Final chapter.

"Cass," Dean starts quietly, leaning his ass into the bumper of one of their stolen cars outside the cabin at six in the morning. He never fell back asleep after Lizzy found the courage to spill all to him. He couldn't sleep after knowing all that. So instead he decided to sneak outside and get his talk with Castiel over with, the hope of calming at least some of his nerves motivating him. Hands shoved in his pockets, he hunches over with closed eyes. "Cass, can we talk?"

Nothing happens, no flapping wings, no 'Hello, Dean'.

"Please, Cass?" Dean tries again. "I'm not gonna yell or fight… we just need to talk some stuff out. Like… friends would." He nearly cringes at the lameness of how that sounds coming out of his mouth.

It remains quiet.

"Look, man. I know what you did. I know you gave L your vision, or whatever it is. And now she's gonna head into Roman's headquarters and try to gank him on her own." He sighs. "Come on, Cass. You have to know how dangerous that is… and what the chances are of her… not coming back. To me. Or Sammy."

Dean washes a hand over his face with frustration and fear, those words so damn difficult to say.

"I'm worried about her. I'm… hell, I'm scared outta my mind for her. I'll admit that. So please, could you just talk to me about this? It's kind of a big deal."

Finally, he hears that ever familiar whoosh of air as Castiel appears directly in front of him. He's roughly ten feet back and purposely out of reach.

"Hello… Dean," the deep voice greets, Castiel's head lowered with worry. He looks tense.

"Hey, Cass," Dean responds, standing up tall but keeping his hands in his jacket pockets. "Thanks for coming."

"You sounded like you could use an ear," Castiel explains, shoulders shrugging. "Maybe a friend."

Dean bites his tongue. He's internally working back to friends with Cass still, even if he used that word first. "I'm concerned."

"About Elizabeth, I know," Castiel nods. "But she is strong. And very capable…."

"No one's capable of doing this on their own," Dean corrects him.

"She won't be alone. Elizabeth will have Sam and Lou with her."

"Not good enough," Dean shakes his head. "Dick is no joke. He's strong and she needs back up… real back up."

Castiel looks away, a suddenly fidgety way about him as his eyes dart around the wooded area surrounding the cabin. "I don't fight. Not anymore."

"You keep saying that," Dean nods, making sure to keep his tone light and whatever the opposite of super-fucking-pissed-off is. "But Cass… you love her too. You know that if you let Lizzy go do this without you backing her up and she doesn't come home…." He pauses. "What would you do then, huh? Can you live with yourself if she dies?"

Castiel jitters a little more, swallowing hard and not answering.

"Please, man. You're all I got right now," Dean gets serious. "If L goes then I have to stay here for Sammy. I can't be with her to help. And even if I could… it'd be better if you went. You have the mojo. You know these damn things in and out."

"I can't," Castiel denies. "I just… can't."

"Cass, she needs a wingman."

"Dean..."

And Dean just sighs with loss. "You don't want to jump into the jaws of death, I get it. No one does." He puts his hands on his hips for a moment. Lizzy always figured out how to get through to the difficult angel and she always did it by doing whatever the opposite is of what Dean would do. Time to use her tactics. "How about you help me out with something else. Let's run a little errand."

"What errand?" Castiel asks, finally looking back to Dean.

He smiles. "We gotta get Baby out of her corner."

Castiel's expression wrinkles in confusion.

"Take me to my car and I'll explain," Dean tells him.

Castiel steps up to Dean quickly and places a hand on his shoulder. In a blink they're at the old abandoned farm, two cars sitting there covered by tarps under a roof that was once a barn.

Itching to pull the cloth tarp off his prized possession, Dean balls his fists and denies the reaction to her close proximity after so long.

"Thanks for the lift," Dean jokes, keeping it light as Castiel needs.

"My pleasure," he responds, his guilt over his cowardice really starts to attack him. He walks around a bit, contemplating. Finally, after pacing and Dean watching him for some minutes, he speaks. "Dean... if they attack Dick and fail, then Elizabeth… Lou and Sam, they all die heroically, correct?"

"I think at this point the only way any of us is going down is heroically… but yeah. I don't know. I guess."

"And at best, if I go with Elizabeth, I die trying to fix my own stupid mistake," Castiel tries to logic it all out for himself. "Or... I don't die and I'm brought back again. I see now. It's a punishment, resurrection. It's worse every time."

"I'm sorry. Uh, we're talking about God crap, right?" Dean wonders, always having a hard time following new-Castiel's train of thought.

"I'm not good luck, Dean," Castiel warns.

Dean nods at him, understanding that feeling. "Yeah, but you know what? Bottom of the ninth, and you're the only guy left on the bench... Sorry, but I'd rather have you, cursed or not. And anyway, nut up, all right? We're all cursed. I seem like good luck to you?"

Castiel just stares at Dean.

"What?" Dean asks, hearing the impatience in his own tone and regretting it.

"Well, I don't want to make you uncomfortable, but I detect a note of forgiveness," Castiel says in a light, hopeful tone.

"Yeah, well… life is one pile of shit shoveled onto the next. Gotta know who's more friend than enemy when that's the case."

And everything changes for Castiel. Dean is his friend, even if the human doesn't know how to admit it. That won't change, ever. He's done nothing but give Dean the opportunity to justify hating him and give him reason to never speak to him again… but here the human is. Forgiving him. Being a friend. Asking for help, the kind only a friend can give.

He always thought Elizabeth was his driving factor for everything he did once he became so attached to her. Castiel didn't realize just how attached he became to all of these human counterparts he's been lucky enough to find.

"Well, I'll go with Elizabeth," Castiel blurts it out as quickly as he can before he changes his mind. "And I'll do my best."

Dean swallows hard at that, a form of sheer relief flooding through his entire system at hearing that his wife will have the best back up anyone could ask for. "Thanks, Cass. Really."

Castiel smiles back, hearing the emotional tug in the back of Dean's tone. He affected. He's grateful. "So... can I ask the plan?"

This is where Dean manages a real smile, looking over at the two covered cars. "Well, according to Crowley, Dick knows we're coming, so you guys are gonna announce yourselves. Big."

"Packed and stacked," Lou shouts into the cabin before immediately walking away, leaving the people inside to themselves for a moment. She's aware of how difficult this is, especially since it was just days ago that the family was mended and put back together, so they need time.

So, she walks back to the Impala to meet up with Castiel and Sam as they check out the surveillance cameras they hacked on Sam's laptop that's open on the hood.

"Still looking good?" she asks.

"Uh, we have a problem," he admits, turning the screen to her. "We found Kevin."

On the laptop is a clear shot of Kevin Tran, locked in a room at Roman Inc. and looking shifty and nervous as all hell.

"Fuck!" Lou complains. "He's at Levi central!?"

"Yup," Sam answers, sliding it back. "And you know we can't leave him there."

"No fucking way," Lou sighs. "Shit. Alright, new game plan. You and I head for Kevin. Cass and Lizard can get to Dick."

"You think that's smart?" Sam asks. "I mean, what happens if we run into the real Dick?"

"What does it matter? We're screwed no matter what Leviathan we run into," she assumes. "We just aim with our so cool squirt guns and hope to burn them enough to run away."

She holds up her plastic, pump action water pistol filled with borax-laced cleanser and winks.

Sam thinks for a second, nods once, and turns to Castiel. "You good with that Cass?"

"I promised Dean I'd stay with Elizabeth at all times," he answers. "So yes. That's a good plan. You get Kevin, we'll get to Dick."

"Alright," Lou lights up, always happy to have a plan. "You have a layout of the building you can pull up?"

"Sure." Sam starts clicking away and they formulate a full blown attack plan.

Kissing her son's head as she bounces him on her hip, Lizzy takes a shaky breath. "I love you, sweetie. More than anything."

"He knows that," Dean assures her, watching as a lone tear falls down her cheek. He uses the pad of his thumb to wipe it away for her. "And you'll be back when it's all said and done… and with a much safer world to give him."

"I told you I'm be coming back," Lizzy repeats for him, needing this to be her mantra. She's coming back. She'll be back by the end of the day. She'll come home, right after killing Dick. She'll get it done and come back to her family.

"Damn straight you are," Dean tells her. He then gets a little quiet as Lizzy hugs Sammy. He pulls something from his back pocket and gives it a hard look. "Hey, ah… you should take this."

"What is it?" she asks. He holds it out for her to see. It's the picture they took yesterday with Santa, the whole family smiling wide and looking happy. She loves that picture.

"For good luck," Dean winks and he reaches behind her. He slides the photo into her back pocket, the palm of his hand lingering there.

"You copping a feel as we say goodbye?" Lizzy eyes him.

"For good luck," he jokes lightly and gets her to laugh a little bit. He considers that a small win at the moment. He leans forward and kisses her lips quickly once. "You'll be ok. Cass will have your back."

"Thank you for talking him into coming," she thanks once again, knowing she's far more confident now than she was when Castiel was too afraid to fight with her. Having an angel, even a broken one that is no longer the warrior he once was, by her side makes her feel far more confident.

"I told you I wasn't letting you go without him."

Lizzy smiles up at him sadly. "I'm scared."

"Don't be," Dean brushes the statement off as if it were unfounded. "Who's more badass than you?"

"You," she laughs a little.

"Well, I don't have Dick-vision. That makes you far more dangerous," Dean tells her, peeling Sammy out of her arms as he knows Lizzy needs to head out. Once he has their son settled in his hold he looks back at her, watching her reach for her little boy again. She holds his small face and kisses his cheeks and forehead, Dean once more reminded of the spectacular mother she is. "You're just making this harder on yourself, momma."

"I don't care," she shakily says and kisses the top of Sammy's head before backing up a half step. She locks eyes with her husband. "Thank you for this morning."

Dean grins sadly. They had breakfast together, played with Sammy all morning, took a quick hike in the woods… and he never mentioned the task at hand later that day. For her, it was perfect. And he knows that.

"Least I could do," Dean keeps an exterior of calm and sure. "They're ready to go. You better head."

Her face wrinkles, trying not to lose it. Once they're in the car she knows she'll transform from this blubbery mess into Wonder Woman, dead set on ending Dick Roman once and for all, but ever since Sammy was born she can't be that person in front of him. She can't. He makes her so emotional.

"No, no, no," Dean laughs a little, pulling her in by his free arm. "Stop it. You can't go stabbing Dick in the throat while sobbing."

"I know," she wipes her eyes before melting into him. They hold the embrace, the three of them together as they should be. Lizzy peeks up at Dean. "You're the love of my life, you know that?"

He shows a questioning look. "I thought he was." Dean nudges his head to Sammy, the boy now playing with a lock of his mother's hair.

"You both are," her voice quivers some more.

"Cut it out," Dean smiles and hugs her one last time and if he presses a kiss to the top of her head, so what? In the moment, he's totally allowed to do sappy without losing his manliness.

When she looks up again he kisses her. It's sweet, heartfelt. It's everything she loves about him that no one else knows about. Her sweet guy.

"I love you," Dean tells her.

"I love you, too," she tells him thickly.

"Now go kick some ass, huh?" he says, winking.

She smiles slightly, kisses her son's cheek one last time, and heads for the door. When she gets there she turns back to them and smiles one last time.

Dean raises an arm and waves, Sammy seeing it and waving too as he very recently learned how.

Lizzy sighs heavily and waves back before closing the door, leaving Dean there in the quiet, lonely cabin.

He walks to the window and watches. Lizzy climbs into the Mustang, the one Lou's foaming at the mouth to drive again, as Dean begrudgingly sees Sam open the driver's side door of his Baby. He finally gets his car back and he's not the one behind the wheel. So wrong.

When everyone is in a car, Sam and Castiel in the Impala and Lou and Lizzy in the Mustang, Lizzy peers off to the house. She catches the sight of her little family in the window and smiles sadly. She waves to them.

Without looking away, Dean grabs Sammy's arm and makes him wave back once more. Lizzy's smile widens a bit as they disappear down the dirt path and out of sight.

And they're all gone, on a mission to save the world without him. Looking down at Sammy he's reminded of just why he's still here… but it doesn't make his anxieties disappear. The second he's alone with Sammy his fears about Lizzy going out there and him not being there to help start to take over his mind.

This will be the longest day of his life.

The day is quiet. A little rainy, a little cold, but seasonably warm for December. The three security guards standing in out by the front doors of Roman Enterprises in their tailored suits keep watch stoically and professionally. It's easy and silent… until the noise cuts through it all.

Loud rock riffs and a seriously powerful, classic engine roars through the air.

A car comes crashing through the closed metal gate while blasting classic rock. The security guards just watch, not moving. They were expecting something soon enough so this isn't really all that surprising. The tip off came days ago.

When the shiny black Impala cuts a sharp turn in front of the building, it makes a straight path for the big Roman Enterprises sign out front. It smashes into the glass signage, shattering it as the Impala becomes trapped within the metal framework of the massive sign.

The security guards all look to one another and smile a little, eyes turning black as they watch a man in white scrubs and a tan trench coat step out of the big vehicle.

They pull out their guns and take their shots, several bullets landing hits along the driver's torso but the man looks unaffected. He's fine, the bullets barely affecting him. He stands tall with an angry face as an angel blade descends from his coat sleeve.

The demons now know what they're dealing with.

Castiel charges at them, twirling his blade once as he internally fights the conflict he's feeling. This is the exact opposite of what he's been trying to do since he woke up at the institute.

But Elizabeth needs him. Somehow that will always trump even total fear.

With one quick maneuver, Castiel ducks a swing of a fist and instead stabs one of the demons right through the gut. As he screams out, the angel thrusts out a palm without even looking, landing it on the forehead of a second demon that had been coming for him. Swiftly, he burns out the demon angelically, eyes charred and hollow as the meatsuit crumples to the ground. Two dead.

When Castiel's eyes focus on the third demon it makes a very quick decision. He smokes out.

When the area is once again silent, Castiel all alone with three bodies around him, he disappears, flying off the find Elizabeth. Distraction complete.

The flapping of wings and Lizzy smiles. "Big entrance done?"

"Yes," Castiel tells her now that he's standing next to her inside the building. "It was fairly easy. Maybe too easy."

While still hiding in the hallway closet she slipped into and planned to meet him at once she snuck in while Castiel made a scene out front, she nods. "Crowley was telling the truth."

"Which gives me hope that the blood he gave us is truly his. We need to move," Castiel tells her, nodding at the closet door.

"Ready?" she wonders, hoping he is.

Castiel doesn't answer.

Lizzy doesn't wait. She opens the door and goes on with the plan, heading quietly down the hallway.

"This it?" Lou asks, making her way down a corridor of the massive Roman Inc. headquarters and seeing what she thinks is the office they were after just ahead.

"Think so," Sam answers as he follows, machete in hand just like Lou. They came prepared, checked the security footage one last time a few blocks away before breaking in, and they know Kevin's locked in there.

"Alright then, big man," Lou smiles, stepping aside while her eyes continually scan the area for threats. "Do your worst."

Inside the small office, Kevin flinches hard when the door bursts open with force, rebounding off the wall. Shit, what now? These Leviathan have been screwing with him all day. First it was threatening his mother, then locking him up, seeing Polly in her disastrous state… then tying him up and leaving him her for hours? What's going on?

And then in walks Sam Winchester and he fully understands.

"Kevin," Sam says with relief, rushing to him.

"Man, we've been looking for you," Lou smiles a little, happy they found him so easily. As Sam cuts his arms free Lou pulls the tape off his mouth.

"Hey, buddy," Sam says, pulling Kevin's arm so he stands up. "We got to hustle, okay?"

"Wait," Kevin stops and makes the two hunters stare at him. "We can't leave yet."

"Uh, yeah we can. And we have to. Move," Lou harshly tells him, pulling his arm and heading for the door.

Kevin stands his ground. "No…."

"We got to go," Sam reiterates.

"You don't understand," Kevin rushes out. "Dick's got creamer in his lab. He's gonna kill all the skinny people."

"Wait, what?" Lou asks, completely thrown off by what he's saying.

"Kevin, slow down. What does that mean?" Sam asks, itching to leave but knowing if Kevin's asking to stay this has to be bad.

"There's a creamer Roman developed. It has, like, a poison in it. It effects only people with low body fat percentage. They put that stuff in other food and it gets out, that's a mass killing."

"Fuck. Why can't anything be easy?" Lou bitches when she realizes they can't just stick with the plan.

"We have to blow up the lab," Kevin begs of them. "Please."

Sam and Lou lock eyes. They both silently contemplate the situation and agree on the same decision without a word spoken.

"Yeah, fine," Sam says, gesturing for Kevin to lead the way out the door. "Let's go."

The three leave the room to find the lab, the exactly place they know Lizzy and Cass are. The exact place they know Dick Roman is right now.

"Good work, gentlemen," Rick Roman jovially congratulates as he inspects one of the small, single serving creamers in the middle of his laboratories. He smiles with pride at the two other Leviathan working around him. "You know, I think this might end up the slickest little genocide in history."

"Thank you, sir," one of his workers gratefully responds while both Leviathans pack up the ready-to-ship creamers filled with skinny-people-pesticide.

"Just sayin'," Dick starts, peering at the little wonder in his hand and peeling back the top to open it. "I smell promotion."

Taking a few steps away, Dick knocks back the creamer while marveling in its good taste combined with zero effect on him. He feels great. His food supply won't be tainted. It's amazing how quickly a species can learn when motivated.

Behind him he heard a couple noises, bodies dropping to the ground. He's aware of what that sounds like. When he turns around he finds two decapitated henchmen lying on the floor, their heads no longer attached, and two newcomers standing over them. Castiel has an open bottle of Power Clean in his grip, Lizzy has a machete.

"Little abrupt... but okay," Dick comments lightly, not in the least threatened by the presence of hunter and angel. He made a deal with Crowley. He's safe, even if they think they have the proper weapon to off him.

Lizzy and Castiel remain quiet. Lizzy glares at the head Leviathan, sheathing her machete as she no longer needs it.

Dick ignores her in favor of the angel. "Castiel. Good to see you again," he grins in his usual smile shellacked in a polyurethane sheen. "Thanks for the ride into paradise."

Castiel doesn't respond. Lizzy does for him. "You aren't welcome, dick."

She then pulls the long, sharpened-to-a-point bone that's stained with the blood of the three fallen.

"Good on you! Pulling that together," Dick cheers. "A-plus."

Ever since she walked into this building Lizzy became something else. She knew it, could feel it. She's the hunter she used to be; vicious, unafraid, bold, and killer with a weapon. She's not afraid of him in the moment. She knows this weapon of hers will work. "You don't think this'll work, do you?"

"Do you?" Dick turns it quickly around.

"You trust Crowley?" she further pushes him.

Dick just smirks at her. "No. Why should you?"

"Because I know who he hates more and for once, it ain't me," Lizzy says with pure confidence.

"Are you two sure I'm even me?" Dick challenges, his own confidence unwavering.

Lizzy peeks over at Castiel, the angel's stone face peering back at her unchanging. His game face has always been strong, even when he's shaking in his boots. Lizzy winks at him to remind him that they have this. She looks back to Dick and ignores the stupid question. They're sure it's the real Dick. "See, here's the thing when dealing with Crowley, Dicky." She waves the bone weapon in front of him. "He will always find a way to bone you."

Dick's face drops. "This meeting's over."

Thinking it was time enough for action, Castiel makes his move. He rushes towards Dick but before he can manage to do much of anything Dick grabs him and tosses him with ease into the laboratory wall. He crashes into the implements on the metal table under him and the distraction is exactly what Lizzy was counting on.

Lizzy doesn't hesitate. She doesn't second guess. She does exactly what she promised, exactly what she's been itching to do for so long.

With every ounce of hatred she has in her for Dick Roman and what the Leviathan have done to her and her family, she thrusts the bone straight through his gut.

The surprised face Dick shows, undoubtedly there because he now realizes that the weapon was real and Crowley cheated him, has the triumphant feeling deep in Lizzy's heart grow quickly. She did it.

Looking him right in the eyes, still holding the hilt of the weapon, Lizzy growls out, "I promised you I'd kill you, you fucking piece of shit."

When Dick Roman's face transforms into an enormous Leviathan mouth of pointed teeth and fear, Lizzy lets go and steps back. Castiel has managed to get back on his feet, standing behind Dick to keep him surrounded just in case.

When the black goo starts to drip down his nose, his face returning to the human looking face he had yet it starts to melt, Lizzy knows they've done it. But the spectacle of it all is too much to really celebrate. She's never seen anything quite like this before.

Right then the laboratory door flies open. Sam, Lou and Kevin all stand there, unprepared to see what they are seeing. They freeze in place, staying far enough back.

Waves of energy, pulsating hard, emanate from Dick's body. A loud heartbeat is heard accompanying each pulse, the speed of them picking up quickly.

Then suddenly it's quiet for just a second. Dick Roman's eyes connects with Lizzy's. He smiles, laughing as he knows what's about to happen and this won't be the last laugh for her. He's getting the last laugh. He's bring her along for the ride of a lifetime.

The explosion happens in a flash, Dick's form turning to black goo that splashes out and coats the entire room. Sam tries to cover Lou and Kevin, turning his back to it all last second.

And then… silence. Calm. Stillness. Once the explosion happens everything changes.

Sam straightens up and looks around the room. Black goo covers everything, including all the people in it. Sam Lou, Kevin… and that's it.

Exhaling hard once, panic hitting him as he looks around the empty room.

"What the fuck?" Lou quietly asks while standing next to him, both slowly starting to realize what's actually happened here.

Kevin finds his voice when he knows they have to flee. "Sam, we should go. Now."

"What the hell?" Sam asks, the full anxious alarm clear in his tone.

"Where the fuck is she!?" Lou falls into true fear.

"More chompers any second, guys," Kevin reminds, aiming towards the door.

"Not to worry. I have a small army of demons outside."

All three look across the room at Crowley as he makes an unexpected appearance amid the confusion.

"Cut off the head, and the body will flounder," the head demon continues. "After all, think if you'd had just one king since before the first sunrise… you'd be in a kerfuffle, too."

"Which is exactly what you wanted," Sam accuses, his voice shaking. Where the hell is Lizzy? Where did Cass go?

"So did you," he counters. "Without a master plan, the Levis are just another monster. Hard to stomp, sure, but you kids love a challenge. Your job is to keep them from organizing."

"Where's my sister?!" Lou fires out, balled up fists shaking.

Crowley's face softens as he looks at her. "Dear, it saddens me to be the one to tell you this. I surprisingly don't appreciate the look of pain and sadness on that lovely face. That bone... has a bit of a kick. God weapons often do. They should put a warning on the box but alas, they don't."

"What are you saying!?" Lou shouts, impatient to know the truth. She's not dead. Lizzy can't be dead. No way.

"You know where she is, my smart darling. Where would she go if she stood to close to a dying monster, hm?"

Lou's face drops when it all makes sense to her.

The King of Hell thinks for a moment, a truly torn look on his face as he does, before saying, "Can't help you, dear. I wish I could."

"Bullshit!" Sam shouts at him, knowing the demon knows something more. He has to.

In response, Crowley snaps his fingers. Two demons appear to either side of Kevin, grabbing his arms.

"Prophet's mine, now." Crowley snaps again.

The demons disappear, taking Kevin with them before either hunter can react.

"I don't think you two are appreciating the bigger picture here," Crowley continues. "You got what you wanted. Dick's dead, you saved the world."

"We had no deal for Kevin!" Lou yells with anger, too many people being taken from her all at once.

"So I want one little prophet?" he brushes off the accusation. "Sorry, Moose. Sorry, Moosette. Wish I could help. You certainly got a lot on your plate right now. I mean, with Lizzy gone…."

"She's not dead!" Lou shouts at him immediately, denial coursing through her veins.

"Never said she was," Crowley retorts. "In fact, you of all people should know where a monster goes when it dies, hm?"

Not possible, Lou knows that. "But humans can't…."

"But Dick can," Crowley rebuts, not letting her finish. "I'll leave you two to it. You most likely have a lot to chat about… like what you're going to tell Squirrel about all this. And which of you is about to take over mother duties for that little mouth-breather. I'd go with Moose. He's more sensitive." He grins and disappears.

"Crowley!" Sam shouts into the air, the terrified feeling washing over him.

"Shit," Lou now really panics.

When Sam looks at her she has a hand pressed to her forehead, her chin quivering as she gets it all. He doesn't.

"What? What the hell did Crowley mean…?"

"Purgatory," Lou says, the first set of tears streaking down her face. "Fuck. Sam. That's where she is… that's where they both are. Fuck."

Sam's eyes widen when she says it. "Purgatory?"

"Oh my god," Lou's voice shakes as she paces slightly, unsure of what to do. "Shit."

"Is she in Purgatory!?" Sam panics, asking again as he steps closer to Lou. She doesn't stop pacing. He grabs her shoulders and forces her to look at him. "Is she!?"

Lou just nods yes.

"Oh god…." Sam huffs a few harsh breaths as they come to terms with the sudden situation. "We can't go get her. Or Cass."

"We can't open the door to that place," Lou agrees. "We're in this situation because it was opened in the first place."

"I know," Sam nods, his mind empty with solutions. "What the fuck do we do? We can't let her rot in there…."

"Yes we can. We have to," Lou's face changes. A vague memory comes back to her, a legend of the place she called home for years that could mean a backdoor for Lizzy. "Fuck."

Lou starts to crumble and he sees it happening. Sam moves closer and grabs her shoulders, getting her attention. "What do we do?"

"We lie," Lou begrudgingly says, hating this plan. "We lie to him. We have to."

Sam just closes his eyes, not ready to start lying to his brother about anything, especially something this big.

"What we need to do is research this, figure out if there's a way to pull her out that won't end the world. Dean won't be as patient as we can be and you know it."

Sam nods, agreeing.

"If there's a way out for her… then we do it. If not…."

"We let her go," Sam counters, it breaking his heart to say such a thing. "But we turn over every fucking stone. Every single one."

"We have to find a way," Lou tells him, the helplessness finally hitting her. Her bottom lip pouts a little like it always does when things get to her. "This is so bad."

Her hands fly to her face and she starts to cry. Sam stands there for just a second, looking at her hitching shoulders and black goo spattered hands. He pulls her in tight, both of them completely at a loss.

"She can't be there," Lou cries against his jacket.

And Sam himself is spinning with it all. Lizzy was just standing there, watching Dick Roman die, something she made happen… and then she was gone. Lizzy's gone.

Dean….

"So what do we tell him?" Sam asks, tears rolling slowly down his face as Lou cries while pressed against him. "Damn it, what do we say to him?"

Lou just looks up at him, her heart crumbling with the thought of what they have to tell Dean, even if it's not true. Even if it will destroy Dean.

"Wake up."

The voice, one she hasn't heard sounding so stern in so long, cuts through the haze in her head. She comes to, eyes blinking open. The darkness surrounds her as she looks up to the sky, leafless trees peeking into her line of vision from the edges. Suddenly, Castiel's face appears above her, looking hard at her.

"Good. We need to get out of here."

"What?" Lizzy asks, still completely lost as to what happened.

Castiel reaches a hand down to her and she takes it. He hauls her to her feet as her mind flies. They killed Dick, she knows that much. He exploded, black goo everywhere… and then she woke up hearing Castiel's voice while lying on the ground.

Eyes sweeping their surroundings, Lizzy asks, "Where are we?"

Castiel's head cocks to the side as he peers around them, his eyes constantly on the lookout. He seems tense and on edge. "You don't know?

"Last I remember, we ganked Dick," Lizzy admits, her heart beginning to pound hard with confusion.

"And where would he go in death?" Castiel challenges, dropping her hand and sharply looking towards a sound made off to the right of him.

Her heart freezes over, icy in her chest. Fear unlike she's ever felt before envelopes her entre being. "Wait… does that mean we're...?"

"Every soul here is a monster." Castiel turns sharply again when something rustles the leaves of a tree right next to them. "This is where they come to prey upon each other for all eternity."

"Purgatory?" she sputters the word, afraid to actually say it. "We're… we're in Purgatory?"

"Stop acting so surprised," Castiel's serious tone demands of her, looking right at her. "You don't have time for fear or confusion or uncertainty. Now… everything is a fight. And you don't get to give up."

Her eyes blow so wide it actually hurts Castiel to see. And then he feels it. Leviathan. There are Leviathan still here. And they want him. They're mad at him. He put some of them back after using their souls and he can feel the utter ire they have for him. He's a target.

"Cassie? How do we get out?" Lizzy cuts through his fear-rolling mind.

He needs to be honest. "I'm afraid we're much more likely to be ripped to shreds." She needs to be prepared to fight like she's never fought before. She needs the truth.

She exhales hard, everything hitting her like a freight train as she can make out a pair of red, hovering eyes looking right at her just a few feet back from the clearing edge. She's stuck here, the place that ruined Lou for so long. She's stuck here, creatures she's sent to this very wasteland gunning for her the second they know she's there. She's stuck here… without her family and anyway to tell them where she is.

"Shit, Cass. I think we better…." She turns back to the angel but finds empty air instead. "Cass?"

Her form is frozen. She's alone.

"Cass!?"

Nothing. He's gone. He ditched her alone in the land of monsters.

Lizzy closes her eyes and breathes out once, shaking. She gives herself a two second reprieve to accept where she is and what happened to her after killing Dick, the terror in her heart very real, before she pulls out the large hunting knife in her jacket. She inhales deeply, hilt of the knife gripped tightly, and she bolts, running into the woods in the dark of night as fast as her legs can go, until her lungs burn fiercely by the time the light of day hits.

Late that night, Sammy asleep in his arms as he sits on the couch in the cabin, Dean hears a sound he knows all too well.

The roaring engine of his Baby.

He gets up slowly, not willing to wake Sammy after a very long day of playing, feeding, cleaning him up, and worrying while pretending to be happy for his son's sake.

Once Sammy's laying down on the couch, a couple small pillows acting as a bumper to keep him from falling off if he actually moves in his sleep, and Dean's yanking the front door of the cabin open to find Sam getting out of the Impala while the sound of Lou's Mustang can be heard coming up the dirt path.

"Sam!" Dean calls over to him, happy to see his brother in one piece. He makes his way down the few wooden steps as he ducks, looking into the car. Sam was alone. Lizzy must be with Lou.

When Dean straightens up he watches Sam make him way around the car towards him.

"Is it done?" Dean asks, unsure of how to read the slightly sullen face Sam's wearing. "Is Dick dead?"

"Yeah… he's dead," Sam tells him, his voice still sad.

Dean makes a confused face for the mood but gets distracted when Lou pulls up behind the parked Impala. He's ready to see his wife in one piece after the day of worry he's had.

But when Lou steps out of the driver's side and he can see that the passenger side is empty, Dean's world stops altogether. His brains stops working, his body can't move just for a couple seconds… where is she? Where's Lizzy?

Dean's head sharply turns to Sam, eyes wild with need for explanation.

"We need to talk," Sam tells his brother, the entire thing already eating him up inside.

"Where is she?" Dean asks, his voice small and scared.

"Dean, let's just go inside and talk," Lou asks of him.

"Where is she!?" Dean shouts, already knowing something went severely wrong and the fear wins over.

"Dean…."

"Don't do that!" Dean yells at his brother. "No bullshit! Where's L!?"

"She killed Dick," Lou blurts out. "She did exactly what she said she would."

"Then why isn't she in the car with you?" Dean dangerously asks, tone low.

"She… didn't make it out," Sam says, his eyes glancing at Lou quickly. This was what they agreed on. Dean has to think she's dead in order to keep the entire world safe and keep Purgatory closed. "She fought hard but… she just, she didn't make it."

Dean's face gets angry. "Are you telling me that the two of you made it out but L didn't?"

"Cass didn't either," Sam mentions. "They both didn't."

Dean walks away a bit, making an aimless circle. He knots his fingers together at the back of his head, His back to the two of them as he attempts to process and understand what's happening.

Lizzy didn't make it.

Lizzy's gone.

L is dead.

He shakes his head. "No." Dean turns back to them, tears threatening to spill over from his watery eyes. "No fucking way. Lizzy wouldn't do that. She said she'd come back."

"Dean, I'm sorry…."

"Shut up, Sam!" Dean points harshly at his brother. "She said she'd be back! L wouldn't leave Sammy like this!"

"She didn't want to," Lou tells him, her voice small and eyes wet. "You know she didn't. Dean… she and Cass did the impossible. They saved the fucking world. Sammy gets live a good, real life now…."

"Yeah… without his mother," Dean fires back, anger coursing through him. He stares Lou down as the first tear makes it way down his cheek. His chin quivers once and he storms off, aiming for the cabin.

Lou and Sam watch helplessly at the door gets yanked open, hitting the outside of the cabin with huge force. Dean marches inside and disappears.

"Shit," Lou cries out. "This feels so wrong."

"I know," Sam says to her, keeping his composure amid those that can't. He pulls her in and holds her tight as she cries again, the knowledge of what Lizzy's doing and where she is crushing her. "We're doing the right thing."

"I hate this," Lou tells him, jumping afterwards with the sound of glass smashing in a loud burst from inside the house.

Another loud smash follows it up and they can hear Sammy crying soon after.

"Damn it," Sam says, looking down at Lou. "You get Sammy. I'll get Dean."

Lou nods and they both head into the cabin, unsure of how this is supposed to work, what their future now looks like, and how they're going to get Dean through all this.

When really all she wants is her sister back or to cry until she dies over the knowledge she now has to keep locked up tightly.

THE END.

Last chapter. Hope you all liked it. Yes, I diverted away from cannon. Yes, i know some of you might not love me for that. But how much can Dean go through when he still has the Mark of Cain and the Darkness in his future? And how lucky can Lizzy get that nothing big ever lands on her head? It was about time something crazy happened to our girl. And now we get to see what happens to her in some extreme circumstances.

If you'd like to be alerted when the first chapter of my next story is published, please put me on Author Alerts. I don't know when it'll be as I'm not quite done with the next one, but I hope it'll be in about a week. I'll do my damnedest.

Thank you, readers! You keep me going with traffic and reviews. I appreciate you so much!