Chapter 26

Castiel

Lying next to Lucia in our bed, we continued to listen to the Winchesters as they finally put it together about Everett's own Mark of Cain. As a family, they were some a the brightest minds that I had ever met in on Earth, and for them to now have to deal with a child and The Mark…well. I was not envious of the coming years with Everett.

"I do not know if we should allow Grace to carry another," Lucia said, shattering my thoughts. "What if it's another son? They would have two of the Mark, and there is simply not enough Grace to go around."

I nodded, still silent. The girls, Liberty and Glory, took on more than enough of Grace's nephilim qualities that if it came down to it, they had the ability to control the anger from their brother for now, but I was also worried about the self-destructive isolation that Dean was considering putting himself into. He felt guilty, an as per his usual, felt he needed to be punished for it. Grace would read it in her husband and I knew that I could depend on her to do what she needed to do.

Turning to stare at Lucia, I smiled lightly. She was a truly magnificent creature; seraphim always were. Her hair was braided and flowed down her shoulders and her body was covered modestly by a loose white sheet. Reaching out to touch her face, I leaned towards her to kiss her gently. Humans really understood pleasure; I had been completely changed by Lucia's touch. I could understand why they craved each other the way they did and why wars had been fought in the name of love and desire.

I could grasp why Dean had three children.

Gently moving towards her, I slowly pulled the sheet down and could feel the heat from her body. I cupped her face and moved closer still, feeling the curves of her neck and chest, pulling her hips closer to mine. As we made love again, I was grateful for everything I had learned while on Earth.

Later, Lucia was gone and I was alone with my thoughts. If Grace carried another child, I knew it would be female because I had seen her in dreams. I wondered momentarily if that wasn't the answer that the Winchesters were looking for: reinforcement for when Everett became too much to handle. Shaking my head, I dismissed the thought: Grace and Dean had both been very clear.

"Four is too many, Cas," Dean had reminded me one night, with his tiny infant daughter asleep on his chest, "How do we make sure we don't end up with four, or more for that matter?"

It was then, that I had offered to intervene, if necessary. "I can be mindful of Grace's cycles and help when I can."

I remembered the look on Dean's face. "You can do that?" he asked, staring at me with a bottle in his hand, empty after Glory's feast.

Nodding, I stared at my best friend, who was obviously very conflicted. He adored his children, and would probably have more if it had been easier on Grace, but he knew when to stop. "I can."

Dean heaved a huge sigh of relief, then, closing his eyes and leaning his head back in the chair. "That's amazing, Cas," he said quietly. "And yeah, do that, will you?"

Coming out of my memory, I looked around for the rest of my clothes and decided to shower before he called me to come and babysit. The Winchesters were going hunting tonight.

…

"Hey Cas," Grace greeted me as she opened the door. As always, she was carrying Everett as he sucked on his fist. "Good timing."

Glancing around the room, I could see that the entire family was in hunting mode. It reminded me of the old days, when I would watch the brothers prepare themselves for a hunt against a simple monster: vampires or shape shifters. Dean and Sam were creatures of habit, moving through the motions that I had seen them go through countless times before. Thrown into the mix, Serendipity counted clips and fastened her ankle holster that carried a handy little .9 millimeter under the leg of her jeans. Grace stared at her family and I could tell that she was torn: get ready for a werewolf hunt or comfort her son?

"You know where the pack is?" I asked, breaking the rhythm of preparations.

Dean glanced up and nodded. "Sam looked into it. The address wolf-girl gave me in the shop is actually a bowling alley outside of town. He did a little leg work and figured out that they might be staying in the motel down the highway a bit from there."

Nodding, Sam agreed with his brother, loading another clip and handing it to his wife. "Yeah, there's a block of rooms being rented out, long term. Seems like that's where they would be."

I nodded, agreeing. Grace and I turned towards the door, hearing Jody approach. The others noticed our movements and Serra smiled. "Nice to know we've got people we can count on to watch the kids when you're not around, Gracie."

"I don't know about this," Grace answered. "I don't like the idea of going out tonight. It doesn't feel right."

Dean glanced at his wife, his eyebrows up. "What's up, Grace?"

She shook her head and I did what I could to tap into Grace's thought process. She and I usually thought along the same lines, but her human side had instincts that I would never understand. "I don't know," she said shrugging. "It's not like they're going to be sitting in the hotel, waiting for us."

Serra shrugged, "I don't think we're expecting that, but we need to go on the offensive."

"Why?" she asked quietly. "They haven't attacked anyone. It's not like people are disappearing."

Tilting her head, Serra took a step forward. "What, are you siding with the werewolves, now, Grace? You've got three kids, sister. You're telling me we should wait for one of them to get attacked before we take them out?"

"I'm not saying that," Grace said, "I'm just saying that tonight should probably be recon, just to see what we're up against."

Dean and Sam exchanged glances and shrugged in tandem. "I see her point," Sam said.

Serra clicked her tongue and put her hands on her hips in an annoyed way as Jody came through the front door. "Then what are we getting ready for?" she said as Jody hugged Dean.

"We still need to go prepared," Grace was saying, gesturing to the table. "It's not like I want to take my family to a group of werewolves unarmed. That's just stupid, Serra." She turned to Jody and waved, then turned back to her sister. "I know how impulsive you can be. It's what got me shot the first time."

Sam and Dean whipped to turn and face the women standing near the table. I was intrigued as well, knowing that something Serra had done got Grace shot. Dean was the first to break the silence, "There's a story there."

Grace threw him a look at pulled her shirt up slightly, showing the side of her hip. "Oh shut up, Grace," Serra said, rolling her eyes. "It was just a ricochet." She leaned towards Grace slightly, shaking her head. "You can't even see the wound anyway."

Sam laughed, holstering his gun. "You ready?"

The Winchesters nodded, guns being tucked in jeans and holsters around the table, blades finding safe places, also stored on their bodies. Grace still hesitated, watching her husband hold out her mother-of-pearl handled gun that matched his own. Finally, she sighed. "Let's see if Jody can handle our boy."

Jody approached Grace and smiled, holding out her hands towards Everett. He shied away, predictably, but I gently intervened, leaning forward and touching his forehead. He was immediately drowsy and went willingly to Jody as Grace handed him over.

"What did you do?" Grace asked, watching her son intently.

"He's eaten his dinner," I began, "I just made him a little more comfortable."

Dean laughed. "That's a neat trick. Gracie, take notes."

"Seriously," she said, turning back to Dean and taking her gun. "You gonna be okay, Jody?"

Jody nodded. "I've got me an angel or two at my disposal. Three on four won't be too bad. Besides, Lib and Glory are already asleep. Throw this one into bed and Levi won't be far behind. It'll be an easy night."