Holy crap, people! I am so, so, so sorry. I got caught up writing my original works and completely forgot about this. Don't worry, I am back and won't leave again until I finish this and my other fic A Lost Knight.
I'll shut up now and let all y'all read.
Jo Harvelle.
That is the name of the ghost that told them Ben was safe, and who called them idiots for messing around with a Ouji board. Nice girl.
Jody pulled up Joanna Harvelle's file and Claire had been saddened to see that she died in her mid-twenties in an explosion. The town where she and her mother died was wiped out. No survivors. It had Claire wondering what exactly happened there that would wipe out an entire town. Something bad obviously.
Doing some mental math, Claire realized it happened after they found out her father was a vessel for an angel. So Jody and her mother died trying to stop the apocalypse.
An unidentifiable emotion rolled through Claire. Jo and her mother, Ellen, died and no one seemed to care. She doesn't know if Dean or his giant of a brother Sam ever did anything to memorialize them. Should she do something for them? Does it matter at this point? It was so long ago.
"Great, so we know Ben is safe but we don't know why he's gone or where he is," Alex said, clapping her hands together. She shot them a sarcastic smile. "Great progress on that front. Do you think she's the one who stole him away or at least is keeping him away?"
Good questions.
"I don't think she's the one keeping Ben away. Someone or something is blocking any attempts Ben might be making to get in touch with us. A ghost shouldn't be that powerful to do that," said Jody.
"Well, what if she attached herself to Ben? Could that be how she's keeping Ben from contacting us?" Claire asked, her eyes never leaving Jo's picture. She's pretty, Claire thought. "A poltergeist can throw people around the room, lock doors and disorient their victims. Can't Jo do something as benign as disrupting a phonecall or email to us?"
Alex frowned at that. She shared a look with Jody.
"Maybe," Jody hedged, flicking through the Harvelle's files. Not much on them. They were clean, and possibly meaning Jo just started hunting. Ellen probably started hunting too to keep her daughter safe. It's something Jody herself would have done. For either of her daughters.
"In all honesty, I don't know enough to verify and it's not like I can ask Sam or Dean without raising any flags. They know something was off with us when they visited," she said pointingly at Claire, who had the decency to blush. "Besides, Sam asked us to look for Ben without Dean knowing, and I'm scared to ask any questions that could lead to them coming here to help us with our problem. Sam'll be mad and I don't even want to think how Dean'd react to finding out we're looking for his son without his say so. That'll lead to a whole new batch of questions I don't want to answer."
Alex frowned again and asked, "Wouldn't it be best to come clean now? Dean'd be way less homicidal if we explained everything."
Claire snorted so hard a booger went flying out of her nose. Alex's face twisted in disgust while Jody howled with laughter, accidentally sending the Harvelle's files off the coffee stand and onto the floor. Claire, bright red with embarrassment, hit Alex on the shoulder and kicked out at Jody to make her stop laughing. It only served to make Jody laugh harder. Alex started to giggle and inched away from the irate blonde before full on laughing along with her mother.
"It's not funny," Claire cried. "It's not!"
Jody and Alex shook their heads, unable to speak. It only made Claire madder.
She got to her feet and stomped to her room, but before she slammed the door shut, Claire yelled out to the living room, "You know, if you tell Dean about Ben, we'll never see either of them again, right? Once Dean finds Ben, they'll be gone. Forever."
With that, Claire slammed her door shut with an air of satisfaction. That'll stop them laughing. It's not the whole truth, partial maybe, but it served its purpose at shutting them up. Sam might be able to talk Dean into letting them see Ben again. Probably in the next decade or so. There's only so much Sam can convince his brother of and having Dean let the people that lost his son have access to him? That might be a little out of his power of influence.
"Jo?" Claire called softly. "Can you hear me?" She waited a bit before continuing, "Look, I'm pissed at you for taking Ben. I'm pissed at you for setting up those so-called hauntings to lure us in, and how in the hell did you manage that anyway? I mean, just-"
Claire broke off, feeling simultaneously foolish and lighter. She listened hard to see if Jody or Alex were nearby, praying that they weren't because she has no idea how to explain why she's essentially talking to herself. Then again, her talking to a ghost would be an excuse that would hardly be considered unusual. At least, not anymore.
"Are you ever going to let him come home?" Claire asked the one question that's been on her mind for a while now. She missed him so bad. They barely got any time together before he disappeared, leaving her behind. "How did a ghost set all that up? There is no way a ghost is that powerful. You had help and I want to know who the hell helped you kidnap Ben. Right now! I want him back home, and you have no right keeping him away from me - us."
Jo had no right. She wants Ben back.
Claire waited, stupidly hopeful, for a response but all she got was Jody's laugh from down the hall and Alex's muffled reply.
"Well, fuck you too," Claire mumbled, and turned off her light and went to sleep.
BW
"Son of a bitch!" Krissy growled as she shook her hand to dispel the lingering tingling in her fingers. Wrong wire.
Ben looked up from the bed only to return to his book when Krissy waved off his concern. It must not be that bad if she's still not cussing out the EMF she's making, and if he's being honest, he'd really rather not stop reading his book. It's not a lore book but one he picked out from a library sale going on in Wyoming. It's called The Lost Starship. He likes it so far.
Science fiction has always been a secret guilty pleasure of his. He has another book called The Second Ship and that one is serious about physics. So much math and computer crap.
They're taking the week off to pretend to be normal.
It's going good so far.
Ben and Krissy sat in on a couple of folklore and mythology lectures at the local university, caught up on some movies, enjoyed eating some much needed junk food, and even had a real date night. One Ben didn't embarrass himself on, and he had been pleasantly surprised that Krissy agreed to.
"Wanna go to the movie?" Ben asked once he hit a good stopping point in his book. He placed a bookmark in his spot because he's not smart enough to remember the exact page he left off on, and he tried that once and he ended up starting the book over and refused to stop reading until he finished it because he wasn't going to start the book over yet again. His mom had a laugh at him for doing that.
"No," Krissy responded without tearing her gaze from her project. "Maybe later."
"Okay."
Ben grabbed his book and continued from his spot. Darkness came before Ben even realized the dwindling light and he only noticed when he had a hard time reading his page. Krissy seemed to notice finally when she couldn't see the wires she'd been working on.
They both waited for the other to get up and turn on the light but when neither of them got up, it became a game to see who would cave first. Ben knew he was going to win. He has more patience than the other hunter.
Sure enough, ten minutes of darkness and Krissy gets up to flick on the lights. She glared at him but he merely smiled back at before returning to his book.
Another hour passes when the growling of his stomach could no longer be ignored. He placed his bookmark and closed the book, fulling intending to call for pizza when someone knocked on the door. Before he could grab his gun, Krissy is moving to the door, money in hand, and opened the door to reveal the pizza delivery man holding their supper in his hands. He smiled, exchanged the pizzas for money, tipped his red hat at them and left.
"You are a goddess," Ben told her with feeling, earning a grin and a light punch to the arm for being a dork.
They ended up cuddled on the bed watching an old movie called Dante's Peak. It's about a volcano in Washington and centers around a volcanologist and a family of three.
Ben can honestly say, volcanoes scare him. They're scary mofos that are unstoppable. Well, unless they have a Vulcan with advanced technology that could neutralize the magma before the volcano erupts, but since Vulcans aren't real, at least he hopes, then they are shit out of luck should a volcano erupt around them. Dear God, don't let Vulcans be real.
He can't handle dealing with aliens on top of monsters. Let alone aliens that are smarter than Sherlock and the Doctor. Or are Vulcans as smart as the Doctor? Is the Doctor smarter than Vulcans?
"What are you thinking of?" Krissy asked, reaching up and gently smoothing out his furrowed brow. Her touch had little butterflies blossoming in his stomach and he felt his face grow hot.
"Is the Doctor smarter than Vulcans?" Krissy blinked at him. "I was thinking that if a volcano goes off near us, we'd need a Vulcan to stop it with their very advanced technology. And then I thought aliens better not be real because that is just too weird to contemplate, and then I wondered if the Doctor would be smarter than Vulcans because if they are real, it'd be helpful to have an even smarter race of alien to help us."
Krissy snorted in amusement. "You've got a strange mind there, Winchester."
Embarrassed, Ben ducked his face into her hair. She chuckled and tugged his arms around her. They fell asleep like that and Ben woke up with a crick in his neck, but he smiled when he saw Krissy snuggled up against him.
A surge of affection and...love...had Ben pressing a kiss to Krissy's forehead. He eased out of bed, making sure there was a pillow under Krissy's head, and quickly changed into his running clothes. He even grabbed his phone and left a note saying where he was going. Getting yelled at again for leaving his phone behind is not something he wants to go through any time soon. Like ever.
Running only four miles this morning, Ben felt optimistic when he jogged up to the hotel they've been staying out when the hairs on the back of his neck stood up.
Instead of going to their room, he veered down an alley that looped around the hotel to a park. He used every window on the first floor to try and get a view of who's watching him but he never caught sight of them. Whoever they are, they're either really good or they're not human, and he prays they're really good. Dealing with humans is a lot better than trying to figure out what sort of creature that found them wants.
So much for their week of trying to be normal.
Ben reached into his pocket to grab his knife but came up emtpy. He forgot he's wearing jogging shorts. Son of a bitch. He's defenseless. Krissy is so going to kick his ass.
His best course of action would be to hide in the park. He's not confident in his fighting ablilties without Krissy as back up should the thing or person stalking him is a helluva lot stronger than him or has better fighting experience. Either way, Ben's not risking what little lead he has to prove something. The best thing to do would be to evade and hopefully identify his stalker.
Putting on a burst of speed, Ben ran to the center of the park before diving behind a thick bush that hopefully hid his body. He had barely got his feet tucked in when he saw two men who looked like linebackers wearing black suits came barreling into the park. They stopped a foot away from his hiding spot, swiveling their heads left and right, looking, presumably, for him. They let out a growl deep enough to make a wolf duck down and run away when they couldn't find him.
"Where is he?" Cheekbones snarled. "He was right in front of us!"
His partner, Buck Teeth, snarled back. "I don't know! He's around here though. We know that much. We need to find him or Boss is going to incinerate us." They walked passed his hiding spot only to come back, something in their hand ticked loudly when they came near him. "He's around here. The locating spell says so."
Locating spell? Fuck.
He saw Buck Teeth's eyes flash pitch black and a fission of fear spread down his spine. Demons. Oh, God. What Krissy and Jo have been worrying about has come to pass.
"What does the little bastard even look like?" Cheekbones growled in complaint. "What if we're tracking the wrong kid? What if it's not even Winchester's kid?"
"Then we're fucked," Buck Teeth said bluntly. "Just keep looking and quit bitching."
Ben barely breathed during the demons' frantic search for him. They came dangerously close to his hiding spot quite a few times, enough that Ben swore he was going to pass out from oxygen deprivation or suffer from brain damage. But God or someone else seemed to be watching over him because they didn't find him.
Snarling, the demons disappeared. One second they were there and the next they were just gone. Poof. Vanished. It'd be kind of cool if the implication wasn't so terrifying.
He waited forty minutes before crawling out from under the bush. Seeing no one around, Ben took off back towards the hotel, this time going in through the back. His phone died and he didn't know it. Hell, he didn't even know when it died or if Krissy had called or if she's out looking for him, and please god, don't let her be out there looking for him. The demons might still be out there and they could grab her to get to him. Or worse, what if they think she's his dad's kid and they take her.
Inserting his key into the reader, Ben hesitantly opened the door and found no one in the room. It didn't look ransacked. So, good?
Spotting his charger, Ben crossed the room to plug his phone in to charge. He used the hotel room landline to call Krissy's cell only for it to go to voicemail. Possibly not good. He's not going to panic yet. She's probably at the movie they said they'd go to yesterday.
Please God, let her be at the movie instead of being kidnapped by demons.
Once his phone was fully charged, Ben immediately dialed Krissy's number, a sigh of relief escaped when she picked up in an annoyed tone.
"What? I'm at the movies. It's considered impolite to be on the phone during a movie, you know."
Ben couldn't help but laugh. "I know. I was just - I was worried about you. Look, you need to come back to the - no. Wait. I'll come to you. Meet at the diner with the amazing sandwiches. Be careful," he said before hanging up.
He packed up everything they in their duffle bags and backpacks and headed out without telling the hotel management. He'll have Krissy call them later, once they're safely away without any chance of being found by the demons or cops.
Krissy was waiting for him in the diner, a cup of coffee sat in front of her, her hands wrapped around the warm mug as she looked out the window. Her face relaxed when she saw him come through the diner door. She quirked an eyerow at him carrying their bags but she didn't say anything until he sat down across from her. She pushed her coffee to him and he drank from it with a grunt of thanks.
"What happened?" she demanded as soon as Ben put the cup down.
"Demons," Ben responded bluntly. No point in dancing around. "They were looking for me. They had a tracking spell."
Krissy paled at the implication. Furiously thinking, she decided that they needed to find a way to cloak themselves from those type of things, she hadn't thought it important before because she thought Jo would warn them somehow if Ben's life would be in serious danger. They'll also need to get tattoos against demon possession, again she thought Jo would help them. She should have thought of that earlier. God, she's stupid, Krissy berated herself. The ghost entrusted Ben into her care and she's been doing a poor job of it.
"We need to go. Now."
Ben didn't even hesitate. He followed her out the door but not before leaving money to pay for the coffee and with enough left over for a healthy tip. His mom used to waitress when she first had Ben, he knows they live off tips, and he always, always leaves a big tip for them. No matter how much or how little money he has.
He didn't know how, but Krissy finnagled them a ride down to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It's a little out of their pay grade but she has to have a reason for them to go there.
"We need to go where they won't expect us," is all Krissy said when he asked why there.
Well, okay then.
Ben fell asleep halfway through the ride. Adrenaline crash.
Krissy woke him up. He stumbled off the bus, damn near hitting the ground when his legs buckled underneath him. Catching his arm, Krissy hauled him back up and tossed his duffle into his arms.
Taking in the picturesque scenery, Ben is rather thankful it's warm weather time instead of winter but he can already see leaves changing the woods around the town. Soon there will be a bite in the air that'll make it hard for them to stay outside. He figured they'd have to set up camp in the proffered campgrounds. They could afford that fee instead of a hotel or something.
It's pretty far out of the way, so maybe they could stay here for a while until Krissy figures out how to keep demons off their trail. Ben trusts Krissy's instincts and experience. She'll know what to do.
"Stay here," Krissy ordered. They're at a park with a handful of people hanging around during the late afternoon. A little squadron of toddlers and pre-schoolers, their nannies and monitors scattered about, a few yoga enthusiasts, and some grandmas and grandpas tottering along the walking paths. It's a nice day out. Relaxing. He won't mind staying here until Krissy returns.
He nodded his compliance and Krissy took off, leaving their bags with Ben.
Indulging in childish impulse, Ben hid their bags away and went to go play on the playground. He climbed all over the jungle gym, going down the slide, swinging on the swings, launching himself from the swings, and he ran up and down the seesaw, only tripping three times. Overall, he had a lot of fun while Krissy was gone. He even played with the kids, giving their nannies and guardians a break. He wore them out so by the time the nannies called it quits, there was no complaints from the kids.
He got paid with snacks and juice boxes. Awesome.
Saving some for Krissy, Ben went to the monkey bars, hauled himself up top and ate his lunch, his feet swinging like a little kid. Did his dad take him to the park when he lived with them? He wishes he can remember. Green eyes for his dad and shaggy hair for his uncle isn't really helpful but at least it's something.
Ben remembers a deep laugh when he hung upside down on the monkey bars imitating its namesake. He remembers letting himself fall down, only to be caught by strong arms and the scent of gun powder, leather, and something that reminded him of rain. Dad. He remembered being too big to be in his arms but he didn't care. He loved being with his dad. He remembers that more with anything. He loved his dad and his dad loved him, even if at his worst moments he doubted that.
In a way, something good came out of losing all his memories of his dad, because what he does remember about his dad is the overwhelming love he felt from him. His dad loved him. Loves him. He just wishes his dad was here. Right now.
The funny thing is that when those demons appeared, something he'll never admit to Krissy, but he had the sudden urge to reveal himself and let the demons take him. He knows they would have taken him and bartered him for his dad or his dad's cooperation. Either way, Ben would have finally gotten to see his dad.
The sun started to set, cooling the air around the park, and turned the sky a multicolor of beautiful hues of red, gold, blue, purple and pink. When the sun went below the mountain skyline, the hightest peak cast a shadow in the clouds above.
Damn. His mom would have loved living here. Plenty of outdoor hobbies for Ben to indulge in and learn, and a small, close-knit community for his mom to feel safe in. This place would have been perfect for them.
Park lights came on one by one, and still no Krissy. Should he worry?
Still swinging his feet, Ben started humming a song he heard sometime when he was young. He's pretty sure it's Creedence Clearwater Revival. That's funny. He's hasn't listened to them in such a long time, like 'before his mom died and they moved' long time. It reminds him of his dad though. So, that's good because he needs something positive right now.
Looking up into the night sky, Ben's jaw dropped at the sight. So. Many. Stars. He's only seen a night sky like this on Instagram and Tumblr but never in real life.
Even with the lights on around the park, the stars are astounding in their luminosity and numbers. God, imagine if there was a black out right now? The amount of stars would quadruple and he would have to buy some books on astronomy because he can't not learn about the subject while staying here, especially with a night sky like this.
Ben wondered if they had a free astronomy class for the community. That'd be cool.
Not noticing the hours go by, Ben stared up at the amazing sky with wonder and awe, and it wasn't until he started yawning constantly that he realized just how late it was and there is no Krissy in sight. Taking out his phone, he fired off a text asking where she's at but the message came back saying the person's phone he's trying to contact is no longer in service.
A fission of fear started to grow in his stomach, a coldness that started making its way up his body. Where is she?
The kick of it, he has no idea where to even start looking.
Before he even shifted his weight to get off the monkey bars, someone came walking out of the shadows, heading straight for Ben with hurried steps. That made it creepier. It was like they knew he had nowhere to go and he wouldn't be able to get away fast enough.
Okay, then. Ben hopped down and grabbed his silver pocket knife out of from his back pocket. There really should be an iron pocket knife out there, too. Because sometimes silver just does not cut it.
"What do you want?" Ben demanded once the figure got within earshot.
They were short. Shorter than Ben, even shorter than Krissy. Wearing a black hoodie with the hood pulled over their eyes, Ben couldn't really tell if they were male or female or even human. All he knew is that they are short and that is not really helpful.
The man or woman raised their hand and snapped their fingers and all the lights in the park went brighter, blinding Ben. Another snap of fingers and a picnic table full of Ben's favorite foods were piled on top, along with his favorite drinks, and, if he wasn't so unnerved by the whole thing, he'd be grudgingly impressed with the set up. Plus, he's read Hansel and Gretel and the story of Persephone and Hades. He's smart enough not to touch the food for fear of entrapment or what have you.
"I said, what do you want," Ben snarled. He brandished his knife at the person for emphasis.
The other person snorted in amusement. They snapped their fingers again and his knife disappeared from his hand like it was never there. Now terrified, Ben tried to walk backwards away from the person when he found he couldn't move.
"Oh, don't look so scared," the figure drawled lazily. They flicked their hood back to reveal blondish brown hair and whisky coloured eyes. "I wouldn't harm the child of Dean Winchester."
Ben felt something warm detonate in his chest at hearing his dad's name and remembering it longer than half a second.
"You know my dad?" he questioned excitedly, the name just starting to fade. He tried to step forward but forgot he couldn't move. "You wanna?" Ben looked to his body and the guy smirked at him but Ben felt something shift and he was able to move again. "Who are you?"
The guy tilted his head to the table and Ben moved to sit on one end while the guy sat at the other. A snap of fingers and waiters appeared, they loaded up two plates and placed them in front of Ben and the other guy. They even poured them drinks before stepping back until they were needed again. Ben found that kind of cool.
"What are you?" He rephrased.
The guy smiled. "I'm Gabriel, or Loki. Take your pick. I answer to both."
"Gabriel as in the archangel and Loki as in the god of mischief?" The man nodded. "Oookay. So, Gabriel, how do you know my dad?"
Gabriel shifted in his seat, slouching to a more comfortable position, and gesture at his cup, turning the pop into a glass of bourbon. He took a sip before answering.
"We met while he was working on a case. A trickster was causing trouble at a local college. They thought I was only a trickster. I let them believe they killed me but they had my interest. I kept tabs on them over the years, toying with them a couple more times before your dad figured out I wasn't just a trickster. He figured out I was an angel. He just didn't realize I was an archangel." Gabriel downed the rest of his drink, the glass magically refilling.
"Some bad shit went down. I 'died'." He used air quotes around the last word. "I was quite happy in my hidey-hole but someone who knew your dad came to me for help hiding you from my aunt. I agreed because, well, I owe your dad and uncle. And my aunt is a real head case and a spoiled brat," he added with a wink.
Ben grinned back. He happily ate his beef stew and fluffy biscuits while he listened to Gabriel talk about his dad.
"What about my uncle? What was he like? I can see the silhouette of tall man with shaggy hair, and I think he liked or was at least good at research."
Gabriel smiled fondly. "Oh, yeah, Sasquatch is pretty good at research, and he has shaggy hair. Good recall. What do you remember about your dad?"
"Green eyes, gun powder, leather and rain. I remember he smells like rain. Petrichor, I think it's called. I think we were happy until something happened. Something took my dad away from me and my mom, and he never came back. He's supposed to come back but he didn't." Ben forlornly stared at his food now. "Will he ever come back? I feel like I've never stopped waiting."
Gabriel lost his smile. He leaned forward and waited for Ben to look at him.
"I don't know. Maybe your dad will come back for you or maybe he'll redo the memory spell again. Who knows? But I personally think he won't let you out of his sight again."
Ben wished he could believe him. He really did.
Instead of replying, Ben focused on finishing the really good food in front of him, even pocketing a few non-perishables for Krissy to eat later. He had more questions but he's not sure which ones are important or which ones are nonsensical.
"What's after me? What is this big bad?"
"Ah, the big bad is my dear aunt Amara. She's God's sister," Gabriel answered with a grin. "Your dingbat dad and dumbass uncle let her out of her cage because they're selfish idiots. Now that she's out she has two things she wants to get done. 1) getting your dad to join her because they are 'Connected', and 2) she wants revenge against my dad for locking her up in the Nothing."
Oh, joy. God's sister is after him. Out of all the creatures that he thought was after him, God's sister was not one of them. Hell, he didn't know God even had a sister.
"Is there anybody else coming after me?" Ben asked, hoping the answer is a resounding no. But...
"Lucifer, my big dick of a brother is looking for you as well. He knows how to get to Amara is through Dean and to get to Dean is to find you and use you to make Dean do his bidding. That's why Amara is looking for you. Dean won't go to her unless she either has you or she's gotten rid of you. Dear Aunt Amara doesn't like to share. Just ask Dad."
Ben sighed loudly. Well, that explains one thing.
"Is she the one who's been calling out to me at night. I haven't heard it lately but before - before I would hear someone calling for me, not my name, but it was like I knew they were looking for me," Ben said. He frowned, unsure if he explained it properly.
Gabriel's brows furrowed in thought. "Maybe," he hedged, "but I can't say for sure. It could have been Amara or it could have been Lucifer. Or maybe it was someone else. Your dad and uncle have made a lot of enemies over the years. It could be anyone or anything looking for you to get to you dad and uncle. Probably your dad but I wouldn't count out you being used against your uncle as well."
"Can I talk to Logan and Maria?" Ben asked, crossing his fingers in the hope that the archangel would say yes.
But alas.
"Sorry, kiddo," Gabriel said with a sympathetic look. "It's too big a risk. Amara may not know about you being in foster care but she might know about Jody Mills. Lucifer, too."
Ben deflated. His chest hurt and his eyes burned. He wanted to go home with Krissy by his side.
"Can I get in contact with my dad? Can I send a letter or an email or even a telegraph?"
Gabriel shifted in his seat and snapped his fingers for the waiter to appear. He had a bottle of a honey brown liquid and poured it into the archangel's cup. Gabriel gestured to Ben and the waiter brought the bottle to Ben and poured a little bit into a new glass that appeared without Ben noticing. The angel really doesn't mean for him to drink it, does he?
"Drink it," Gabriel ordered as he downed his in one go, and apparently he did mean for Ben to drink the alcohol. Ben copied him and immediately started coughing up what felt like his left lung.
Smirking, Gabriel held his glass out and their waiter poured some more. Ben waved the guy off when he held the bottle out for him. Hell no he ain't drinking that again. It's smoky. Really smoky and it's a little too strong for Ben to handle right now. The waiter reached onto the table and got him a jug of red juice to help wash the flavor away.
Ben downed it in one go and held the glass out for a refill and downed that one as well.
"Gah!" Ben groaned in disgust. "Never again," he vowed, earning an amused chuckle from Gabriel.
"Are you sure you're Dean Winchester's kid?" the archangel teased. "Your dad was probably downing tequila shots like a pro when he was your age. Then again, he basically raised himself and your uncle, so, we'll give him some leeway there."
The young hunter blinked at that. His dad raised his uncle? He didn't know that. Or did he? At some point probably.
"Don't think I didn't notice you didn't answer my question," Ben pointed out. He took another drink of his Moutain Dew. The waiter refilled it and handed Ben another plate full of food. "I'm going to get fat sitting here with you. What are you trying to do? Put me in a food coma so I'd stay out of trouble?"
Gabriel got a speculative look in his eyes and Ben shook his finger at him.
"No. No. Absolutely not. Get that out of your head right now," Ben ordered with a glare. "I mean it. Archangel or not, I will find a way to kick your ass."
The bark of laughter from the all-powerful being had Ben rearing back at the unexpected sound.
"Oh yeah, you're Dean's kid," he chortled. "Definitely take after your father and uncle."
A blush worked its way across Ben's face and he ducked his head bashfully but he had a pleased smile. He liked knowing about his similarities to his dad. And he also liked knowing the differences too. That he's a blend of both his parents.
Gabriel calmed down and thought over Ben's request. It really wouldn't hurt anything for Ben to write a letter to his dad and it's not like it'll be hard for Gabriel to magick it into the Impala without being seen. Hell, Gabriel can find the Impala blindfolded in a hurricane. Dean's essence is all over that car. It's like a beacon if one knows how to find it and follow it, and Gabriel knows how to do so. Also, he may have left a little locating sigil on the car for him to find should he need Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum later on.
Of course, that was before he "died". He can't reveal his secret. This new life he concocted for himself won't be ruined by the Winchesters but he's starting to like this baby Winchester. Maybe he'll keep in contact with this one once he's done with his current job.
Call him a sap but . . . a snap of his fingers had a nice, thick piece of paper and an old school pen appear in front of Ben.
"You got ten minutes then me and whatever you have on that paper will be gone," he informed the youngest Winchester. "Write. Write embarrassing, mushy things that'll make your dad blush and rub his neck while he battles his uncomfortableness with reading something that emotive."
Ben laughed but dutifully started writing his letter to his dad and uncle.
The sound of a pen scritching on expensive paper filled the area around them while the waiter cleaned up and put leftovers in containers for Ben to eat later. They were meticulously stacked inside a brand new duffle bag that appeared in a puff of smoke that Ben suspects was for his benefit. A wink from Gabriel confirmed it.
Allowing another minute for Ben to finish up, Gabriel looked up to the starry sky and allowed his mind to wander back to the Apocalypse, of his dickheaded brothers who refused to see another way, and of the Winchesters refusing to follow the script. He had been so annoyed and irritated with them that even he had a hard time listening to Frick and Frack explain that there actually was another way that didn't include half the Earth being incinerated in the process. If he had, at first, maybe they wouldn't've had to lose Sam to the Pit.
Things went bad after that. Who would have thunk that? Things went bad after the Apocalypse, after Michael and Lucifer were caged in the Pit. It should have been Mardi Gras, not Leviathans.
Or those tablets being found out (stupid Metatron), or Metatron trying to move above his pay grade (Metatron, you dumbass) or Dean taking the fucking Mark of Cain or the stupidity that came from that action. Frick and Frack really screwed the pooch by letting Aunt Amara out of her prison.
If Dean didn't have a kid, then Gabriel would be quite happy in his little hidey hole way off of the beaten path with his illusions and not worrying at all about the Winchesters.
"I'm done," Ben informed the archangel, a slight blush on his face.
Gabriel grinned. "You got all mushy, didn't you?" Ben only blushed harder. Damn. This kid is adorable. "That's good. Now you put things in there to prove it's you, right? Your dad won't believe this is you if there is no reference to something only known to him and you. Now, I know you don't remember your dad, at least not completely or with any real detail, but you said you remember green eyes and shaggy hair for you dad and uncle.
"But please tell me you wrote some of those things you remember down. Otherwise your dad will not believe a word that you just meticulously wrote down for the past fifteen minutes and throw away the letter. All that hard work will be thrown in the trash," Gabriel advised as sagely as he could. Ben looked seconds away from decking him.
Oh, yeah. He is definitely related to Sam and Dean.
"I did not," Ben admitted through clenched teeth. Mad that he didn't think of that.
"Fine, you have fifteen more minutes then I'm gone. Hot chocolate," he told the waiter. The waiter took a sideways step and disappeared. Ben's mouth dropped open in a moment of pure 'Wow'.
Gabriel hid a grin at his reaction.
A snap of the fingers and a new expensive paper appeared in front of Ben. The teen shot him a smile of thanks and got to work on his second letter to his dad.
"Should I include something about my uncle?"
"Do you remember anything specific about your uncle? Any powerful emotions?"
"Not really. At least not positive ones."
"There's your answer then, kid."
Ben hummed and carefully wrote down what he remembers and to let his dad know just what he thought of the memory wipe he and his mom were subjected to. Hesitating, he thought about asking Gabriel if he should write about living a year on his own without knowing he had a dad out there letting him think he was alone. He'd probably say he should.
But Ben is reluctant to do that. He's still his dad and he acted out of fear and an instense desire to protect Ben and his mom from harm. From his life of monsters and angels and demons.
He gets it now. He really does. Being mad at his dad about that is stupid and a waste of energy but its still something he can't help but feel.
Feeling Gabriel's assessing eyes on him did not help but he managed to write his letter without anymore problems or hesitations. He absently drank the hot chocolate, it probably tasted delicious but Ben had been too focused on his letter to give it his full attention. He'll apologize to the waiter once he's done. Maybe even ask for another drink to give his honest review.
A shift of the wind brought cold air into their little bubble, reminding Ben that Krissy has been gone for hours without contact.
Scribbling his signature, Ben all but shoved the letter at the archangel, his leg bouncing as adrenaline spread out through his body at the worry over his missing girlfriend. He's praying that Gabriel will help him find her before the archangel takes off to wherever he's been hiding.
Gabriel scooped up the letter, magicked an envelope and wrote a name on it that Ben assumed was his dad's name because the name immediatly went blurry. He got up, the table disappeared as soon as he got to his feet.
"No, wait," he cried. "I need to thank the waiter."
The archangel tilted his head at him with a look Ben didn't know how to interpret. He snapped his fingers and the waiter appeared, unruffled and professional. He turned to look at Ben, his gaze attentative as he waited for Ben to ask or say what he wanted to, and looking the man in the face, Ben's words failed him and a blush blossomed on his face. He decided to act instead of say what he wanted.
The waiter stiffened at the unexpected contact but a nod from Gabriel had him hugging Ben back. He knew from the archangel why Ben wanted him here, and despite knowing that he won't be returning, he felt a warmth in his chest.
Once they disengaged, the waiter disappeared in a wisp of smoke, and Ben felt a flash of sadness.
"You hugged and feel sadness over an illusion," Gabriel felt compelled to point out. Ben launched the pen he still had in his hand at the archangel, hitting him squarely between the eyes.
Laughing, Gabriel bowed at the young hunter and vanished between blinks.
"Ben!" a familiar voice shouted in panic. Ben whipped around to see Krissy looking for him by the picnic bench where she left him and their luggage. She had bags full of supplies in her hands. So, that answers the question of where she was.
"I'm here!"
Krissy turned to the sound of his voice and a look of absolute relief crossed her face and the bags fell to the ground as she ran to him. Ben immediately opened his arms and swung Krissy around when she launhed herself into his embrace. Peppering his face with kisses, Krissy allowed herself to cry a little bit at finding Ben still here instead of stolen by the Big Bad.
"Don't do that!" she yelled once he put her down. She punched him hard on the arm. "Where the hell were you? I told you to stay put!"
Ben caught her flailing arms. "I didn't leave the park and our stuff is still here. I'm fine."
"Where were you?" Krissy demanded. Her chest heaved while she battled to keep from full out sobbing. She's losing.
Guilt welling up, Ben pulled her back into his arms and he held her until Krissy grappled for control over her emotions. He rocked them back and forth, making soothing noises.
"I swear I didn't leave the park," he told her. "Never even stepped on the sidewalk."
Hiccupping, Krissy snuggled closer to Ben, her arms wrapped around his waist, and her face firmly tucked into the crook of his neck. Ben pressed his cheek against the top of her head in a gesture of comfort while simultaneously assuaging his own guilt over his conversation with Gabriel. He doesn't want to tell her about him. He doesn't know how she'll react to an archangel essentially stopping time to have a chat for some reason Ben really didn't think to ask during the moment.
"I didn't notice anything wrong," he lied. "I stargazed the entire time. Where were you?"
"Finding supplies," came the muffled reply. "I found us a place to stay as well. Some of the rentals around here need people to check-in on their properties. This dude who helps with that said we can stay at one of the properties for a week, as long as we don't trash it and we check on the other places as well. We can do that."
Oh. Ben is genuinely in awe of the resourcefulness of Krissy. Her dad must have been one hell of a mentor for her to always find a place to stay or food to eat or money to travel. He wondered if his dad and uncle ever imparted any of their knowledge to her, too?
He's kind of jealous.
"Let's go to bed. Where are we staying?" Ben asked after a beat of mutual silence. He felt Krissy nod and he slowly let her out of his arms, reaching up and gently swiping away a few marauding tears before kissing her in a chaste, sweet kiss that had her sighing against his lips when he pulled away.
Krissy grabbed his hand and laced their fingers together, leading the way back to their bags and to their new residence for the next week.
BW
Dean blinked when a letter fluttered down the winding steps of the bunker, somehow slipped under the air tight seal of the bunker door. An impossibility and yet...
Slowly, Dean got up from the library table to the entryway where the letter landed on the war room map. On the United States, near the midwest. Whatever it is, it can't be good and at least he knows it's not from Amara or Lucifer. They wouldn't send a letter when they could send body parts or appear to him and only him.
It's not from Cas, not unless Lucifer took another vessel, but that is highly unlikely.
Picking up the letter, Dean saw his name scrawled on the envelope in an unfamiliar script and handwriting. Whoever wrote his name is super fancy with their writing. But who?
"Read the letter, dumbass," he chastised himself.
Tearing open the letter, Dean pulled thick, expensive parchment out to see who wrote a damn letter to him.
Hey, Dad.
The letter fell to the floor in shock.
Ben.
Ta da! Ben's finally got in contact (kind of) with Dean!
Thank you so much for sticking with me. I'll be back with the next chapter in a week's time.