Chapter 4

The temple was elaborate in that ancient way. She hadn't been to a temple in years and the ones she had seen were ruins that had been plundered by time and the first archaeologists and grave robbers. This temple was resplendent in glory. She traced her hands along the hieroglyphs, reading them with surprisingly fluency. The torches illuminated the walls and she could see that it was night.

She looked down and found that she was dressed in robes of white and a hood was pulled over her head. Was she some sort of priest? She looked around and found the main chamber. She edged forward, being careful to stay on the fringes of the group.

The group consisted of men dressed like knights and men and women dressed in robes like hers. At the front of the main room was an altar and on it lay two stones and a box of some sort made of gold. Next to the altar was a stone throne but it was empty. On it was a set of robes folded on it. Then someone said, "The protector of all must be defended."

Another person said, "The line of Melchizedek must continue."

She had no idea what they were talking about. She turned to go when she came face to face with a young man. He was strong and muscular with hazel green eyes and light brown hair. He was dressed in priestly robes. He was staring at her. When he opened his mouth…

The sound of a semi-truck blaring its horn provided a wake-up call. Angela slowly opened her eyes, letting herself become fully awake. She gazed out the window and saw the grey sky become lighter. A glance at the clock told her that it was six in the morning and she gave a wry grin. It was becoming habit for her to sleep in even though she still was the early bird of the trio. Sam followed a close second especially if he had a bad night. Dean and early never went together.

She slowly got out of bed and stretched and opened her door to stand by the Winchesters' door. She looked at her watch and counted down. When she heard Beethoven's Fifth blare and heard Dean yelling like he was being trampled by a hundred kachinas she couldn't help but chuckle quietly to herself. It was followed by Sam shouting at Dean to relax. There was a crash as Sam struggled to turn off the alarm. Angela giggled as she listened to the noise in the room. She waited a few seconds before knocking, "Sam, Dean, is everything all right in there?"

The door was opened by Dean who looked like he had fallen out of bed. His hair was mussed and his eyes were bleary. He also had a scowl on his face. He looked at Angela in her t-shirt and athletic pants ensemble along with the braid of hair running over her shoulder and came to the conclusion that she had been awakened by all the noise. He said, "Peachy. Damn alarm went off and what kind of music is that?"

"Beethoven's Fifth Dean," Sam answered stifling a yawn and rubbing his face. "Sorry to wake you Angela."

Angela smiled still feeling tired from the dream and replied, "No harm no foul."

"Pansy music," Dean was muttering angrily as he pulled out clean clothes from his duffle and went to the bathroom. He paused and looked at Angela and said, "Don't you dare start messing with my clothes. They are fine."

Angela raised her brow as she and Sam watched Dean enter the bathroom with a slam. She looked at Sam and said, "I'll get the coffee and doughnuts. Don't worry about it." She smiled and walked back to her room.

It was about half an hour later when Angela knocked on the door to the Winchester's room with a tray of coffee and a box of doughnuts. Dean opened the door and stood there looking at her balancing the coffee on the box of doughnuts. He closed his eyes and said in an annoyed voice, "There better be one with cream filling."

Angela fixed her load and walked in, "Don't worry Dean. Coffee's black and I got a mixed baker's dozen. Feeling better?" She set her load on the table and took the coffee out of the tray for easy access.

Dean scowled a bit as he picked a cup. Taking a sip, the coffee went straight down and it actually tasted pretty good. He dug in the box and picked out the doughnut that was the creamiest and took a bite. He was still chewing when he said, "Now I am. Sam's in the shower."

"Like I wanted to know that," Angela replied as she picked a cup and sat down at the table. She had also managed to get the paper and started reading, looking for a job.

Dean took the other chair and watched Angela, looking for a means for getting back at her for the prank. He observed her reading and grabbed another doughnut. He began to chew it while waiting for Sam to get out of the shower. "So you find anything?"

Angela looked through the paper. At a glance it didn't seem like anything was out of the ordinary. She would have to read the details if she was going to find anything. She picked up her coffee and took a drink. "Not yet," she coughed out after swallowing some coffee the wrong way and it sounded hoarse, almost like Dean's voice.

"Not yet what?" Sam asked the question coming out of the bathroom not realizing that Angela was the one talking. At least he had a towel around his waist but that didn't stop the full blown blush of embarrassment growing on his face as he snatched up his clothes and glared at Dean before running back in and slamming the door.

Angela was trying to cough and clear her throat from the scorching hot coffee that had a bit of a sour taste to it. She didn't see Sam come out nor when he scrambled back into the bathroom as she was concentrating on trying to breathe. Dean wasn't helping any as he merely watched her without helping and grinning like a mad man at Sam. When she finally got the last of it out, she said, "Well, I never thought that coffee could stay that hot." She didn't let on that she had tasted the salt, preferring to leave Dean wondering.

Dean, while disappointed that he hadn't gotten much of a reaction from Angela over the coffee, was much amused at the embarrassment Sam went through. Sam was always a girl in situations like these. Still it was something to be proud of, an unintentional byproduct prank. He was going to pay for it later from Sam and possibly from Angela but he could enjoy the moment and did so by starting in on his third doughnut.

It was ten minutes later that Sam came out. He said nothing about earlier and was relieved when Angela didn't say anything about it. In fact she was engrossed in the paper reading an article. She barely acknowledged him at all and just sat there staring at it. He nervously took the free cup of coffee and looked at it to make sure it hadn't been tampered with before taking a drink. He looked at the Angela statue and asked, "Find anything?"

There was no response and Sam looked at Dean who merely shrugged his shoulders. Sam looked at her just sitting there staring at the paper. He contemplated giving a shoulder poke but the memory of her grabbing his wrist at the West Point case stopped it. True she had a controlled grip but why risk it? Sam motioned to the newspaper at Dean indicating he was to pull it out. Dean protested silently and Sam through a look at him. Their silent arguing was interrupted by, "I think I may have found something."

Both brothers turned to look at Angela who was looking at them wondering what the heck they were doing. Sam was the first to speak, "Uh what did you find?"

Angela flipped the paper over and tapped an article. She explained, "A really nasty death occurred in Grant, Nebraska. Mutilated body and authorities suspect satanic ritual. Another person, a Gideon Tolbert was attacked and like the other, he showed signs of mutilation due to satanic ritual. He died at the hospital due to severe blood loss."

"Satanic ritual? What are we talking about, witches?" Dean asked the question as he took another drink of his coffee.

"Could be a cult," Sam offered as he peered into the box of doughnuts and picked one.

"Both victims had some sort of little bag on them. What was in it, the authorities are not saying," Angela added after glancing at the paper again.

"Hex bags," Dean said, "Damn I hate witches."

"You and me both," Angela replied, "At least the ones that create hell on earth."

"There's such a thing as a good witch?" Sam asked with a slight smirk. The witches he had encountered before leaving for Stanford were anything but good. He could understand why Dean would say he hated them. The idea of a witch being good was laughable.

"You'd be surprised," Angela replied. "There are people who practice magic and don't inflict harm. In fact their credo is: Do as ye will but ye shall harm no one. It is the basic premise for all witches who follow this. All covens that follow this are called Wiccans."

"Well thanks for the history lesson Angie," Dean stood up to stretch and go pack, "I guess we best better check it out."

Angela gave slight tolerant smile as she stood up and went to the door. After she left Sam started in on his brother, "Dude seriously why didn't you say she was in here?"

"Not my fault you decided to come out in nearly your birthday suit."

"Dean."

"Quit your whining Samantha, she didn't even see you. She was coughing trying to breathe. Had a sour cup of coffee." Dean smiled at his last statement to indicate that he was the one that put the salt in the coffee.

Sam looked incredulously at Dean, "You didn't?"

"Yeah but embarrassing you was a bonus." Dean turned to finish his packing.

"Dean you're going to bite off more than you can chew with this. If you think the war paint was bad… Dean this crap between just us always escalates, with Angela…"

"Relax Sammy. It'll be fun. Besides I have a plan to pull a big one and you are going to help me," Dean pointed at Sam to emphasize his point.

"No way Dean. Leave me out of it." Sam had been putting away his things when he heard Dean propose a prank on Angela. He wanted to get back at Angela but Dean's idea of payback was not the way to go.

"Sam, she got you too with the boot polish. Besides she did suggest we tag team on this."

"Did you ever think about why she suggested that?"

"Yeah because obviously one on one won't work. With her on patrol mode since that crap with Gordon, she could see us coming a mile away. Besides I think she likes you." Dean gave a waggle of his eyebrows in a suggestive manner.

Sam frowned, "What? Dean she only talks to me because I don't try to challenge her to a game of insults every time I open my mouth."

"Hey," Dean paused and looked at Sam, "She challenged me first back on our first gig. Besides we have our talks. You just seem to grab her attention more."

Sam shook his head as he finished stuffing his duffle and zippered it up. He slung it on his shoulder and went to load up the car. He paused by the door and said, "We just talk but she's more like you Dean and if you want to do a prank on her, be my guest but leave me out of it."

"Oh you'll help me Sam or I swear I'll hide your laptop in the last place you'll think of and I'll have a picture to remember the day when you actually do find it," Dean replied as he advanced towards Sam in his most threatening posture that clearly said 'I am the oldest and you'll do what I say.' He stared up at his freakishly huge brother and dared him silently to challenge his authority.

Sam was caught between a rock and a hard place now. As much as he wanted to tease and get back at Angela, he didn't want to do it if it was going to result in someone getting hurt. Yet when Dean got into that posture, it reminded Sam of when their father gave an order that must be obeyed or they would suffer the consequences. Even though he was taller than Dean, Sam knew that his brother could hand his ass to him and it never failed to surprise Sam that he got the same feeling he did as a kid when facing his father. He gave an annoyed look at Dean and said, "Alright I'll do it."

Dean grinned and gave his brother a slap on the shoulder, "That's my Sammy."

"Just try not to get your head ripped off by her. She has a good grip," Sam warned.

"No worries Sam."

Sam sighed as he walked out to the Impala taking the keys with him. He found that Angela was already there leaning against the car with her own duffle at her feet. She was reading the article again but with less intensity as she had before. She folded it the minute she saw Sam and tucked it under her arm. "So Dean being a slowpoke again?"

Sam immediately felt guilty that he was involved in a plot to pull a prank. "Uh yeah."

Angela frowned slightly, "Something wrong Sam or is this one of those things between brothers?"

Sam gave a slight frown. She had told him before that she wouldn't come between him and Dean. After she joined them, she had made that clear to them. So far she stuck to her end of the bargain. If he said yes, she would give a nod and not say anything more. If he said no, then she would ask if there was anything she could do. He had seen her do the same thing with Dean and those were interesting conversations in of themselves. If the truth be told, Sam appreciated it but it was a little weird that she be told what problem was which. It was something to work on. He replied, "Nothing just something that…"

"It's okay. I probably don't want to know," Angela replied smiling. She then turned to yell at Dean, "Hey Slowpoke, we're burning daylight!"

"Bite me Angie!"

She laughed, "I could but I bet you wouldn't taste very good."

"I'll stake you first," Dean replied coming out of the room with a smirk on his face.

"If you weren't so slow," and Angela grinned saucily at Dean. She gave a look that clearly said that whatever Dean had in his arsenal, she had better. She slung her bag in the trunk and got in the car while saying the rude rhymes, "Taurus is his name and sensitivity is his game. A blessing it would be of carnal lust and pleasurability. Save the spirit and the mind by quenching with sexual pantomime. Up the place called Uranus lives the masculinity of Aquarius."

The look upon the brother's faces was priceless. Sam handed the keys to Dean and got in. Dean gave an 'oh well' look to no one in particular and got in. He had never heard Angela say anything so… dirty before. It actually amused him and gave another point of approval in his book. It would only make his revenge prank all the more sweeter.

Alex wiped the sweat from his brow as waited for his turn to do the drill through the ropes. It had been a couple of days since he brought the forms to his parents. At first they were reluctant but in the end they decided to let him have some fun. He knew it was a break from his usual routine of joining one of the nondescript clubs at school to give him something to do besides homework. He brought back the forms and Coach told him to report to the field that afternoon. He ran through the drills thankful that Nebi had drilled him in endurance.

"Hey midget, aren't you a little small to be running the ropes?"

Alex gave a hard stare to Tercelli as he got set putting on his helmet. He then focused on the course and when Coach blew the whistle, he took off, seeing nothing but the course. It was cakewalk since Nebi ran him through drills on his weekends. He finished in record time and had the coach looking at his clock with a wide eyed look. He glanced at the other players who were eyeing him nervously except Tercelli and his small gang. Alex didn't care. He was there to make a point.

"Davidson, I want you to try a long run."

Alex diverted his gaze to the coach, "No prob Coach." He trotted to the starting position and looked back. He wasn't thrilled that Tercelli was the QB but as his dad said, you sometimes had to make due with disagreeable types. Well, time to see if you're right Pops. Alex looked at Tercelli and gave him the eye that said he was ready to go. As soon as Tercelli gave the finger point, he crouched in a sprint position. The ball was thrown and he took off running.

Tercelli decided to do the Hail Mary pass… well his version of the pass. No player could make it on time to catch it and he wanted to make the midget get it rough. The kid was a walk on scrub anyway. He threw the ball and watched as the midget ran with his eye on the ball.

Alex ran keeping his eye on the ball. He saw that it was a Hail Mary pass and sprinted forward. It looked like he almost wasn't going to catch it but at the last minute, he sprinted forward and caught the ball in the end zone. He slowed down and rounded around to avoid hitting anything and held the ball. He jogged back towards the team and threw the ball at Tercelli who caught it looking like a fish gulping for air. Alex asked, "Good enough Coach?"

"Yeah. That's good."

The rest of the practice proceeded going over plays set for the game Friday. Alex felt that he must have gotten pummeled more than the other players even though Coach had him out as running back. Half of the plays weren't even directed at him. Still he bore with it and it seemed that Coach was letting it happen. Alex felt that this was the team's way of initiating him or letting him know exactly his position on the team and that was as a walk on scrub. Hardly his fault since he moved here after the season started. It also didn't help that most of those players were Tercelli's friends.

This time Alex got the ball and was running the play when he was tackled from behind and hard. It felt like something punched him under his ribs. It was exactly what happened and it hurt like hell. Alex gave a hiss of air as he got up with the ball. He gave a slight toss back to Tercelli and put a hand on his side and walked it off.

"Aww, did the midget get hurt?"

Alex looked at Tercelli and replied, "Perks of being a running back."

Tercelli got in his face, "You're not the running back and you'll never be the running back. You're nothing more than a walk on scrub."

"Then I'm a lucky one," Alex retorted.

Tercelli looked ready to punch him when the coach called for them to hit the showers. Tercelli held up his finger and said, "You better watch your back midget. You're biting off more than you can chew."

"Wouldn't be the first time," Alex replied as Tercelli and his crew shoved past him. He waited and went in last. He took off the helmet and jogged towards the locker room. Glancing over at the bleachers, he spotted Kelly and Mason watching and wondered if they had been watching the whole time. A look at Kelly's face told him that they had.

Alex gave a slight wave and continued on towards the locker rooms. He hid from the other players, sneaking into the showers. Once inside and alone, he checked where he had been tackled, while letting the hot water pour over him. He noticed a large purple welt starting to form just under his ribs. He gave a slight shake of his head knowing that if his parents saw that, they would demand if he had been fighting and then give the lecture on the importance of not fighting. Of course now that he was playing football, it would take another turn and a 'discussion' on whether or not he should continue.

It was always the same. His parents freaked out if he got anything more serious than a scratch and that was when he went through drills with Nebi. Alex knew that he would have to explain if they found out so the best thing was for them not to find out. That meant he had to make light of it in front of Kelly and Mason or ask them not to say anything. He heard a crash and saw that the last of the team were leaving. He had to hurry if he didn't want to get locked in.

He found Kelly and Mason waiting outside the locker rooms when he came out. "Hey guys," he said.

"Man, Alex you are fast. How did you do that?" Mason was beside himself.

"Friend of my parents taught me endurance training and I just kept up with it. Plus he and my dad used to toss the old pigskin around." Alex slung his backpack across one shoulder and took his place in between his friends.

"Still the look on Tercelli's face when you caught his Hail Mary pass was priceless. You think Coach is going to have you play on Friday?" Mason was practically bouncing on his feet.

"No idea Mas," Alex replied as they arrived at their bikes. He unlocked his and put the chain on its customary place around the seat.

"They sure like to beat up on you," Kelly finally spoke quietly.

"It's nothing Kel. I kind of expected a bit of hard lining since I'm the new guy," Alex replied as he walked his bike out of the rack.

They were crossing through the parking lot when they heard Tercelli say, "That's right midget and you'll never play." Tercelli had his head sticking out of his truck.

"Coach's decision Tercelli," Alex replied as he straddled his bike.

Tercelli decided to have some fun. He looked at his friends and they grinned. He edged his truck close enough to bump Alex's bike. He said, "My team midget. You think you can just waltz in and be a star?"

"Quit it Tercelli," Alex replied as he felt the bump. He looked at Mason and Kelly and said to them, "Come on. Let's go."

They were first out so their rear tire wasn't hit by the bumper of the truck. Alex's back tire was hit hard enough though to send him out of the parking lot but he didn't have perfect balance and fell in the driveway. His legs were tangled in the bike and he had twisted his ankle. He heard Kelly shouting at him but what had his attention was the fact that Tercelli was gunning his engine to run him down. He struggled to get free of his bike but his ankle was painful as he tried struggling. He heard the gears shift and the truck came careening towards him.

A/N: And here we go with the prank war in the background. And Dean recruited poor Sam into it! Oh te noes! Now a truck is careening towards young Alex!

Will someone save the boy or will he get out on his own? Tune in next to the next chapter of The Order of Melchizedek...