'd get better friends if I were you."

"Grace thief? Fuck you, you sanctimonious piece of shit," Dean growled, "Sam's gonna stop Lilith, he won't go down without a fight."

"Ah, yes. Sam. Don't worry about him. He has his own part to play. He might just need a little motivation and I can be very motivating." Zachariah smiled.

"What does that mean? What are you gonna do to Sam?"

Zachariah grasped Dean around the shoulder again, "Will you just stop worrying about Sam for five minutes? This about destiny, Dean. Your destiny. You are important to us, to everything. You will stop IT just not Lilith or the Apocalypse."

"Stop! Just stop with the riddles and the half truths," the hunter grumbled, "Just tell me what I'm supposed to do."

"You are going to stop Lucifer," The Angels face lit up with a true smile, the smile of a zealot. "And when you win, oh Dean! Your rewards will be innumerable. Now rest, relax. One day we'll look back on this and have a hell of a laugh." Zachariah sighed happily and disappeared from the room leaving Dean to ruminate over the Angels betrayal.

He pulled out his phone and tried calling his brother again, the phone beeped insolently in his ear. "Son of a-" he held the phone out in front of him, waiving his arm back and forth looking for a connection.

"You can't reach him Dean. You're out of your coverage area," Castiel told him appearing in the room. Dean put the phone back in his pocket and turned to face the Angel. He couldn't tell if that was Cas's attempt at a joke or if he was being serious.

"What are you gonna do to Sam?" Dean asked.

Castiel took a deep breath and walked around the room, the vases and statues that Dean had taken a modicum of enjoyment in destroying were back in their original forms. "Nothing. We are going to do nothing to your brother. Sam is going to do it to himself."

"What does that mean?" Dean grunted. Castiel shifted on his feet, turning his head from Dean to avoid his angry green eyes. His jaw tightened, afraid he said too much but also knowing there was no one eavesdropping. Zachariah had left for the time, called away for some last minute self-congratulatory meeting. Dean smiled wryly, "Right. Right. Good little cookie cutter Cas, toeing the company line. Why are you here?"

The Angel met Deans eyes, remembering the broken shell that had begged for death. "We've been through much together, you and I." He remembered Dean's defiance towards Uriel and his stubborn refusal to abandon the citizens in that small town. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry it had to end like this."

"Sorry?" Dean scoffed. He pulled his right arm back and sent it slamming into the Angel's jaw. Cas's head swiveled stiffly on his neck; the Angel gave no sign the impact had caused him even the tinies bit of pain. Dean, on the other hand, drew in a sharp breath and turned his back on Castiel to hide the grimace of pain that tore across his face. He gingerly flexed his fingers to test that he hadn't broken anything when he connected with the Angel's Adamantium jaw. "It's Armageddon, Cas," he groaned, not quite masking the throb of pain that shot up his wrist. "Sorry's not gonna cut it."

"Dean, please understand. This is long foretold. It is-" Castiel sighed, the words losing meaning as he stared at Dean.

"Destiny? Come one Cas! Cut the angelic bedtime story crap. It's Prophecy, God's Plan? It's all a lie, Cas, you poor, stupid son of a bitch. It's a lie to keep us in line, to keep you bastards in line." Dean squeezed his eyes shut, pinching the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. "I was ok going to the Pit you know that? It was between me and Sammy and I choose him. He had a chance to be…more." Dean's jaw tightened. "And then I met River. She was fucked up and I was fucked up and we were fucked up together and I was still ok with dying. Until I realized that I wasn't ok with going to the Pit because maybe just maybe I could be more too. When we were in that god damn doctors office and I heard my sons heartbeats for the first time I thought 'this right here is what it's all been about, all the fighting, the blood, the pain, it's for them. They're gonna have a chance'. That was real. People having something to fight for, to protect, to call their own. Families. That's what matters. And your just gonna watch it all burn."

"No, Dean. All I see here is pain. All I see in you is your pain, your guilt, your anger, your confusion. In Paradise all is forgiven. You will be at peace. River will be at peace. Even Sam. No more pain. No more fear or nightmares or anger." Castiel said.

Dean ran his fingers through his hair, "Take your peace and shove it up your lily white ass. I'll take the pain, the guilt. River crying in the shower, Bobby drinking himself to an early grave, I'll even take Sam as is because that is real. They are worth fighting for."

"You don't understand-" Castiel snapped.

"No, you're the one that doesn't understand! Enough with the good little soldier crap. There is right and wrong and this? This is wrong, Cas!" Dean yelled. "You were gonna help me once. This is what you were gonna warn us about, isn't it? After the shit that went down in LA? After they betrayed you, tried to get you and River killed. You went home to find answers and you found 'em and didn't like 'em and you were going to help us." Dean grabbed the Angel by the shoulders and pulled him close, "Help us now. Please!"

Castiel looked down at Dean's hands, "What would you have me do?"

"Get me to Sam, help us stop Lilith!"

"If we do this, we will be hunted to the ends of the Earth. We will all die." Castiel shook his head.

"If there has ever been anything worth fighting for it's this!" Dean pleaded.

Bobby had given up trying to coax River to come back inside. She stayed in the front seat of the Impala and watched the sun set. The last eighteen hours had drained away, midnight was approaching fast. She had spent a few hours yelling at the recorded voice that kept telling her Gabriel's number was disconnected, taunting the Archangel through their words with friends game and even tried praying politely. "You know whats really funny? Castiel said Archangels are Heavens mightiest weapons, pure unadulterated Holy wrath. He was afraid of what a pissed off Archangel could do. I just can't picture that description when I think of you. You must be the runt of the litter. The 'fun sized' Archangel," she giggled drunkly, taking another long pull from the bottle of whiskey she had found in the glovebox. She had also found the Demon Blade and twirled it mindlessly on the seat next to her. The radio hissed static and she let her head loll back onto the seat, "…Castiel on the other hand… woo. Damn, talk about making panties drop. Fuck, his wingspan alone and his grace. I could feel it across the room…do you guys ever use it for kinky shit? I bet you do you kinky bastards."

"Hello, River."

"Oh fuck me sideways," River shot up in the seat. Sloshing whiskey on her shirt. "The fuck do you want?"

Castiel shifted uneasily on his end of the seat. "My superiors don't know I'm here…you're drunk."

River raised her eyebrows. "Yeah. Yes I am. Got nothing better to do than piss the night away."

Castiel touched her forehead instantly sobering her up. River gave him an indignant frown. "May I ask you a question?"

"Yeah, shoot."

"Do you want Lilith dead?"

River sighed, "What kind of stupid fucking question is that? Of course I want her dead."

"Even if it meant the world would die with her?"

She blinked several times, "What do you mean…what does that mean?"

"My superiors want the last seal to fall, they want Lucifer to rise and bring about the Apocalypse… Lilith is the last seal."

"What? You assholes said Dean could stop the Apocalypse. That he could stop Lilith!"

"If she dies then the End begins. She killed your sons; you want her dead. Would you forsake this world to watch her die?"

River squeezed her eyes shut, angry tears slipping out, "That fucking bitch. She doesn't get to fucking win."

"It's Prophecy."

"Prophecy, huh?" River slid the demon knife across the seat, "There's always a little wiggle room when it comes to Prophecy." Castiel's dark blue eyes drifted to the blade River still gripped. "You're not up for a promotion for a few thousand years anyways, right?" She gave him a half smile as his hand closed over hers. A shudder ran through her as Castiel snapped his wings. The Impala was instantly gone and they reappeared in the garish white room. Deans back was turned to them and he was devouring a cheeseburger. Castiel grabbed him, spun him into the wall and placed his hand firmly over Deans mouth. River snuck up to Cas's side, smiling and holding her index finger to her lips telling Dean to 'shh!' Dean's eyes widened and he nodded. Castiel let him go and rolled up a sleeve on his trench coat. The Angel brandished the Demon Blade in his other hand and sliced through his forearm.

"Cas, Wh-" Dean muttered bewildered, watching as the Angel began drawing a sigil on the wall in his own blood.

River grabbed Dean's jacket and pulled him close, kissing him roughly. "Lilith is the last seal. If she dies, if Sam kills her, it's all over. You have to stop him!"

"Castiel, would you mind telling me what the hell you think you're doing!" Zachariah materialized in the room screaming at the Seraphim.

Castiel finished drawing the sigil and slammed his bloody palm in the center. "Eat a dick!" he growled. River let out a stunned 'Ha!', Dean's jaw dropped in shock as Zachariah was banished from the room in a blinding flash of light.

"He won't be gone long. We have to find Sam." Cas said with a slight smile he darted his eyes nervously between Dean, who still appeared shocked, and River, who was beaming.

"Wh-ok…ok well the where hell is my brother?" Dean finally got his mouth to form words.

Castiel handed him the Demon Blade, "I don't know. But I know someone who does." He grabbed River and Dean's hands and with a flap of his wings they were transported far from the Angelic waiting room.

"Wow, that sounds…moist. $1000 an hour for one girl? Ok, I'll take twenty for the whole night," Chuck Shurely, illustrious author and Prophet of the Lord, listened intently to the operator of the escort service on the other end of the phone call. The very annoyed sounding woman was wanting, no needing, Chucks credit card information before she waisted anymore time. "Ok, ok wait a minute…it's here somewhere." He stepped back around his cluttered desk and swiped at a pile of paperwork, finding his wallet at the bottom. A sudden draft caused more stacks of paper to fly off his desk and Chuck spun towards the source. Castiel, Dean and River stood in his filthy kitchen. " You're not supposed to be here! This isn't supposed to happen. Wait, no don't hang up this is definitely…shit." Chuck dropped his phone on the cluttered table and stared at them in amazement.

"Hey, Chucky. Long time no see," River smiled. "Where the hell is Lilith?"

The author stuttered several times, "Shit….you aren't supposed to be here."

"Yeah you said that already and yet here we are. Where is Lilith? Where's my brother?" Dean asked. Chuck swallowed thickly and ran to his desk, he thumbed through a stack of papers before finding the right one. "St. Mary's, it's uh-it's a convent. But you aren't supposed to be there. You aren't in this chapter."

Castiel looked up from the paper Chuck had handed him, "Well, we're making it up as we go along." River smiled again and squeezed Dean's hand. The lights in Chucks kitchen suddenly flickered, his computer flashed then shut off. A high pitched whine echoed in the room and a light filled the small window, like the sun itself was rising right outside.

"Oh, no. Not again," Chuck moaned stepping away from the window. The house began to shake, cabinets dumped their contents onto the tiled floor in a loud crash, a bookshelf toppled over with a bang.

"It's the Archangel!" Castiel yelled over the din, "I can't send you both! Dean you have to stop him! I'll hold them off, I'll hold them all off!"

"River!" Dean yelled reaching out for her. Castiel placed his palm to Dean's forehead and he disappeared from the kitchen.

"Dean!" she screamed at the empty spot of floor where he was. Her wide, terrified eyes met Castiel's. "Cas?" The whine became nearly deafening.

"Run! River, run! As fast as you can, get out! They won't harm Chuck. Run!" The Angel grabbed her hand then pushed her away.

"Cas!"

"RUN NOW!" he yelled at her. She turned and tore through the kitchen, running for the front door. Her hands shaking as she undid the chain lock and three dead bolts Chuck had installed. The final lock clicked open and she ran down the front steps, the shaking ground causing her to stumble. She made it back to her feet and ran as if her life depended on it, which it did because more than likely the pissed off Archangel was going to turn her into a pillar of salt . Her lungs burned, tears fell from her eyes and she cursed herself for not going on more jogs with Sam. She made it two blocks before the Archangel touched down, the impact causing the Earth to give a sudden jolt causing her to trip over her own feet again. She climbed unsteadily to her feet and risked a look over her shoulder. Chucks house was entirely engulfed in the brilliant white light. The light suddenly went out as if sucked into a vacuum, the air around her 'whooshing' back down the street. She realized a second too late the only thing powerful enough to create the wind was the flapping of a giant set of wings. When the Archangel flapped their wings again, the wind came back in force, car windows shattered, alarms went off, dogs howled. And River turned to run again. She made it a half dozen steps before slamming into and bouncing painfully off a solid mass that had materialized in front of her. She looked up dazed and met the honey colored eyes of Gabriel. "Hi, Lollipop. What was that about 'fun sized'?"