"That's the plan??" Dean shook his head in disbelief, before shoveling a forkful of eggs into his mouth. "Seriously? Just walk into the bar and wait for Tony the Truck to come in?"
"Look, Dean, you're the one who doesn't want to stake out the house," Sam said. "You're the one who told us that the first thing he'll do upon getting back is go to the bar. So yes, that's the plan."
"I screwed his girlfriend," Dean pointed out. "Dude's not going to be happy to see me."
"How would he even know?" Sam asks in exasperation.
"Urm. . ." Dean practically buried his face in the eggs. "There were videos. . ."
* * * * *
"What are you waiting for?" Rose asked. Eliza kept checking her make-up in the mirror, then adjusting her denim shirt, then pulling her hair down, then up. It was enough to drive anyone crazy.
"I haven't decided yet," she said. It was true. She really hadn't. She'd decided that her heart would belong to whoever walked in the door first. If it was Tony, she had to be prepared to be "just at work, where she would never even dream of flirting with the clients." If it was Dean. . .Sam. . .whatever the fuck his name was. . . she wanted to be. . .well, smoking hot would be about right.
The door swung open. Eliza peeked up. And in walk. . .Tony. Oh well. He'd do.
"Tony, darling!" she said, running to him and throwing her arms around his neck. "I missed you so much!"
"Whatever," he said. "Get me a beer."
And, just as she turned to do that, the door opened again. And in walked her other beau. Shit.
"Hello," it was Sam who spoke first. He walked straight up to Tony, one hand out-reached.
"Demon!" the geezer yelled, and Sam turned to look at him. In that moment, about a thousand things happened. Eliza was only sure of one. Tony's eyes turned black. Jet black. She screamed, dropped the mug she'd just picked up. The shattering brought her back to earth, a little – or the sliver of glass that made its way into her leg did.
Dean had, in her frantic dissociation with reality, somehow gotten behind Tony, and had a knife pressed to his neck.
"What's with the amulet?" he asked.
Eliza licked her lips. Tony weighed 300 pounds, sopping wet. Dean couldn't be over 200. Tony, apparently, realized this as well. He reached behind him with one hand and threw Dean across the room. He hit the back wall with a resounding crash and slithered to the ground. Eliza tried to scream again, but her throat was dry.
Tony lifted his gaze again, threw out two hands, and Sam and BlueEyes went flying back the way Dean had. . .only the freaky thing was. . .Tony hadn't even touched them. Eliza decided that maybe instead of screaming she should hide. She ducked down below the bar, not surprised to see Rose already there, shaking.
"Castiel," she could still hear Tony, his thick, gravelly voice. She closed her eyes tightly, grabbed her knees.
"Our Father, who art in Heaven," she whispered frantically.
"What is this? No powers? No angel mojo?"
"hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come,"
Tony laughed. "What? Did Daddy cut you off?"
"Thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven"
"And a wheelchair! Or, that is just rich, isn't it, Castiel?"
"Give us this day our daily bread"
"A wingless, legless, angel." She could hear the slight rasp of the wheelchair being pushed backward. She didn't know who was pushing it though. . .the geezer, or Tony.
"Don't touch him, you black-eyed bastard!" Dean's voice now, and Eliza couldn't help but slither around the bar, trying to see what was going on. Rose grasped her ankle, shook her head. No, no. Eliza just kept whispering her prayer.
"Forgive us our trespasses. . ."
Dean was lurching forward, one arm wrapped around his ribs, the other holding out a knife.
"Oh, how touching," Tony sneered. "Look at that, Cas. Your little buddy thinks he's gonna waste me." He paused for a moment. Eliza had snuck out far enough that she could now see Tony's face. It was creased up, seeming lost in thought, a look that Eliza had never seen on her Tony's face. "Oh, wait a moment, now. . .I do think I heard about this on the news."
Dean kept lurching forward, stumbling into tables, his knees nearly buckling beneath him. Tony stared at him. "Castiel, the renegade angel, and his little bitch, who is destined to become Michael's vessel. Oh, won't the boss be pleased if I waste the two of you."
"Let go of Cas," Dean ordered, and he was almost at Tony now. Eliza had run out of bar to hide behind. She scrambled forward until she was halfhidden beneath one of the table scattered throughout the bar. She peered between barstools just in time to see Dean's feet lifted off the ground. Confused, she moved forward, just a tiny bit, prayin that nobody was noticing her.
"Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you. . ."
Tony was standing, feet planted wide apart, one bulky arm stretched straight ahead of him, Dean's neck clutched in his meaty hands. Dean jerked once, twice, dropped the knife and brought his hands up to his neck.
"Dean!" The geezer moved forward, but Tony just snapped his fingers and the wheelchair spun around before flipping over. The man practically flew out of it, landing with a fierce 'oomph' just a few yards away from Eliza's face.
"Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. . ."
"Dean!" It was the brother, now, Sam, the tall one. He moved quicker than Dean had, sprinting toward his brother. Tony lifted his free hand.
"Calm down there, boy," Tony drawled. "Can't touch the merchandise, boss would get angry." Sam froze in midstep.
"Eliza, listen, please," the old man said.
"Glory be to the Father, to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit"
"You know the knife that Dean dropped," he said. "You need to grab it, and stab the demon. Stab him anywhere. It doesn't have to be in the heart."
"I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth"
"You're scared, I understand," the old man said. "I will distract him. He may harm you. But if you do nothing, I promise you that you will die."
Eliza nodded her head.
"Okay," she whispered.
"Okay," the old man said.
He closed his eyes, let out a long breath, and the room suddenly lit up into a bright light. Eliza screamed as a piercing noise pounded into her head, searing her brain, ripping everything apart.
Stab the demon
The old man's voice somehow, miraculously, threaded its way through her consciousness. She opened her eyes, though she could barely see in the blinding white light. Just shapes. She thought maybe everything was getting clearer. She thought that maybe the pain in her head was lessening.
She could definitely see the knife. She crept forward, one agonizing move at a time. Was this the distraction? She glanced back at the old man. He looked dead. She took a deep breath, inched forward another step.
Dean was slumped over in Tony's grasp, no longer struggling. His face was pale, though. . .pale pale. Tony was lurching around, back and forth, screaming at the top of his lungs. She couldn't hear a thing. She leaned forward, grasped the knife, but she couldn't. . .what was she supposed to do next. . .it was awfully heavy. . .
Stab the demon
As if. She couldn't even kill the spiders in the bathroom, had to scream at Rose to get them. Rose. Where was she? Was she okay
Stab the demon
This time it was the screaming noise that yelled at her, and without a thought she lurched forward, compelled by the pain in her mind, and stabbed the knife deep into Tony's foot.
The white light disappeared. The screaming noise ended. The ground lurched beside her, a thudding sound, and she knew that Tony had finally dropped Dean. She wondered if he was still alive.
"You bitch!" Tonys voice, and then his hand was in her hair, yanking her up. Frightening bolts of electricity ran along his arms, almost as though they were coming from beneath his skin. He grabbed the knife from his foot as he straightened up, hands still knotted in her hair. It hurt. She wondered if he was going to scalp her.
"B-bitch," Tony said. He stumbled a little, yanked her with him. And then. . .then. . .
She didn't know. His eyes rolled up and he fell to the ground. She remained standing for a moment. . .just a moment. . .but something was wrong, very wrong. Everything was too fuzzy. . .everything hurt too much. . .she glanced down. The knife, that she'd just used to pin her ex-boyfriend to the ground, was sticking out of her stomach. Shit. She fell to the ground.
She was lying on the ground, still, turned on her side, when BlueEyes and Sam rushed by. Sam knelt beside Dean, feeling for a pulse, while BlueEyes headed to the old man.
"I'm fine. . .fine. . ." Dean rasped, and she was really glad that he was still alive. He was really. . .really hot. . .everything was getting a bit dim now, though, and Eliza was really, really confused. . .ouch. . .
"Cas. . .Cas. . ." apparently Dean couldn't stand, for he was crawling over to the old man on hands and knees.
BlueEyes abandoned the old man, and kneeled in front of her. She stared at him. He was so pretty. . .she reached out a hand to touch his face. He ignored her, grasping the knife around her belly. "Sam!" he bellowed. "Shirt!"
A moment later she could feel it sliding out of her. IT hurt. . .no it didn't. . .it already hurt. . .she gasped. There was something in her throat. She was choking. . .
"Cas, wake up, man. Cas, come on, please. . ."
"Hold on there, honey," BlueEyes said. That was all she could see of him, now. Those startling blue eyes. . .everything else was so fuzzy. . ."Sam! Call the hospital!"
"Dialing. . ."
"Dammit, Cas!"
"Hold on, sweetie. . .hold on. . ."
Those prayers you said earlier. Did you believe them?
"Of course I did. . ." she murmuered, the words tickling. She coughed, felt something dislodge inside her.
You believe in God. Really and Truly.
"Of course." She could barely get the words out. BlueEyes brushed a hand against her forehead.
"Shh. . .dont' talk. You brave girl. You brave, brave child."
You need not speak aloud. I can hear you. Do you believe in angels?
I don't know.
My name is Castiel. I was once an angel of the lord.
Oh. I'm going to Hell, aren't I.
You might. I do not know these things.
I'm going to Hell. I swear, and I drink too much, I skip chuch, and I've had way too much sex to ever be allowed into Heaven.
"Come on, girl, wake up there. . .wake up. . ."
"Hi, there's been an accident.. Rodney's bar, just off the interstate"
"Damn angel. What the fuck are we supposed to do without you? Where are we supposed to go?"
"Open your eyes for me, sweetie. Just open up those eyes.
Blue, blue, blue, everything was just blue. . .
You have another choice.
Something other than Hell? I'll take it.
It will not be pleasant. It will last a long time.
Eternity?
Not that long.
Then I'll do it.
I am an angel. You saw what happens when I walk on earth in my true form.
I said I'll do it.
I need a vessel. I will take over your consciousness. You will not die.
Will it hurt?
It might.
For eternity?
No.
I'll do it.
You're saing yes?
It's a good deed, right? I'll go to heaven when you're done?
Yes. I promise you. You have a clean soul.
Then Yes. I'm saying yes.