Takes place between Seasons 8 & 9 of the well-beloved Supernatural show, starring Misha Collins, Jensen Ackles, and Jared Padelecki. A few characters are mine, but the entire franchise belongs to Eric Kripke, Bobby- er, Robert Singer, and all those other folks up in Canada.

Awesome.

Ambriel awoke with a start, dazed, confused, and...comfy? The angel blinked, concerned. Shifting about, Ambriel discovered himself lying on a couch, wrapped up in quilts and a fireplace going beside him. So that accounted for warmth and snugness he was experiencing. However, the location was quite unfamiliar.

The room had a naturalistic feel to it. The floors were all hardwood, and the coffee and side tables had been made out of the gnarled roots and stumps of trees. Greens, browns, and creamy whites made up the remaining furniture, though it was tastefully done. Pictures of nature scenes and of flowers adorned the wall, and along the shelf above the fireplace were photos.

Pushing off the blankets, Ambriel stood up. A wave of dizziness overcame him, however, and he almost had to sit back down. It soon subdued itself, however, and he walked over to the shelf. The photos were of a human woman, mostly. In some pictures, she was with a human male; in others, it was a large white dog. She was constant, but the other two were never in the same photo together. How strange.

"Oh, good, you're awake."

The angel whirled around to find the aforementioned woman leaning against the doorway. She wore a slightly amused look. "We were beginning to worry about you, sweetheart. Elijah was about ready to call some healer friends of ours."

Ambriel frowned. "Sweetheart? My name is Ambriel. Where am I?"

The woman let out a soft snort. "It's a term of endearment, Hon. You're currently in the middle of nowhere, Oregan. This here..." She began to walk forward, gesturing to the spacious room around them. "Is my home. I'm Irina Spagovych." Stopping a few feet away, she eyed the angel with curiosity, and concern. "How are you feeling?"

"Human," he grunted, obviously displeased. Eyes narrowed, Ambriel studied Irina. She wasn't very tall - he guessed about 5'4", 5'5". Her hair was a dark auburn colour that was cut chin-length, with soft curls framing her round face. It was the eyes, however, that were most unusual. They were a brilliant violet colour, speckled through with tiny flecks of gold. The woman must have noticed his intent study, as she suddenly smiled.

"It's the eyes, innit? Docs said I had some sort of gene mutation, caused my eyes to be like this." Her smile turned into a wry grin. "Of course, it's not the only gene mutated, but enough about me." Some of Irina's good humour left. "What do you mean by 'human'? I know you're not one, your aura gave that away. But I've never encountered anybody who'd been able to level trees like that."

"I am Ambriel, angel of the Lord and a guardian of Heaven. This is my vessel, Natasha."

"I remember you saying that, when we found you." It was Irina's turn to shake her head, this time in disbelief. "I can't believe it. We've got a real, live angel under our roof." She let out a soft laugh. "And here I was, thinking the Winchesters were having all the fun."

"The Winchesters?" Ambriel's head snapped to attention, and his eyes narrowed. "You know the Winchesters?"

Irina gave him an odd look. "Know them? No. Know of them? Hell yeah. Those boys are infamous amongst us hunters, but more like in the way of Justin Bieber or Paris Hilton. You either love 'em or hate 'em."

"And you? What are your feelings about them?"

She grinned again. "Ah, they're alright. My feelings change daily, considering they're both either starting apocalypses or stopping them. What about you?"

"They ruined everything in Heaven and Hell. I would not be surprised if they were behind the angels' fall." He sighed. "Can you take me to them?"

"Yep. Once you regain your strength."

Ambriel scowled. "I am plenty strong. We mustn't tarry." To prove it, he began to move forward. Too quickly, it seemed, as after a few steps he began to collapse.

Irina moved forward to catch him, helping him sit back down on the couch. "That's a lie, and you know it. Not only is your spirit weak, but so's your vessel. You've been out for two days straight, and you haven't eaten."

"Angels don't need food."

"People do, though. What about your vessel, Natasha?"

"So long as I possess her, she will be fine." Ambriel noticed Irina lean back some at his words, and he asked, "Did I say something wrong?"

"No, no, uh..." Irina tried to mask her grimace with another smile. "I just, um, don't really like the word 'possessed'. I've had too many bad dealings with it." She stood up and attempted to tuck the angel in, who resisted. "Look, angel or no angel, you're not going anywhere until I decide that you're strong enough. Last thing I need is for someone to die on me, okay? I've dealt with enough death already."

"And possession, apparently." Ambriel studied her again, fascinated with this specimen. His dealings with humans were not exactly plentiful. Before Dean Winchester had broken the first seal, Ambriel had been a part of Castiel's garrison, in charge of watching the Earth. Then, when Cass had gone rogue and the 66 seals were all broken, he'd requested to be transferred to guard duty in Heaven; he hadn't wanted to fight his Captain, but he hadn't wanted to rebel against Heaven, either. After that, when Castiel was brought back and began to fight Raphael, Ambriel happily joined. Fighting against Raphael - who was a prick, in Ambriel's humble opinion - was much more favourable to fighting against the entire Host.

But through all of it, Ambriel had only taken one vessel: a young man from British Columbia named Aaron. It was during the war against Raphael's people, and as soon as Castiel had won Aaron was released.

"Fine, human. I will rest, as you wish."

Irina smiled at him again, then finish tucking the blankets in around his body. "Good. I'm going to make some chicken noodle soup, too. You may not need it, but I don't want your vessel to be operating on an empty stomach." She patted Ambriel's knee, and left for what he assumed was the kitchen.

The angel waited for a moment, counting to 100. Then, tossing the blankets off, he stood up. "Rest is over," He said to himself, before looking down at his body. Someone had changed him into a pair of loose pajamas. They, too, were rather comfortable, but they certainly weren't battle-ready. "I need new clothes."