Chapter 22:
Candy woke up after Sam and Dean the next morning. She felt both sides of the bed with her up, and upon discovering them gone, she sat up tiredly on her elbows and scanned the room. Sitting in a chair between the wall and the bed was Crowley. His legs were crossed and his hands were clasped together in his lap. In a panic, Candy jumped up, reaching for her purse on the nightstand. All she had to defend herself was the angel blade.
"Calm down, gorgeous, if I was here to kill you, you wouldn't have woken up," he said with his charming accent. "Your precious Winchesters are at the grocery store stocking up on beer and junk food. Typical hunter breakfast, lunch, and dinner junk."
"What are you doing here, Crowley?" She snatched up her jeans from the floor and slid them on, one leg at a time. "Shouldn't the king of hell be down in hell doing his kingly duties? Just a thought." She glared at him hatefully.
"Oh, love. I'm not your enemy. I'm actually here to warn you about something." He leaned forward in his seat, resting his elbows on his knees. "A little birdy told me that you're the target of Raphael and his army of delusional halos. I want to offer my assistance, because Raphael put a bounty on your head, Candice. I can offer you my protection."
"What do you expect in return?" She raised an eyebrow.
"I want to send little Adam's soul back to the box. The little buggar swore his allegiance to me, then betrayed me for a pair of pretty little legs." Crowley looked her up and down. "I don't know what power you possess over those boys, but everyone who gets close to you becomes obsessed with you. I'll never understand it."
"You're wrong," Candy scoffed, "and you're not getting Adam back. He's a Winchester, too, and if you think for one second Sam and Dean wouldn't kill you for throwing their little brother back in the pit, you're mistaken. I can't give you Adam."
"Then, I can't protect you. Well, you could always sell your soul." Crowley grinned at her mischievously. Candy rolled her eyes, then reached into her purse for her phone. "There's another option, if you get desperate."
"Oh, yeah?" Candy brought her attention back to him. "What's that?"
"You could always run a few errands for me. There's a couple of monsters I'd like to bury, and since killing them is your specialty, I could always use you as my cute little assistant until your angel friend eradicates Raphael and his army. Hunting is your job already, I'll just be giving you the orders." He stood up then, making his way over to her. "Here's my card." He pulled a small white piece of paper from his suit jacket and handed it to her. "When you want to begin, just give me a ring." He stepped back from her. "Talk to you soon, Candice." With that, he vanished.
Candy sat on the edge of the bed and breathed out a sigh of relief. Crowley always made her nervous, but she kept up her tough front well for how afraid she really was. She cursed Sam and Dean under her breath for leaving her alone again, despite the previous day's events. Really, she thought, they could be airheads at times. Dean probably had a pie craving, and Sam likely had a few things to pick up, too, and because they didn't want to wake Candy, they left her there alone again. She smiled just thinking about Dean drooling over a piece of pie.
When they returned later, Candy told them about her conversation with Crowley. Dean took the business card and dialed the number himself. Crowley repeated his offer, gave Dean the details of the first job, then asked if he would accept the offer. As much as Dean wanted to tell Crowley to go to hell and stay there, he knew that they needed help. Dean accepted.
Hours later, a knock sounded at the door. Candy was in the shower, and Sam was sitting in the center of his bed, so Dean got up to answer the door. When he opened it, he instantly wished that he had declined Crowley's offer.
"Hello, boys," a familiar brunette demon greeted Dean. He stepped aside to let her in the room, knowing that Crowley had sent her to be their guardian. She made herself at home, flopping down on opposite bed of Sam. "It's been a long time, Sammy. How was hell?"
"Bite me, Meg," Sam grimaced. She clicked her tongue,
"Don't tempt me. Now, where's the red-head I've heard so much about?"
"In the shower," Dean muttered. "I'll go get her." He disappeared into the bathroom, leaving an annoyed Sam with an overly amused Meg.
"You're not staying here. Adam is next door, you can stay with him," Sam told her without turning in her direction. Meg eyed him for a moment,
"Does the littlest Winchester approve of that?"
"You can stay with Adam or you can get the room next door. I don't really care which you do, but you're not staying here."
"I'm just curious," Meg stood again, unzipping her leather jacket mindlessly before sliding off, "what made you so desperate that you asked Crowley for help?"
"He offered."
"Answer the question anyways."
"A couple of angels came after Candy," Sam told her honestly. "It's not the first time, either. I helped Cas with Raphael and they went after her to get to me. We can't always be with Candy, because we still have to do the job. She can't always tag along. I guess that's where you come in. Adam isn't a hunter, nor does he have any experience killing angels. You're here to help him protect Candy until the angel mess is cleared up."
"So I'm babysitting?"
"No. More like guarding. Candy can handle her own, but not when she's outnumbered," Sam shrugged his shoulders. "She's tough. Don't underestimate her."
"She's hanging with you two," Meg chuckled. "She has to be tough." Suddenly, the sound of glittering brought their attention to the door. Cas appeared, eyes immediately locking on Meg. She tossed her jacket over her arm. "Well, hello handsome."
"Dean said you were here," Castiel narrowed his gaze. "Sam, why did you go to Crowley for help? If Candy needs me, she can always pray for me. We don't need help from her kind."
"Ooh, ouch. Try toning down the racism, Wings," Meg pretended to be hurt. "In the time it takes for you to get down here, she could already be dead. I'm here because you three obviously can't handle the situation alone. Look, I don't want to be here either. Being insulted by hunters all day isn't exactly my idea of a good time. However, itll be worth it if I can't gut some angels and get a free pass out of hell the next time I get exorcised from my body." She glanced back at Sam to remind him of the first body she had.
"This is a bad idea."
"Have some faith," Meg patted Cas on the shoulder. "You angels are good at that." Dean stepped out of the bathroom, followed by Candy, who was fully dressed in tight jeans and a tight black tank top. Meg smiled at her, "Hey there, Red."
"You must be Meg. I've heard a lot about you."
"I dont guess you've heard anything good."
"Unless murder and destruction are good, then no. I haven't." Candy ran her fingers through her still wet curls, and Cas had the sudden urge to replace her fingers with his own. Meg noticed the yearning look in the angel's eyes and laughed.
"This ought to be an interesting experience," she sighed, fighting off more laughter. "Don't worry, boys, I will get my own room, right next door. And I'll keep your precious darling Candy safe from the angels."
"We leave tomorrow for the first job Crowley gave up. We want you to stay here with Meg and Adam," Sam told Candy, trying to ignore her harsh glare of disapproval.
"Yay," Meg smirked, "girl time."
"I'll set it up so that I can stay, too," Castiel announced.
"The more the merrier," Meg shrugged. Candy silently thanked Cas. She felt a lot better knowing that someone she could really trust was going to be there with her. As long as he was there, Candy could deal with Meg and Adam, as well as deal with being left behind again. She was getting sick of Dean and Sam running off without her. She was more than happy to have Sam back, and for the brothers to be reunited, but she wished it didn't mean being put back in the position she was in before, always waiting for Sam and Dean to return from jobs. After all, Candy had fight plenty of bad things alongside Dean; she was fully capable of handling herself.
Cas and Meg left the room after a little while, and Candy was relieved to be alone with Sam and Dean again. She stripped herself of her jeans and crawled in bed with Dean while Sam showered. She laid with her head on his chest and her body cuddles against his side. Dean mindlessly stroked her hair while they watched some cheesy movie on Sy-Fy about zombies. For whatever reason, Dean loved cheesy horror flicks.
"I'm sorry about leaving you again," Dean told her after taking another sip of the beer sitting on the nightstand next to him. "It's less about you and more about Adam. We can't take him with us, and he has no experience hunting. He's safer hers with you."
"Apparently I can't handle myself either," Candy grumbled, sliding her feet under the blankets that had been pushed down to the end of the bed. She was starting to get cold and tired, but she couldn't sleep while she was still worrying about being left again. Dean noticed her starting to shiver, so he leaned down and pulled the blankets up over her, then reached over and clicked off the lamp so that the only light in the room was the glow of the TV. Candy nuzzled against him, resting her hand on his upper stomach and gently brushing her fingertips over the grooves of his abdominal muscles.
"We know you can handle yourself," Dean whispered to her. "You're the strongest woman I've ever met in my whole life, Candy. Try to understand that we worry constantly about your safety. While Raphael has this bounty out for you, we cannot do the job and protect you at the same time. As much as I want to stay here and watch over you, I know that there's a family out there, a child, a mother, a sister or brother, that could die without our help. You're the most important thing in the world to me, but I cant ignore the job."
"You're need to protect people is one of the things that makes me love you, Dean Winchester," Candy smiled, then placed a soft kiss on his bare chest. "I understand, and I want to help those people, too. If I can't right now... I guess I don't mind staying behind. I feel better having Cas around, though, since Adam did attack me and Meg is a murderous demon."
"She knows better than to go against Crowley's word," Dean reassured Candy. "Meg dies if she lays a hand on you. If not by Crowley's doing, then definitely by mine. I'd do anything for you, Candy, even sell my soul. I've been to hell, and I can genuinely say, I'd go back if it meant keeping you safe." Candy looked up at him with a frown,
"You're not allowed to go anywhere without me."
"When I die, Candy, I'll end up back in hell. Whether you want me to or not."
"Cas won't let you."
"It's worth it because I've already been to heaven. I'm here right now. God and angels and all of that aside, paradise is every moment I spend with you." He kissed her on the forehead. "Get some sleep, Candy. You're tired. I can tell."
"I love you so much, Dean," she beamed to herself, squeezing him tightly. "And even if I did go to heaven, being without you and Sam is hell on its own." She dozed off soon after while Dean stroked her hair lovingly. Sam slept in the other bed that night, not wanting to disturb Candy, who seemed to be lost deep in a blissful slumber.