Brilliant Idea

Rowan drank the rest of the whiskey as Crowley eased her embarrassment by not making a comment. She didn't remember that kiss heating up. What she did remember was, all of a sudden, she was sitting on his lap with her arms around his shoulders.

In order to have Hel surface once more, it would have to be when Rowan was aroused. If that should happen, he'd play along and encourage Hel to surface. Surely, that would lead her to remember or unlock what was hidden inside. Was Rowan a vessel? Or was she Hel with a memory loss? Those would be questions he would answer throughout their time together all while making her feel like she was the one getting answers to her questions.

"What would you like to know about me?" he asked, giving her what she had last wanted. She wanted to know more about him, he wanted the whiskey. They made a deal where they could share details and have a loyal relationship where Sam and Dean would have no part. This would also allow her to ease out of embarrassment.

"Um, anything." she said, still not facing him, still holding onto that empty glass.

"I was once human." Crowley said and Rowan slowly turned to look at him, confused. "Demons are the product of a human soul tortured in Hell, a process I call Demonizing." He added and she resumed sitting at the corner, her embarrassment gone.

"Wow, I thought demons were fallen angels." She said and he gave her a small grin.

"Once an angel, always an angel." he replied and watched her eyes shine like an eager child again. "I became a crossroads demon, making deals, and then I rose to the top. I crowned myself King of the Crossroad. Lucifer was let out of his cage by two morons you know, and then stuffed back into the cage by the same two morons." Crowley said, stopping there. He hadn't told Rowan he was King of Hell. He was actually going to keep that bit of information for later. If Rowan did come to realize who she was, and would naturally want to reclaim her kingdom, she might beat Abaddon to kill him in getting it.

Not only that, but if that was what she wanted, and he remained silent on being King of Hell, he could point her in Abaddon's direction. Then, all he would have to do is reassure her that her kingdom still belonged to her, but since it has changed so much, he could be her partner.

It was clever.

"Then?" Rowan asked with curiosity.

"Then it was a fight for the throne. Last I heard, Abaddon, a Knight of Hell, was winning." Crowley said, watching her eyes as they grew dark. He knew she wouldn't forget that name. His clever plan was going to work, as usual.

"Is Abaddon a –?" Rowan began asking, but Crowley cut her off with a much better therm.

"Complete bitch." He replied, which got her to smile. "Now, what about you?" he asked and Rowan pushed her hair away from her face, as if she'd rather not talk about herself.

"I was a foster child. Never knew my parents. I bounced from one house to another. I often got into trouble and, by high school, realized that if I didn't stop, I'd end up in JV." Rowan said, looking away as if this was embarrassing her. "Believe me, my life's pretty boring." She concluded, hinting that she didn't want to say anymore.

Crowley watched her, wondering if there were some painful events in her life that she didn't want to mention. Perhaps molested in her fosters homes? Perhaps taken advantage by peers or the authorities? It couldn't only be now that Hel had surfaced from time to time. However, that was something he'd have to discover at her convenience, not his.

There was a ringing in the room at that moment, startling Rowan. She pulled out her cell phone and gave a small smile, one where he noticed a hint of annoyance.

"Hi Sam." She said and he listened carefully to hear his voice. "I'm still fine." She added. Then, there was a shift in her expression. She was no longer annoyed, but slightly delighted. "Oh, okay." Rowan said, trying to sound a little disappointed, which Crowley saw right through as joy. "Well, see you in a few days." She concluded and clicked End on her phone, placing it back in her pocket.

"Seems we have much time together." Crowley said and she glanced at him, not bothering to hide her smile.

"Yeah." She began. "So, back to the case." She added, which made Crowley grin. "What do you think the theory could be about why the snake was after me?" she asked, getting back to business.

Crowley could tell her exactly why Jormungand was after her, but she probably wouldn't believe him and it would be hitting her too hard with reality. Hel might surface and it might be too much for her to take. Thus, he decided to take it easy, to let her figure it out on her own where it might not come as such a shock.

"I'm not quite sure. Their endless resources say nothing?" he asked and she looked a little discouraged.

"I didn't exactly look through everything, but so far no." she replied, looking disappointed.

"Don't look so gloomy, Darling." Crowley said, getting her to look at him, not being able to fight a small smile spreading on her lips. "You'll find your answers." He concluded, encouraging her to continue, to take a break if she needed, and come back to him. He'd be waiting.

Rowan left the door open and unlocked, first going to the kitchen to grab something to eat. With the whiskey she drank, she needed something else in her stomach. Then, rather than dive back into the endless filing cabinets, she'd take a nap. For some reason, she felt tired.

Once she crawled into bed, her stomach full on a sandwich and an apple along with some chips, she closed her eyes and drifted to sleep. She felt herself get further away from her room in the bunker and drift into the darkness where it was unlike being awake. She was asleep and in the place where she dreamt.

Only there were no ordinary dreams here. She had seen this place before. It was a large cavern where pillars of sand colored stones formed a temple which seemed to bury itself in the black rocks. It was large and at the very end was a large foundation that rose above the floor, a throne sitting atop with pillars where designs of tormented souls were etched into the stone.

It was a magnificent place and it always made her comfortable to walk up to the throne.

Sometimes she'd see gatherings where she'd be sitting in the throne, looking at all the people before her. She should have been frightened at the sight of those people; flesh rotting off their bones, organs half falling out, but she was never terrified. These people looked up at her with admiration, sometimes fear.

Other times, the palace was empty like it was then.

Then, at that moment, a whisper passed by her ear, as if someone was standing behind her. She turned to see no one there, but that whisper sent a chill down her spine.

Hell.

It was a strange word to hear, but then a cold chill passed over her and the temple scenery changed to that night when the giant snake was staring intensely at her, flicking out its tongue.

Hell. It hissed at her as it flicked out its tongue and that's what she had heard. Hell.

Like she had in the temple embedded in the rocks of that cavern.

Rowan snapped her eyes open, as if suddenly woken up. She glanced around her room, trying to find out why she woke up. There was nothing out of the ordinary in her room. She checked her cell to find no messages or calls. She got out of bed to see no one else in the corridor. The music continued to play throughout the bunker, but it wasn't loud enough to wake her up.

So why had she suddenly waken from her sleep? Was she startled by her dream?

No. She was startled to have remembered something when faced with the giant snake. It said something to her, something only she had understood, apparently. Sam and Dean said she spoke to it, but said nothing about the snake talking. Crowley said maybe she spoke in another language where Sam and Dean couldn't understand. Much like an animal talking. Who would understand?

Rowan had to go back to Crowley, to tell him of her dream. Perhaps divulging too much information wasn't wise, but she didn't see a reason not to trust him. He was chained in the center of a symbol obviously meant for a demon and he was helpful to her. Not to forget to mention sweet.

Although she can't remember how she got on his lap, he no doubt saw her embarrassment and said nothing about it. He called her Darling. He was a demon, possessing the body of an older man, but she couldn't help but like him. There was something about him she found interesting, something that made her feel drawn to him. Maybe she liked that he was cunning or mysterious. Maybe she liked his voice or his expressions. Maybe it was everything.

Maybe it was that kiss.

Rowan could feel her cheeks heat up and her lips broaden in a smile. Her hands went to hide it all, as if she should be ashamed of herself. Only she didn't. She felt happy and rebellious. It was a good feeling and she enjoyed it.

So she found herself walking into the room where Crowley smiled darkly at the very sight of her.

"You wouldn't believe what I dreamt about." Rowan said as she stepped into the room with him.

"Me in a pink bathrobe?" he asked and she laughed at the very image in her head.

"No." she said with a smile.

"Good." He replied, which only made her laugh again. He smiled at her, as if he liked hearing her laugh. Maybe she wasn't the only one feeling good about all of this.

"I first had this recurring dream of a temple." She said and his eyes became intense as he listened, as if he found that interesting. "Then I heard someone whisper Hell. I hear it again, only the dream changes to my memory of the snake. I remember it hissing the word Hell too." Rowan said, her eyes wide with fascination that she was able to remember something.

"Intriguing." Crowley said and she smiled, her eyes shining.

"I know." She said and sat at her usual corner of the table. "Do you know of Hell having any snakes like that? I keep thinking that it wanted to take me to Hell. I don't know why I think that." Rowan said and Crowley only narrowed his eyes, as if thinking. When she glanced at him, waiting for an answer, he softened his eyes and gave her a small grin.

"Only creatures in Hell are Hellhounds." He replied and she nodded her head.

"So maybe this snake really is Jormungand." She said and then her face lit up, as if she had figured it out. "Maybe it's looking for his sister, Hel." She said and then turned to Crowley with astonishment.

"Now, there's a theory, Love." Crowley said, which got her to shine a brilliant smile.

"Jormungand mistook me for his sister." She said and Crowley tried to maintain that small grin on his face.

"Quite the theory." He said and she looked so proud of herself. "It seems we need whiskey to celebrate this breakthrough." He added and she let out a soft giggle, as if in agreement. She jumped off the table and walked with an air of happiness. Crowley watched her leave the room, talking to herself as she headed to the kitchen, calling herself a genius.

Crowley exhaled and rolled his eyes.

"Bullocks." He murmured. "So close yet so far." He added as he tapped the arms of the chair with his fingers. It seemed she hadn't figured it out.

So, when Crowley told Rowan he hoped she didn't dream about him in a pink bathrobe, that's actually my dream I put in there for a laugh. I had like a sequence of dreams about Crowley, but that's about the only one I remember. He was trying to be snarky and I couldn't take him seriously in that bathrobe.