The small Catholic church was a wooden monument of by-gone days. It was beautiful and perfectly painted, white with a welcoming blue trim. Marion parked and walked in, taking a moment to genuflect at the entrance before walking up to a nun near the altar.

"Good morning." The nun said, smiling brightly. A bit of her red hair was peaking out from under the habit and the stray locks kept drawing Marion's attention away from her green eyes.

Marion smiled back. "Yes, sister. My name is Barbara Singer. I'm a private investigator. I was wondering if you'd be willing to talk to me about what happened here last week?"

The sister looked taken aback. "I don't think I should be talking to you. We were told to put it behind us and move on. The police said-"

"If you don't mind my saying, sister, the police are idiots. They should've spent a few minutes looking into this before judging. Nuns don't hang themselves. It's a sin. One nun is hard to believe but 4? That's murder. I just want to prove that so they can be given the burials they deserve."

The nun gestured to the front pew, then sat down herself. "We all thought it was suspicious. There was no reason. But the archdiocese told us to pray for them, then move on with our lives."

"Was there anything out of ordinary in the days before the deaths? Anybody acting more aggressive than normal?"

"No. I mean, Father Wes snapped at us a few times, but he was just having a bad week, I'm sure."

"Well, I'm sure priests get stressed too. But I'll look into it, -"

"Amber. Sister Amber."

"You can call me 'Bobbi'. I'll figure this out, I promise."

"Bobbi… why do you care so much? Are you Catholic?"

Marion smiled. "No. I classify myself as more of a nondenominational. All of the God, none of the rules."

"So, you do believe?"

"No. I know. I know there is a God. I know there are angels who are warriors for Him. And there is evil in the world. And that is what I'm looking for here. Evil."

Amber nodded. "It's refreshing to hear such faith. Please, do what you can."

Marion stood and shook Sister Amber's hand. "I promise, sister. I'll figure this out."

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

Marion sneaked into the priest's office through an unlocked window later that night.

"You hunters are so predictable." A sarcastic voice called. "He's not here. He's in Rome, holding audience with the Pope about the 'suicides'."

She turned, gun in hand. Sister Amber was standing in the doorway, a gun trained on her.

"You?! You're a freakin' nun! What the hell?!"

"I prayed every day of my life. Since before I was a nun, since I was a child. Never an answer. Thousands of unanswered prayers, not even a sign. Nothing."

Marion shook her head as Amber started to inch around the wall of the office. "You had a crisis of faith and instead of hangin' up your habit, you hang 4 other nuns?"

"The demon demanded a sacrifice."

"Of course, there's a demon." Marion muttered to herself. She put her hand on the door handle and scoffed. "The demon wanted your soul, you imbecile. The four dead nuns were just icing on the cake."

Marion dove out the door and in between the pews. "He's going to make me powerful. I'll have everything I've ever wanted." Amber called.

"You'll be really powerful and happy in Hell."

"It'll be worth a little brimstone to be able to answer my own prayers."

Marion ran along the wall toward the back of the church. "You think so? Think Hell is worth it? God has fucked my family over every step of the way, Amber. I died when I was 4, a demon killed my mother less than a year later, my dad went insane with grief and raised my brothers to be monster hunters. Not a single one of us can live a normal life, no matter how hard we try, but I'll tell ya, sweetheart… I've got my brother's memories of Hell. Nothing they could give me up here would be worth that."

"Well, then I'm glad I'm not here to offer you anything." Amber's voice was different, darker. A demon. "She said that she had Bobby Singer, but I'm willing to bet you are the Winchester sister."

"It's Bobbi, with an 'I', but you can call me 'Winchester', if you want."

"That is so… great for me. I won the lottery. You are the only Winchester that Crowley still has on the Kill On Sight list. Wonder why?"

Marion hid behind a chest in the back of the church. "Probably too smart for my own good."

"Funny. Crowley said the exact same thing." The demon sighed. "Know the best thing about your fragile human bodies?"

There was a loud crash. "I don't even have to find you, to kill you."

Marion heard the flick of a lighter, then the sound of the demon smoking out. By the time she'd pulled herself out from behind the hutch, flames covered the church. She was stuck in the corner with no exit.

As she looked around for any help, she berated herself. "First solo mission and I'm gonna die. So ridiculous." Marion pulled her jean jacket over her head and prepared to jump for the big wooden doors.

Marion took two deep breaths and pushed herself against the wall in order to get a running start. A sound of fluttering wings hit her ears, right when she jumped, and she opened her eyes outside on the church lawn. She looked up to see Castiel with his arms wrapped around her.

"You- I… I didn't call you."

Castiel pulled away and looked above her head. "No. I've been following you. You were very selfless… in suggesting I focus on my own fight. I felt… such selflessness deserved… an extra… bit of attention."

Marion shook her head. "Selfless? That was just… courteous."

"I am unused to being treated that way. Dean has never…he doesn't even consider my…"

Castiel was interrupted by Marion laughing. "Dean will never be as nice to you as I am, Castiel. You might be the only friend he's every had, but he's not in love with you."

Blue eyes snapped to focus on green ones. "In… love?"

"It'd be really difficult to explain 'love' to you, Castiel."

"I know what love… I thought you were angry with me."

Marion smirked. "For what? For not knowing that I was possessed? Meg told me that no one would know. I was just… hurt after being trapped for so long and upset that I hadn't been part of… but you… you couldn't have known."

"So?" Castiel asked, unsure of what Marion was meaning.

Marion put her hands on the side of his face and placed a quick kiss on his lips. "Go… back… to your fight." She whispered.

He nodded once, then disappeared.

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

Marion walked into her hotel room and hung her duffel in the closet.

"It's a bad idea."

She turned, gun quickly in hand, to see Chuck sitting on her Queen bed. "Chuck?!" She put the gun on the nightstand. "Uh… sir?"

"Just… call me 'Chuck'. That is the body I've been appearing in."

"What's a bad idea?"

"You and Castiel. It's a bad idea."

"Why, because he's an angel and I'm a human?"

"No. I don't have a big problem with interspecies copulation. Have you seen mules? No, specifically, you and Castiel are a bad idea. You're setting yourself up for the worst heartache of your life."

Marion flopped down on the bed and started to pull off her shoes.

"What? Worse than when he practically raped me in an act of rebellion because he was angry at you? I got over that. I can get over this… whatever this is."

"Worse. This situation is the reason I sent you to Florida, why I wrote that barista into your life. You were supposed to forget him!"

"If it's that important, why don't you just make me stop loving him?" Marion asked, tossing her boots in the corner by the bathroom.

"I can't! I didn't make you fall in love with him, you did it of your own free will. I didn't write it, so I can't un-write it! You have to stop it, yourself." Chuck shouted.

"What is it that is so terrible about this?"

"I can't tell you! I can't tell you what is going to happen. And I can't tell you how you'll react, but this… the kissing and holding hands and pretending like it's not going to end badly… it's not worth it." When Marion turned around, Chuck was gone.

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

Marion lay down on her plush queen bed and looked up at the cherubs carved into her headboard. She felt bad, setting up shop in a 4-star hotel, knowing her brothers were sleeping on cut-rate beds that hadn't been flipped in years and had seen more prostitutes than a red light district sidewalk. She felt bad that her brothers had to hustle pool and steal credit cards to get along, while she sat on a bank account that would have made things very easy for them all. She felt bad that Mister had died in County and Missus had committed suicide while out on bail, leaving $750,000 in Mister's life insurance and $1.68 million in savings and stocks. With no family on either side, Missus had left a will stating that everything went to the closest thing to a daughter she had.

The windfall had come as a huge shock when a lawyer tracked her down in Florida to get her signature and bank information. She had wanted to share with Sam and Dean since the moment she came back to them, but there was just never a good time to tell them that she had become a millionaire.

She felt bad about that, but she couldn't make herself feel bad about rekindling her relationship with Castiel. God had told her it would end, and it would end badly, but she couldn't feel bad. Her heart wouldn't let her. No matter how it ended, she would go through with it. She closed her eyes and drifted off.

"And they call me prideful?" A sound of clapping pulled Marion's attention to the window. She was still in her fancy hotel room, but the cherubs were worms, now. The painting on the wall had ceased to be a bowl of fruit and was now the epic battle between Michael and Lucifer. Marion rolled off the mattress and hid on the opposite side of the bed.

"You're dead." Marion shouted.

"I'm trapped, there's a difference." Lucifer said, walking around the end of the bed. "And you are a sinner, Marion."

Lucifer pulled her up from the ground and sat her back on the bed. "Ya know, he may be an absentee creator who hasn't spoken to me in a couple millenia, but if God told me to back off of something, I'd at least consider it. I mean, he's come to you, telling you point blank, without all of the enigmatic bullshit he normally throws around, and you still plan to do what you want."

"This is a dream. This is my brain manifesting doubts. This isn't-"

"This is a dream. I'm still in the cage. The only way I can get to you is through your dreams."

"Why? And how?"

Lucifer sighed and stood tall. "Necessity. You're the only one I can get to. I've been here before, so you're the path of least resistance. I've been in your dreams so I can always find my way back, even from the Pit."

"Why me? Why not Sam? And what do you think I can do for you? I can't help you."

"Sam doesn't sleep. Besides, I've already got him here with me. You… well, it's just nice to talk to someone new, ya know? There's only so much fun I can have with your brothers' souls."

Marion stood and slid away from Lucifer. "Why don't you spend your time reconciling with your brother? I'll deal with Our Father."

Lucifer laughed. "Michael and I are fine. We bonded over the mutilation of Sam and Adam. I can honestly say that I am on better terms with my brother than you are with yours."

Lucifer sat on the edge of the bed. "I suppose that's why you're clinging to Brother Castiel. You don't, really, have anyone else, do you?"

"I have Bobby. And I have God. That's more than you have."

"Bobby barely knows you and is too busy cleaning up Sam and Dean's messes to take your calls. And God is less of an asset than you think. When it comes down to the wire, you might do well to have my brother and me in your corner." Lucifer said, before disappearing.

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

Marion picked up her cell phone and dialed her voicemail to listen to the message Dean had left her while she slept.

"So, Cas showed up and told me that your message was 'Go fuck myself'. He told me you were pretty pissed, and I realized after Cas left that it was a dick move to send him. I didn't think about how it'd make you feel. So, uh, I'm sorry. Can you call me now, please? After a year of not knowing if you were alive or dead, I'd like to know you're okay. You know, you might think I don't care (Cas said you think it's been me and Sam for too long) but you're my fuckin' twin. I care. Just… call."

Marion stared down at her phone before pulling up her text messenger and sending one sentence. 'You apologize like a bitch.' She imagined her brother heaving a sigh of relief and sending her his retaliation. Sure enough, she received a text saying 'Well u'd no all bout that bitch' She smiled and tossed her phone away from her.

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

Over the next few weeks, Marion traveled around the country. She didn't do much hunting, unless she knew it wasn't a demon. With a kill order out on her, she couldn't risk it.

She spent most of her time along in hotel rooms, reading or trying to find a job that wouldn't get her killed. But a lot of time was spent thinking, mostly about Castiel. She hadn't seen him in weeks, but she knew he had been around. He left little presents sometimes while she slept. A perfect red rose once, a box of chocolates another time. Most recently, it'd been an old leather-bound copy of Grimm's fairy tales. As she was reading through Cinderella, a deep loneliness gripped her. She hadn't seen her brothers since the rib shack. She hadn't seen Castiel since they'd kissed. She'd spoken to Bobby a few days prior, but just long enough to get information on the vamp she was tracking. She had no one else, and she felt a little like Rapunzel again. And she started to miss the Cornwells.

Marion set the book aside and took a deep breath. "Castiel, please, when you can, could you come see me?"

The angel appeared a moment later with no fanfare. No wind, no wings. Marion stood. "How do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"When you show up to see Dean, there's a bit of this wind and I could swear I hear your wings. When it's just me, you just appear."

Castiel blinked a few time. "I try not to disturb you with the sounds."

"Oh." That didn't seem quite right, but she took it.

"What do you need?"

Marion looked down. "I miss you. I… just wanted to see you. Maybe… if you have time, we could… go to dinner."

"I don't eat." He said, simply.

"No, but you can. You proved that with the Famine burgers. Please."

Castiel nodded. "I have some time. No burgers."

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

Marion sat at the table and smiled at her date. "Thank you for coming with me."

"I can't stay very long."

"Oh. I understand. I'm keeping you from your battle. I'm no better than Dean. I was just… lonely."

"No, it's not- Raphael and I are at a standstill. No. It's Dean and Sam. They are going to hunt down Crowley and get him to give Sam's soul back."

Marion pursed her lips. "Erg! He doesn't have Sam's soul! He pretty much admitted to it, then he put a price on my head because I know. And how do they plan to convince him to give it up, anyway?"

Castiel looked away as the waiter approached. "I believe the plan is to forcibly extract the information from him."

"Torture?!" Marion exclaimed just a little too loud right as the waiter reached the table. He set down the menus as she cleared her throat.

"I'll give you a few minutes." The waiter said, walking away.

"Torture? And Dean agreed to letting that part of himself out of the darkness?!" She whispered, furiously.

Castiel leaned forward. "No… Meg studied under Alastair, as well."

Marion had to force herself to not scream. "Meg? Working for Crowley wasn't bad enough, they have to team up with Meg?!"

Castiel sighed and stood. "Dean's calling me. I have to go to him."

Marion stood and wrapped her arms around him. "You better not let that demon bitch double-cross my brothers."

He nodded quickly, then disappeared.

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

As glad as I am to hear that you're finally making a stand against Crowley, you're an idiot if you think you can trust Meg. Besides, Crowley does not have Sam's soul. It's in the Cage with Lucifer. No one can get it… except, maybe, God. If you get yourself hurt while on this wild goose hunt, I will be pissed. Idiot.

Marion threw her cell phone against the wall, then closed her eyes against the spinning ceiling. After Castiel had left, she'd foregone the meal and ordered herself a bottle of wine, which she'd polished off in less than a half hour.

She found herself in the living room at the Cornwells' home. As she looked around the only home she ever knew, she began to cry. Everything hurt. She had her family… boyfriend working with a demon who almost ruined her. God telling her to walk away, part of her wanted to just go back to Florida. She sat down on the little beige couch and stuck her face into a throw pillow.

"This isn't it." Lucifer said, appearing on the blue couch opposite the one she occupied.

"What do you want?" She mumbled.

"This isn't it. The heartbreak you can't come back from? This isn't it."

Marion set the pillow against the armrest. "Why are you telling me this?"

Lucifer moved to sit on the table in front of her. "Because I care." He smiled as she raised an eyebrow. "Don't give me that look, Marion. It's true. You are the one truly free creature on this Earth. You are the only one God can't control. He usually sticks to manipulating the circumstances, but he could control me if he wanted to, control your brothers. You… he couldn't budge if he tried. You're special, and I care about that."

Lucifer took her hands and looked into her eyes. "In a while, when your world falls apart, you're gonna need to know that someone cares."

The sincerity in Lucifer's voice, in his eyes, was throwing Marion off. She was used to his truths being snarky. That made him easier to ignore. But this approach was disarming, and she immediately knew he was right. She'd get over this. She was stronger than a betrayal like this. But, if she can get over Castiel, Sam and Dean teaming up with the demon who almost broke her, what would be too much?

She looked up into his eyes. "You know what's going to happen?" He nodded. "Will you tell me?"

Lucifer shook his head. "I won't. I'm sorry. It has to happen so that God can see the wonder of true free will. It's too important."

He moved to sit next to her as her dream body started rocking with sobs. In the back of her mind, she mused about the irony of her crying into Satan's arms.

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

Marion knew something was wrong as soon as she woke. Castiel was sitting in the desk chair, staring at her. But the Devil had told her that this wasn't it, so she numbly stood.

"How'd it go? Crowley give up Sam's soul?" She asked, heading to the restroom.

"No, he didn't have it. Marion…"

"Told you. But, of course…"

"I kissed Meg." Castiel interrupted.

There was silence as Marion reminded herself that something bigger was on the horizon. She slowly turned to him.

"She kissed me. And… I just… kissed her back. I was watching this movie about a pizza man and this woman…"

"Stop." Marion interrupted his rambling. "This isn't it, Castiel."

"What?"

"You're gonna break my heart. I've been told you're gonna break my heart. And it will be devastating and horrible and I'll likely never be the same, but this…" she gestured to the tired-looking angel." … you making out with a demon, this isn't it. This is infuriating and saddening and a little bit pathetic, but… I'll get over it. I'll get over this, and we'll be fine."

"If you think I'm going to hurt you, why-"

"Because I love you. Because if I let Chuck scare me out of this relationship just to miss the pain, then I'll have missed the dance. And I need the dance."

Castiel stood. "I don't understand what you mean."

Marion shook her head. "It's an old country song. The point is, why should I throw away all the happiness just because it ends with me being broken?"

Marion could almost hear the words in Lucifer's voice. As she'd cried in his arms, with him petting her hair, he'd calmed her with words of the happiness and love she'd share with Castiel before she got her heart broken.

"That's very wise. Did the prophet-"

She looked away, unable to admit her wisdom came from the Devil. "I dreamed it. It was an epiphany."

Marion pulled him to her by his tie and tried to kiss him. Castiel looked away from the kiss.

"I don't think… I don't want to hurt you. And Dean questioned my loyalty last time we… dated."

"And then you got yourself killed following his insane plan that only succeeded because Sam had a rare moment of strength. You've proven your loyalty." Marion took a calming breath. "How does Dean show his loyalty? He constantly pulls you away from your war to do his bidding, he has been working for a demon who has a price on his twin sister's head, he chooses to join forces with a demon who killed 3 hunters with his siblings' hands, who killed Jo and Ellen… Dean knows nothing of loyalty and has no right to question yours."

Marion smirked a little and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You're all I have, anymore, Cas. The Cornwells are dead. Sam and Dean are soulless and selfish, respectively. And I think I ignored Chuck's advice one time too many. Can't I just… have you for awhile?"

Castiel looked down at her, nervously. "I… I'm not… I'm sober. I've never…"

"I've never done it, at all." Marion said, pulling his trench coat down his arms. "And I'm sure it'll be even better if we can both enjoy it."

Marion threw his coat on the table near the tv and started to work on the buttons of his dress shirt.

"Are you doing this because you really want it?" Castiel asked as she pulled his belt off.

The question made her stop. She hadn't even considered having a sexual relationship with Castiel until her visit from Luci. But he hadn't even mentioned sex, so… she threw his belt on top of the coat.

"I'm ready for this. I want to know… this."

Castiel nodded and pushed his suit jacket down his arms. Marion wanted to feel some apprehension. But her body flushed with desire and she decided not to question it.

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

Marion had pretended to be asleep after they'd finished. She wanted to make it easier for him to leave. She knew he had to get back, either to Heaven or to her brothers. She stared up at the ceiling. It had been perfect and loving, exactly how she wanted her first time. Outside, the storm that beat against the windows let loose a bolt of lightning and a boom of thunder.

"Shout all you want, Chuck. I will go on exactly as I want to." Marion said, picking up her phone and putting the battery back in.

"Crowley didn't have Sam's soul. You were right. I'm an idiot. I'm sorry. But I made a deal with Death. He can get Sammy's soul out of the cage and all I have to do is wear his ring for a day. We're gonna be back to normal. Cas killed Crowley last night so we can go back to doing what we need to do. You can come back. Please come back."

Marion wondered for a minute why Castiel hadn't mentioned killing Crowley, but she decided he had more important things on his mind, as she dialed out of her voicemail box and dialed Dean's number.

"Mare!"

"You're getting Sam's soul back. Kudos. Castiel killed Crowley. Goodie. Why should I come back?"

"Mare, I know that I-"

"No, Dean, you don't know. I told you. I knew that demon didn't have Sam and you refused to listen to me. You took the word of the King of Hell over the word of your twin sister."

"He said he could fix Sam. You didn't have an answer. I had to try, Marion."

"No! You should have called his bluff. You should have come to Tennessee. You should have helped me with the nun who killed her sisters to gain favor with a demon. You… you can't just call me and think everything is okay. I'm… doing my own thing now. Bobby is throwing me cases, I'm taking some online classes. I've even got a boyfriend, now, Dean. Why should I come follow you around when you don't listen to me?"

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I didn't listen, but come on! It made sense that he had Sam's soul. Sam was in Hell. Crowley was King of Hell. I thought, maybe, he was lying about bringing Samuel back. Marion, just come back."

Marion breathed deeply. She didn't know if she should go back with Lucifer in her dreams, Chuck showing up every few weeks, telling her what to do, with her bringing Castiel into her bed. "If I come back, I don't bunk with you. I've been in my rooms alone for months."

"And you've got a boyfriend you need to call. Fine. That'll put a strain on the credit cards."

"That's not a problem, Dean. I'll pay my own way. Where?"

"I'll meet you in Sioux Falls."

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

Castiel showed up in her passenger seat as she crossed the South Dakota line.

"You're going to join Sam and Dean?"

"Yes. Sammy should be back to normal. Things with Dean shouldn't be too strained."

"Did you tell Dean…"

"No. Of course not. But he knows I have someone. I'll probably make him think it was Robby from the coffee shop. How's the fight? You sure you've got time to visit me?"

Castiel seemed to blush, but he looked out the window. "I heard Death returned Sam's soul. I wanted to make sure everything was all right. And I wanted to see you."

"That's cool. I wanted to talk to you about Crowley. Dean said you killed him. How'd you manage it? And why didn't you tell me?"

"I burned his bones." He replied, quickly. "And I couldn't tell you because I had to tell you about Meg, and then we were having intercourse."

"The timing might've been a little… off, but… I don't know, it was my turn. If I am going to be a Winchester, I'm going to have to act like one. And Winchesters are selfish and fall to pleasures of the flesh at inopportune times. Especially Dean."

Castiel was silent, so Marion kept talking. "I have free will. I have my own mind to do with what I want. Heck, I could tell my brother about us, if I wanted. I don't want to, but I could."

"Are you all right? You seem a bit… different." He asked, studying her face.

Marion rubbed her right eye, and considered pulling over. "I just haven't been sleeping well. I'm worried about Sam and whoever's gonna take over for Crowley as King as Hell. I'm afraid God is mad at me. And I'm afraid of what Dean will do when he finds out you and I are back together. I'm just trying to keep reminding myself that I'm a grown woman… and a Winchester and a damn hunter! My mother, rest her soul, would be so disappointed in me. She was strong…"

She pulled over and shut the engine off, burying her face in her hands. She couldn't tell where her words started and Lucifer's ended. She'd spent a lot of time talking about her family. Lucifer knew more about her heritage than Dean did, which was the extent of Marion's knowledge.

She cleared her throat and looked up. "Sorry. I'm… just letting myself get overwhelmed. The pressure is getting to me, I guess." She smiled at Castiel, reassuringly. "I'm fine."

"Perhaps going back to your brothers isn't a good idea. The pressure will, likely, be worse when you must prove yourself to them daily."

"It's okay. I'd rather deal with the pressure than the loneliness. I'll be fine."

Castiel nodded, then disappeared.

As she pulled out onto the road, she could swear she heard Lucifer whisper, "It'll be worth it".

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

Dean ran out of Bobby's house to greet Marion as soon as the Mustang pulled in. She raised an eyebrow as she got out of the car.

"Hey! So, Sam's awake."

"Great! Is-is he okay? I mean, the class of torture Lucifer and Michael must've dealt him-"

"He doesn't remember." Dean cut her off.

Marion's eyes widened. "What? What doesn't he remember?"

"None of it. He doesn't remember the last year and a half. He doesn't remember working with Samuel, working for Crowley. He doesn't remember letting me get vamped or anything he said. So, he doesn't remember the rib shack or saying that we're better off without you."

"I wasn't gonna hold it against him, Dean. He didn't have a soul. But I'm gonna assume by the way you ran out here, that I'm supposed to be on eggshells? Gotta try to keep from triggering his memories?"

"Death put up a wall. His soul is kinda blocked off from the memory of the Cage. We gotta make sure Sammy doesn't poke the wall."

Marion rubbed her hand across her face. "So, we're just not supposed to mention anything that Sam did or saw in the last year and a half? You really think that'll work? There are other folks who interacted with him, who won't just automatically buy in to the Winchester craziness."

"We're gonna do this as long as possible. Just do this for me, please?"

"I'm doing this for Sam, not you."

"Are you still pissed at me? I apologized."

Marion started toward the house. "'Cause that makes it all better, doesn't it? I've forgiven you for a lot of things, Dean. Mostly because I know that, as hunters, we could die again at any time. I, generally, get over shit pretty quickly, Dean, but this… you showed me exactly where I stand with you. You'll go to Hell for Sam, you'll be Death for 24 hours to fix him." She stopped short of the porch and turned to Dean.

"You wouldn't listen to me when it was logical and correct. You couldn't tell I was possessed for a month. You didn't even want to come get me from the hospital, Dean."

"Mare, I-"

"And that's fine. You barely know me. Sammy has been a part of your life for as long as I was out of your life. But you don't get to act like I'm important, you don't get to pretend to give a damn. I might be your twin, but that bond is nothing compared to what you have with Sam. And I'm done trying to make it work. I'm not here because I want to be your sister. I'm here because the Cornwells are dead, you're all the family that I have. You can't say 'sorry' and fix this, Dean. Because 'sorry' isn't going to make you value me."

Marion waited a moment before turning around and heading into Bobby's house. Dean stared after her.

~~~~~~~~~~##########~~~~~~~~~~^^^^^^^^^^~~~~~~~~~~**********

Author's Note: I'm sorry it took so long to upload this. Seriously, I could list a million excuses but that doesn't change it. I have more typed up already and I have the story planned out for chapters and chapters and seasons. So, I promise that it won't be another half a damn year before I post this time.