A/N: Well, this is the CLIMAX of the story. There will be one more short part after this to tie up the loose ends and say goodbye. *bawls* but... this is it, guys! There will be an epilogue that will go up next week but the story will be nice and complete without it. The epilogue will merely set up for the sequel. Yes, I said SEQUEL. There WILL be a sequel. Not sure when I'll start posting it, I'd like to have quite a bit done before I start, but... it's in the works!

A quick note about this part: it was a tough decision, how to handle this, but in the end, it was decided to cut out much of the domestic, schmoopy, plotlessness of the final days. IE: the therapy sessions, the swimming trips, bonfires, all the things they'd do to pass the time, I cut it out. Otherwise, this would have come to 100k words, and so much of that would have been filler. On the other hand, for those who want to see some of the things Dean references, I DO have timestamps that I will post after the ending goes up so you can read about them. For those who want to see the marriage proposal (haha, now you're curious, aren't ya?) it will be in the timestamp, promise. I hope you enjoy this. Feedback is GREATLY appreciated! For those who want, after the next part is posted, the entire story will be available at Archive Of Our Own for download as a PDF, Mobi, ePub, ect. By all means, download it and enjoy. Wow... here we are. Not sure I ever thought I'd get here. And... kudos to me for keeping the end a secret. I think I even surprised my friends with it. :) Go me! Lol. Okay, I'm done, I know you are dying to read. Go enjoy!

The next days passed in a blur of corny therapy sessions, playful meals with Jack and Alec and the occasional swimming trip, though they never went back to the hot pool, and steamy nights of… well, some of the best sex Dean had ever had. So, of course, it would all come to an end. Not that Dean was going to miss some of the campers. For example, he would die a very happy man if he never saw Mike or Tom again. Those two needed more than a week in the woods to fix their relationship.

What he was going to miss, though, was the domesticity he had here in this secluded place. It was easy to forget about the evil things that went bump in the night while he was lounging around his cabin in the woods with his angel curled up at his side.

He wasn't stupid. He knew this was the closest to white picket fence he was ever going to get. Cas turned over in his sleep and burrowed closer to him. It was just before dawn, the morning of the full moon. Whatever was going down was happening tonight. Dean and Cas had done their best, from dopey eyed glances to public groping to a fake marriage proposal on Dean's part to convince Hannah that they were it, the real deal, but they really had no way of knowing if she would choose them when the time came.

They would just have to take it as it came. They were pretty good at playing it by ear by now.

Cas shifted where he lay, snuggled tight against Dean. This, right here, might be one of the things Dean would miss most. He loved watching Cas sleep and he knew that once he was mojo'd up again, he wouldn't need to sleep. If this was their last morning to wake up together, he was taking full advantage.

Dean reached out under the thin sheet and started to stroke Cas's dick. It was soft still but as he ran his hand down it's length, it quickly started to harden. Cas shifted in his sleep and his face scrunched up at Dean's ministrations. The hunter leaned over and started to place gentle kisses along the angel's collarbone. That seemed to wake Cas up and Dean smiled when cloudy, blue eyes met his gaze.

"Morning," he whispered before leaning in and kissing the other man. Cas returned the kiss with enthusiasm. He couldn't believe how far Cas had come in the ten days they'd been here. His confidence had grown in leaps and bounds and Dean loved it. He loved that Cas would pin him to the bed and take what he wanted, that his angel could wring the pleasure from him like one would wring water from a towel.

"Morning," Cas growled and reached out, gripping Dean's erection in his long fingers.

Dean reclaimed his lips in another brutal kiss and sped up his strokes. He had wanted to make this last, but the minute Cas's hand closed around his dick, he knew that wasn't going to happen.

Sure enough, after a handful of strokes, he was coming over Cas's hand. The angel followed after him quickly and before the sun had fully risen, they were both standing, sated, in the shower.

He was going to miss this shower as well. Wonderful water pressure and a nearly endless supply of hot water was something they seldom found in their hole in the wall motels they were forced to stay in. He never would have thought at the beginning of the week that there would be so much about this place he would miss.

After they'd cleaned themselves, and made out for a bit, they left the shower and dressed for the day. Dean had no idea how things were going to go today. They didn't have any therapy meetings today, merely one final get together around dinner time to say goodbye so he wasn't sure if they should be watching out for Hannah or what.

Sam was going to follow her, keep an eye on her as much as possible while Dean and Cas hung out either in their cabin or up at the main house. More or less, they were waiting for Hannah to make the first move.

Once dressed, Cas walked over to the table and picked up Alec's book, the one they'd used to figure out how to kill Coatlicue and fingered the used spine.

"I should probably return this to him now, rather than later," Cas told him, turning the old book over in his hands.

"Yeah. I'll walk over with you, see them one more time, just in case…" Dean trailed off. Just in case they were busy fighting for their lives come dinnertime, Dean had been about to say.

"Yes," Cas agreed, not even needing the words to know what Dean was thinking.

When Dean and Cas came to Alec and Jack's cabin, Dean immediately knew something was wrong. He felt for the gun he'd stuck in the waistband of his jeans and nodded for Cas to go up and knock on the door.

The angel approached the cabin slowly. Dean could see his eyes roaming, taking in every movement, every detail of the area around the cabin.

Cas knocked on the door, a quick two raps then stood back. Dean waited impatiently and when no one came to answer their summons, he stepped past Cas and pulled out his lock pick.

He slipped the small metal piece into the lock and twisted until he heard a small 'pop' that indicated the lock and opened. He carefully pushed the door open and peered inside. He immediately felt his hackles rise. Something bad had happened here. Cas pushed past him and stopped cold just inside the threshold.

"This is not good," Cas pointed out needlessly.

"Yeah, no shit," Dean muttered. Cas glared at him. Dean glanced around the room, taking in the overturned table and chairs, the broken TV and mirrors. It looked like a fight had taken place here, there were even what looked like bullet holes near the closet, which wasn't too surprising considering Jack was a cop.

"I guess she picked her couple," Dean told Cas while pulling out his cell phone to call Sam.

Three rings and then his brother's voice came over the line.

"Sam, we've got a problem. Looks like she wasn't waiting until tonight," he told his brother, foregoing a greeting.

"What happened?"

"We were returning Alec's book but no one answered. I picked the lock and found ground zero inside. I'm sure she took them, Sam," Dean explained, feeling a slight panic rise in him. These weren't just innocent victims, these were his friends.

"Alright. Meet me back at your cabin and we'll go look for them. We'll find them, Dean."

Dean just closed his phone, not bothering with saying goodbye, and turned to Cas.

"Let's get out of here and meet up with Sam."

Cas nodded before giving the room one final glance. Dean turned and left, making his way quickly back to their cabin.

Sam was waiting for them when they got there, a Birch stake in one hand and shotgun in the other.

"Blood's inside," Dean told him, rushing up the steps to unlock the door. His brother followed him inside and handed him the stake. Cas went to the refrigerator and pulled out the jar of blood they'd collected the night before. He handed it to Dean and let the hunter go about covering the stake with it.

Once that was done, Dean turned back to face his brother.

"So. Best bet?" he asked.

Sam shrugged.

"I still think going to the cave is the best place to start."

Dean turned to Cas.

"I agree."

"Okay. Cave it is. Let's go."

Dean walked into the darkness, Cas a comforting presence behind him. He could sense his brother just off to the left, though he couldn't see Sam in the pitch-blackness that surrounded them.

He could see the slightest bit of light ahead, down a corridor off to the right.

"Sam?" he whispered.

"Yeah, I see. Head that way?"

Dean nodded, heading towards the faint light.

The three men crept down the dark corridor in silence. The further they went, the lighter the cave walls became. Dean led the group as they walked single file. When he finally came to the point where the corridor opened up into another large cavern, he paused. He leaned up against the cold stone and peaked around, into the cavern.

Dean glanced around the room, looking for the goddess or her little hounds but the place looked empty. Not that he was stupid enough to walk out into room.

He let out a small sigh of relief when his gaze landed on an altar in the middle of the room. There, tied to a large pillar, was a very awake and very alive Jack and Alec.

Cas crowded up against his back, startling him out of his musings. He turned his head slightly and met worried blue eyes.

"Dean," Cas whispered, barely audible, "I believe I know why this place has been warded so heavily against angels."

Dean felt Sam crowd closer, probably trying to hear what Cas was saying.

"Why?" Dean asked.

Cas nodded towards the altar.

"There, hanging in the center, between Alec and Jack," Cas explained. Dean glanced across the room, trying to see what Cas saw. He could just make out something hanging on a chain, something glowing.

"What is that?" Sam whispered.

"I believe it is an angel's Grace," Cas told them, worry evident in his voice.

"Why the hell would she have that? Better yet, how'd she get it?" Dean asked.

"I don't know," Cas admitted.

Fuck. That couldn't be good, but... they couldn't exactly go back and look into it. Time was up and they had two friends to save.

"Just... keep your eyes open, be careful," he warned both Sam and Cas.

Dean gripped his gun in one hand and the wooden stake in the other. He glanced once more around the cavern room before starting to walk towards the center.

He made it a handful of steps before a low growling sound reached his ears. He glanced back and watched Cas and Sam glance around the room, guns at the ready.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" a soft, melodic voice rang out in the silence.
Dean turned back to the altar and saw Jack and Alec both awake and staring at him in horror.

"Meddling imbeciles!" a voice, one Dean recognized, hissed from across the room. He glanced up and saw Hannah storming across the cavern.

"Yeah, we've been called that before, better work on your insults," Dean growled.

"Now, now, now, Hannah, darling, I didn't know you were bringing me more gifts. And... oh, my, this is a gift I never expected," the soft voice rang out again. Dean glanced around but was still unable to pinpoint where it was coming from.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know they'd follow, I didn't think they even saw me! I was careful, I promise! Please... please, we had a deal," Hannah begged, face tilted towards the ceiling in pathetic supplication.

A soft chuckle filled the room, causing a shiver to run down Dean's spine.

"Yes, we had a deal. And you've done so well. In fact, this time, you might have even brought me what I need," the voice echoed across the cavern.

A huge smile burst across Hannah's features.

"There's just one more thing I need you to do." A tall form materialized behind Hannah and reached out. Dean watched the pale hand land on the director's head. Hannah's eyes grew large and pain filled. He watched in horror as the being gripped the blond head. Hannah's form shriveled in on itself as the smell of burning flesh permeated the room.

"Much better," the being announced as she let the dried and rotted body fall to the cavern floor. Dean heard a whimper and glanced back to where Jack and Alec were still tied to the altar.

"You never intended to give her what she asked for, did you?" Sam spoke up.

"Of course not. What do you think I am? A demon? I'm not bound to any rules," the goddess told them haughtily.

"So, you used her? Had her do your dirty work for you?" Dean asked, walking slowly into the room, trying to put himself between the goddess and his friends.

"She was easy to manipulate. So much pain, so much despair. I almost felt sorry for her. And, she had perfect access to what I needed. Why wouldn't I use her?"

"But to what end? I mean, she brought you couples, three so far, so, what? They didn't taste right?" Dean asked, glancing around the room, looking for anything that Jack or Alec could use to cut through their bonds. He had his knife, but he didn't know if he could get it to them.

"Yes, she brought me couples, but... none of them were right. None of them had enough power for what I intend to do, unfortunately. But... this time, oh yes, this time she might have actually succeeded."

Dean glanced back at Alec and Jack, a sick feeling in his stomach.

"What do they have the others didn't?" Sam asked, moving around to the other side of the cavern, trying to pin the goddess in the center.

The goddess laughed.

"Naive little human. It's not them I want."

That brought Dean up short. The uneasy feeling he had doubled at the evil smile that graced the goddess's lips.

"What do you mean?" he asked, afraid of the answer.

"Castiel!" She called, glancing behind Dean. "What a... pleasant surprise!"

Dean took a step to the side, keeping himself between his angel and the goddess. The unease he'd felt earlier turned to near panic.

"How are you? Hmmm? Feeling a little… limp lately?" the goddess asked, a laugh in her voice.

Dean noticed Sam creeping around behind the goddess, towards the bound couple on the altar. He caught the slight glint of light off what had to be Ruby's knife in Sam's hand. If he could just keep the goddess talking, keep her distracted so his brother could cut Alec and Jack free.

"What do you want with Cas?" he asked.

"'Cas'? How cute."

In the blink of an eye, the goddess stood right before him. She reached out and grabbed his arm in a crushing grip.

"Dean!" he heard Cas call as the angel moved quickly towards them.

"Stay back!" he yelled, afraid of what the goddess would do to the powerless man.

Coatlicue reached out and jerked up his sleeve. She smiled triumphantly when her gaze landed on the hand mark Cas had left years ago.

"Perfect," she purred.

Dean had a very bad feeling now.

"You see, every other couple, while very much in love and while possessing a very strong bond, lacked one very important thing," she explained, still gripping his arm.

"What? A sense of fashion?" Dean snarked.

Coatlicue gave Dean a cold smile.

"No. They lacked the ability to house an angel's Grace. Each time, every child I created, burnt up the minute it touched them. What a shame, too. Such a waste."

Dean felt sick to his stomach at the thought of poor, innocent babies being at the mercy of this... bitch.

"So... you're, what? Trying to create a baby angel?" Dean asked. He heard Cas's sharp intake of breath behind him.

"Something like that. I want a being, with the power of Heaven at his command, but ruled by his emotions, by his anger, his love. Not bound to rules and order like so many of God's finest. My perfect heir."

"A human with an angel's power," Cas spoke up.

"Exactly. And, now… finally I have what I need to make that."

Coatlicue suddenly spun around, flinging her arm out, catching Sam just as his arm swung down, Ruby's knife firmly in hand.

Dean moved, raising the stake but she turned, flipping one hand towards him, sending the stake careening out of his hand.

"Get Jack and Alec out of here," he yelled as he fought to free his wrist.

Cas ran towards the now freed couple crouched down on the other side of the altar. Dean turned back towards the goddess, who had flung Sam away half way across the cavern room.

"Really? You really think a little piece of wood is enough to stop me?"

Dean heard the growling from earlier grow louder as dozens of black hounds bounded out from all around them. Shit.

He heard the harsh report of a gun as Cas fired at the closest dog, dropping it with one shot.

He saw Jack pick up a rock and send it flying, smashing into another hound and causing a pained yelp as it fell as well.

His brother was battling hounds as well, they were everywhere. He jerked hard, trying again to free himself from the brutal grip the goddess had on him.

"I will get what I want," she hissed, raising a hand towards his head.

"Break one of the sigils!" Cas called out somewhere behind him, drawing the goddess's attention.

Sam picked up a large rock and ran towards the wall where the sigils were etched into stone

"I don't think so," Coatlicue growled, flinging Sam once again across the room.

Dean glanced back towards Cas while the goddess was busy with Sam and was surprised to see Jack digging mercilessly at one of the sigils with a rock. Cas was keeping the hounds away. He knew the moment the sigil was broken. A rush of power filled the room as light flared where Cas stood.

Coatlicue spun around and stared at Jack, rage flashing through her eyes.

"No!" she stuck her hand out and sent the man flying. He hit the wall with a sickening crunch and slid down, a trail of red lingering behind him. He slumped down in a lifeless heap on the floor, eyes staring useless out.

"No!" Alec cried out and ran to his partner. Dean tried to call out, to warn him to get out but a flaring, burning pain welled up inside him. He thought it was the goddess at first, but... it was radiating from Cas's mark. He felt it, like a pull on his soul. He glanced over at Cas and found the angel frozen in place, a look of fear and wonder on his face. Shocked, confused eyes met his for a moment before he broke the gaze to focus on Coatlicue again.

The goddess let go of him and stalked over to where Alec cowered over Jack's corpse. Dean tried to find his voice to call out in warning, but the pulsing burn was too much.

Damn it!

Just as the goddess reached the couple, Cas appeared right behind her, stake held aloft.

He watched the angel's arm swing forward and the stake embed itself straight through the goddess's chest. A wailing, painful screech sounded through the cavern followed by the pained howling of the hounds as they all began to... melt into black puddles. He watched the goddess shrivel as Hannah had, before she fell, merely a pile of dust, at Cas's feet.

Dean felt a feeling of relief and pain, but... it wasn't emanating from him. It was... it was coming from Cas. And he had no idea how he knew that, but he did.

He could feel Cas's relief that the goddess was dead, relief that he and Sam were okay.

He could also feel the pain, pain that Jack had fallen, that Alec, his friend, was hurting.

He pulled himself to his feet, trembling slightly, and walked over to where Alec was sobbing over Jack's body. He felt Sam walk up beside him. Cas glanced over at his brother then reached out, taking Sam's wrist in his hand. Dean watched the deep scratches and bite marks the hounds had left fade away as Cas's Grace healed them.

Once Sam was completely healed, Cas knelt down next to Alec. He placed a calm hand on the crying man's shoulder, startling him. Alec looked up, his face red and wet.

"Wha...?" he asked, flinching back slightly.

"May I?" Cas asked, indicating Jack's still form. Alec looked confused but nodded. Cas reached out and placed two fingers against Jack's forehead.

Dean smiled when Jack gave a harsh gasp and blinked. The other man sat up and scrambled away, looking both frightened and confused.

"It's okay," Cas spoke quietly. "It's over, she's gone."

Alec was staring at Cas in relief and fear.

"What... what are you?" Alec asked, though Dean was pretty sure the other man had to have a pretty good idea after the goddess's rant.

"I am Castiel, and... I'm an angel of the Lord."

"It's a lot cooler when he does the thing with his wings," Dean spoke up, trying to lighten the mood. He could sense amusement and love coming from Cas.

Alec stared at both of them, shock very evident in his eyes before turning back to Jack and throwing himself into his lover's arms.

Jack threw an arm around Alec though his eyes never left Cas.

"I.. I was... and you..."

"Yes," Cas answered. Jack swallowed, hard.

"Right. Yeah… sure..."

"So... you're an... angel. And... God? Is he…?"

"A dick," Dean answered, really wanting to get the hell out of the cave. They could have their question and answer time later.

"Are you one, too?" Jack asked, turning his gaze on Dean.

"Ha. No. Not even close," Dean told him.

"But you two... you're..."

"Oh, yes, they are," Sam said with a smile.

"Shut up, bitch."

"Jerk."

"Can we get out of here?" Alec asked, voice small and scared.

"I second that," Jack added.

"Yeah, come on. Cas? You wanna fly us out?" Sam asked.

"I think it's better if we walk. Riding Cas takes some getting used to," Dean pointed out, knowing that angel flight was... a little much to take, especially after everything that had happened and he could sense that Cas was… a little off still. Whether that was from being human for over a week or… whatever the hell was going on between them, he didn't know.

Sam burst out laughing.

"You'd know best, Dean."

Dean thought about what he'd said, then blushed.

"You... shut your mouth!" Dean growled, before turning and helping Jack go his feet.

"Seriously, angel flight, not so fun. Think you can walk out of here?"

Jack and Alec both nodded, still looking shell shocked.

Dean helped them walk back down the dark tunnel then helped them out of the tiny entrance.

"Careful, it comes out right into the water," he warned.

"Thanks," Alec whispered, jumping in first then reaching back to help Jack. Dean watched the two lovers cling to each other as they swam towards the shore. Sam followed but Cas seemed to be hanging back.

"You're not gonna fly off, now are you?" he asked, worried that Cas would do just that.

"No. I… I believe we need to talk."

Dean could sense Cas's nervousness, but it was over powered by immense… joy. Whatever was going on, Cas wasn't too upset by it so Dean decided it couldn't be that bad.

Cas held up the chain that had been in the cave, the chain that held an angel's Grace.

"Well?" Dean asked.

Cas stared at the small vial hanging from the silver chain for a moment.

"I don't know how, but… I'm fairly certain it's Gabriel's Grace."

That pulled Dean up short.

"Gabriel? As in, the dead Archangel?"

"Yes. That Gabriel. Come, let's finish discussing this with Sam," Cas dropped the chain into his pocket and reached out for Dean's hand. Dean placed his hand in the angel's without hesitation and in the blink of an eye, he found himself standing back at their cabin.