I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter, so why don't you tell me how you like it?

"Loki, we need to talk."

Loki wasn't sure why he had answered his door, but there was his least favorite Winchester, full of righteous indignation, standing on his welcome mat.

And it wasn't that he had a favorite Winchester, either. It was just that compared to Dean's overinflated sense of self and Adam's unassuming petulance, Sam's ability to fill Loki's mead bowl regularly elevated him above his brothers. Take away the mead, however, and Sam was every bit as tiresome as Dean. Perhaps even moreso thanks to all his moralizing and quick intelligence, Sam was actually the most dangerous to Loki and his secrets than Dean or Adam could ever be.

"Dean-O. To what do I owe the pleasure and privilege?" Keeping Dean on edge was easier than taking candy from a baby. That guy was all buttons, it was just a manner of finding the most entertaining one to push. Loki opened his front door a little wider, letting the Hunter inside.

"Your haunted mansion? An actual haunted mansion?" Dean asked as he entered and knocked his boots against the mat to scrape off mud from an early rain. That was the other thing; the guy was always talking in questions.

"Yes, I believe it is?" Two could play at that game. Loki popped the cherry sucker out of his mouth and swirled his tongue around it, gauging Dean's sexual frustration. The Hunter barely blinked, so Loki assumed he and Castiel had moved on from feeding each other to…well… "feeding" each other. "Didn't I tell you about it?" Loki led him into the living room and sat down in his most comfortable chair. Dean just stood there, scowling at him.

"No, you sure as shit didn't tell me about it. Loki, you can't put a bunch of Humans in a mansion with actual ghosts and goblins in it!"

"Sure we can!" Loki waved his hand dismissively. "It'll be fun and no one will get killed. Heidi picked out the ghoulies and ghosties herself and Laufey found a few giants to shake the house for added effect."

"Heidi's involved?" Dean asked, incredulous. "I got news that there's a coven of witches next town over brewing up some trouble, and I assumed she was behind it."

Okay, Loki had to give Dean-O props on the pun. "I'm sure that's Heidi too. We're gods, Dean. We can do lots of different things at once."

"Loki, the Wild Hunt is coming into town on Halloween, I've got the Supernatural up the wazoo here, and you and your friends are encouraging attacks on Humans dressed up as fun and games!"

"They're going to have the time of their lives," Loki reasoned with a nonchalant shrug. "But tell me, Dean-O, where's your Angelic little shadow today?"

"Stop trying to change the subject here, you need to stop this haunted mansion or I swear to God, I'll—"

Loki stood and grabbed Dean's wrist, effectively cutting off anything he was about to say. He hadn't done this in well over a thousand years, so he was surprised when he managed to pull out all the stops in such a short amount of time. Wings, slightly atrophied but still golden and beautiful sprouted from his back and his horn manifested just under his palm as he stared deeply into Dean's eyes.

"How is Castiel?"

Dean didn't even blink. "He's Remembering his old life, it's making him ill."

Loki nodded. "Nosebleeds? Headaches?"

Dean nodded. "Yes."

Even using the Horn of Truth, Loki couldn't pull more than the barest truth from Dean. "What are you doing to help him?"

"Lucifer and Balthazar come to help him."

Loki nodded. "Good. That's good. He always liked Lucy, and Bal is a brother to him."

Dean seemed to shake slightly out of his trance. The Hunter was stronger than Loki gave him credit for. "Who are you?"

Loki smiled and increased the resonance of his horn. "They call me Gabriel. But that won't matter, because you won't remember any of this. "

"No," Dean agreed, his clear green eyes going blank again.

"Tell me how Cassie's wings look."

Dean got a dreamy look on his face. "They're beautiful."

Loki rolled his eyes. "Good Dad you're in love, aren't you?"

"Yes," Dean said quickly.

At least there was that, not that Loki doubted it. "Okay, what color are Cassie's wings?"

"They're brown and speckled with blue."

Loki nodded. "Good, then he's almost got his full memories back. You be careful with him, Dean, you hear me? Cassie is a good boy and deserves better than you."

"Yes," Dean agreed readily. "He does."

Loki let go of the pressure and hid his wings back under all of his layers of deception, then pressed two fingers to Dean's forehead, erasing the memory of their chat.

"—string you up so hard your boxers get turned into a thong."

Loki smirked. "Already wearing a thong, Dean-O. Doesn't seem to be much of a threat."

Dean closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. Loki knew that the Hunter's headache was because of his interrogation, but he liked to think that the thought of him in a thong was at least part of it.

"Loki, if you keep the haunted mansion with actual ghosts, I am going to have to do something about it, and you know it!"

Loki smirked and popped his lips on his sucker. "I'd love to see you try, Dean-O. But just to be nice, how's about we make a deal?"

Dean shook his head. "No deals, Loki. I don't do deals with monsters."

Loki laughed. "I am so much more than you think I am, boy. Why don't you let me tell you what I'm offering?"

"Okay, fine, what do you think you can offer me?"

Minus points for sass, there, Dean-O. "I can help you kill Azazel."

Okay, that obviously got him. "You know how to kill a Fairy?"

Loki nodded. "Yes, not just banish him, but kill him. I imagine you'd want to, seeing as how he's probably going to continue to target your sister-in-law and her baby." He bit into the sucker and chewed happily on the chewy chocolate in the center, giving time for the two brain cells in Dean's head to rub together.

"No, no, it can't be worth it. One wrong move, and we could have some kids getting possessed or eaten or drained of blood…"

"Dean, I promise solemnly on all that is holy, I would not allow anyone to be harmed during the haunted mansion tour. And the ghosts won't be that many. I'm a Trickster, I can create things out of thin air. The ghosts are going to just float around in the air. All of them owe me favors. I promise. Let me have some fun, and I'll help you keep your family safe." Yes, hitting a little below the belt for sure, but all of it true. Loki would lose a lot if anyone actually got hurt at his party since he wanted to do the same thing next year, but he would definitely gain much if his patrons paid and had the shit scared out of them.

"How do I know that it'll really work? I want Azazel gone for good."

Loki shrugged. "Your goal in this matter matches up with my own. Azazel is nuts and he's unhinged. It's time to put him out of commission."

Dean crossed his arms. "So why not just do it yourself?"

Loki scoffed. "You're the Hunter around here, not me. You kill someone, it's justified. I kill someone? No matter what? I'm the one that gets in trouble. It's best if you handle it."

Loki knew Dean would say yes, it was just a matter of him hemming and hawing over it until he finally did. So he got comfortable, conjured up a root beer float, and waited for the Hunter to finally agree.

}O{

Dean parked his baby and headed inside the house, eager to see Castiel. His poor Angel had been practically crippled all day with a migraine and bloody nose after several memories came back to him the day and night before. Lucifer had been by in the morning to take care of him and then Balthazar had to come by at lunch to do it again. Both assured Dean that when they went through their Awakenings, and that their pain and bleeding had been similar.

He took the stairs two at a time and found his Angel, dressed only in boxers, in the middle of the bed, wings wrapped protectively around him. They were now getting to be more blue than dappled, the smooth adult feathers looking strange mixed in with the downy adolescents. The effect was patchy, as though he had some disease causing his feathers to fall out in clumps. Dean still thought the wings were beautiful, though.

Dean thought to sidle up to Castiel and maybe join him for a nap before he had to go out and see about a possible rogue vampire when Castiel lifted his head, sniffing the air slightly. This was new. Before Dean really had a chance to contemplate what it might mean, Castiel was on him, ripping his shirt open and snarling, "Who touched you?" His face was like a rabid animal.

Dean was shocked, too shocked at first to do much but gape at Cas.

Castiel leaned down and sniffed at him again. "I can smell it on you…someone touched you!"

Dean put his hands on Castiel's shoulders. "Sweetheart, no one is touching me in that way but you," he said calmly, remembering the half-manic look Michael had worn when Dean had touched Castiel.

Castiel threw Dean onto the bed and ran his hands up and down Dean's torso where it was exposed by the huge gaping hole in his T-shirt. "You're mine, Dean."

"It's okay, Cas," Dean said calmly, rubbing his hands up Castiel's arms, cupping his face. "It's okay, honey. I'm right here."

That seemed to get through to him, and Castiel's face went from fierce to panicked in a split second. "Dean, I…" tears welled in his eyes. "Oh, god, I'm so…"

Dean pulled him down and wrapped his arms around him. "Don't worry, it's okay," he reiterated. "It's okay, honey. Don't worry."

"What…what was that?" he whimpered. "That wasn't me."

"I know," Dean said. "I know. You're okay. I've got you."

Castiel kissed him. "I'm sorry, Dean. I'm so sorry."

Dean kissed him back and tried to bring him back to his chest, but Castiel resisted and went in for more kisses. Dean held him steady and wrapped one arm around his waist, his mind whirling as to how he could help Castiel calm down. He tasted the tang of blood and pulled back to see Castiel's nose bleeding again.

"Hey," he said, grabbing for the Kleenex on the bedside table. "Hey, let's get you cleaned up, okay?"

Castiel nodded sadly, taking a tissue from Dean's hand. "I'm sorry, Dean."

Dean sat up, pushing Castiel off of his lap as he did so. Castiel sat back on the bed, his wings pulling in tight over his naked arms. "Need me to call Lucifer or Balthazar?"

"No!" Castiel said quickly, his wings ruffling. "No," he said again, calmer. "I couldn't right now…I just…can you just hold me?"

Dean settled down on the bed and Castiel draped himself over him, his wings fanning out over them both. Dean stroked a hand through the feathers, loving the way they slipped through his fingers.

"I'm so sorry, Dean."

"Don't worry about it, Cas. I'm not upset." He really wasn't. He wasn't sure exactly what he was, laying there with his shirt torn open, the Angel snuggled into his side, wings spread out over him. He just wanted to know why Castiel had reacted that way. The only person he'd come into contact with that day besides Lucifer and Balthazar was Loki, and Dean couldn't imagine the trickster god would pose much of a threat to Castiel. He reached down and laced fingers with Cas, explaining what Loki had said about killing Azazel.

"It's a good idea, is it not?" Castiel asked. "He should not be allowed to continue unchecked. Don't his people have some laws that he is breaking?"

Dean lifted Castiel's hand to his lips and stroked his other hand through the Angel's hair. "Who knows? The Fairies are pretty close-mouthed about their ways. If your friend Charlie were here, we could probably ask her to find out, but who knows when she'll return?"

Castiel hummed. "I was so upset when Charlie left," he mused. "But if she hadn't, we probably never would have met."

Dean caressed Castiel's ring finger, thinking about how nice something gold would look right there. "Are you afraid, Cas? Of us mating? Being linked together for eternity?"

Castiel nuzzled his chest. "I don't know. I just know I want to be with you as much as possible for as long as possible."

Dean smiled and dropped a kiss to the top of his head. "Me too, Cas."

}O{

Jess had always known that Azazel didn't like her, but it had come as a great shock to her when he tried to kill her. She supposed she had always thought that as long as she made Sam happy, Azazel would give her a pass. Then he had pushed his way into her house and threatened her. If Dean and Adam hadn't shown up when they had, if Castiel hadn't been confident to use his powers, things would have turned out so differently. She and her child could both be dead now, and Sam would be alone, without an anchor. He would have joined the wild hunt for sure, turned his back on everything and joined his father. He would have hated that.

Still, the idea of killing Azazel seemed wrong somehow. What was almost worse was that both Sam and Adam seemed to be acting like the idea was one of the best Dean had ever had. Usually they were the voice of reason to Dean's outlandish ideas, and neither of them were discussing repercussions or fall-out. Jess felt it was up to her to be that voice.

It was Friday night, Adam had just come home, and Sam was about to go to The Roadhouse for his second job. Jess knew it was now or never, while everyone seemed to be milling around the front room, waiting for something to happen.

"Um, Sam?"

Sam put his arm around her immediately. "What is it, baby? You need anything? You okay?"

Jess smiled. Ever since they found out, he'd been treating her like glass, and while it was sweet, it could be smothering at times. "Sam, I'm just worried. What if the Fairy Realm decides to enact revenge for the death of one of their own? What if the spell fails and you can't kill him and he does even worse? Loki is a trickster in mythology, and he doesn't do anything without a price. The entire Ring Cycle was pretty much his fault."

"She's right," Castiel said. "Dean, I don't want you putting yourself in trouble, and Sam has a family to think about now."

Adam glared. "I have a life too, you know."

Castiel inclined his head. "I meant no disrespect, Adam. All the more reason for caution, the medical profession would be poorer without you in it."

Jess noticed that Sam gave Adam a look, then Adam shook his head at Sam as if to say, "I will kill you." Jess knew these looks well; she and Sam had been dating since college so "Winchester Facial Expression" was practically a second language for her. What she didn't know was what it was referring to. Apparently Sam was keeping some sort of secret. Since it was Adam's secret, Jess was okay with it, but she was still burning to know.

"I bet Bobby would know," Jess suggested. "He has a lot of knowledge of other Realms."

Dean sighed. "Our girlfriends are a couple of old women."

Sam smirked and Adam outright laughed, but Dean called Bobby, who promised to be at The Roadhouse in a few hours to discuss a plan.

At the bar, Sam started getting his station ready, tying his apron around his waist, pulling his hair back into a pony tail that Jess found so very cute and Dean gave him grief about. Sam of course threatened to drop a hair in his beer if he didn't shut up, and Dean shrugged and said he'd get it for free that way. Ellen heard this and slapped the back of his head, reminding him that he always got free beer.

Bobby hadn't seen Castiel since he had been passed out after healing Jessica, so it was somewhat natural that he pulled the Angel into a rib-cracking hug he moment he saw him at the bar. After he hugged Castiel, he turned to Jessica, and Jessica gave him a huge smile. It was no secret that Bobby had filled in where John left off in Sam's life, so Jess held a great deal of affection for him and treated him as though he were truly Sam's father.

"You're glowing, sweetheart," Bobby insisted gruffly kissing her cheek.

"Thanks, Bobby," Jess answered, her hand going a little unconsciously to her belly where her son was growing, thanks to Castiel. She didn't think she could ever thank the Angel enough for what he had done.

"Well, let's eat," Bobby said. "Jess and her baby might starve to death!"

Jess rolled her eyes a little at Ellen, who dropped a kiss to her mate's forehead. "Whatcha want, Jess? I'll make you anything you like. Got some chicken fried steak, chicken fried chicken, biscuits, potatoes, burgers, and corned beef sandwiches. What's your pleasure?"

Jess thought it over, then decided on the chicken fried chicken. "With mashed potatoes."

Ellen nodded. "Dean, burger?"

"I eat other things you know."

Jess laughed at that.

"I know that I would like a burger," Castiel said in his rough, low voice. "And pie, please, Ellen. What flavor do you have today?"

Ellen winked at Castiel. "Dean's favorite."

Castiel frowned. "I was not aware Dean had a favorite flavor."

"He doesn't," everyone at the table said, including Dean. Jess loved seeing Dean with Castiel. She hadn't known him when he was with Victor, but she had been with Sam when Dean was courting Benny, and had seen how much Benny had broken Dean's heart and her own heart had ached for him after that. Seeing him happy, his face open and caring, the way he caressed Castiel's arm, or looked into his eyes almost made Jess jealous. Thankfully, she had Sam close by to give her the same care.

"I got everyone drinks," Sam said, speak of the devil. He slid up behind Jess and put iced tea in front of her, then distributed hard drinks to the rest of the group. Before he went back to the bar, he kissed her cheek and gave her shoulder a squeeze.

Once everything was ordered and settled, Bobby brought up the business at hand. Dean explained about his trip to see Loki about a haunted house, and Loki's promise that no one would be hurt in exchange for a spell to kill a Fairy.

"I don't like it," Bobby said, and Jess felt relieved because having him on her side of things would go a long way towards keeping Sam from putting himself in danger.

"What are we going to do, Bobby, let Azazel go after Jess and the baby again?" Dean asked, making Jess's stomach twitch. She could still remember him closing in on her, spewing abuse in his soft, velvety voice.

"Well, we gotta do something, and this is our best bet," Bobby conceded. "I just don't know if sending you boys in is the right thing to do."

Jess noticed Adam seemed distracted and followed his line of sight until her eyes landed on an incredibly handsome man at the bar. He looked like an underwear model, all angles with wide light eyes and dark hair. She had no idea that Adam swung that way, not that it mattered to her. She just remembered his high school girlfriend, but come to think of it, she hadn't seen or heard of him with anyone lately. The man must have felt her looking at him because he turned to her and gave a little frown. She smiled in return, hoping that he would think the family friendly if he intended to pursue Adam, then turned her attention back to the group.

"John is the head of your family, and he's a member of the Wild Hunt," Bobby was saying. "It would be cleaner if it was him, fewer repercussions on all of you, and I don't think the Fairy Counsel would be able to claim cold-blooded murder with it being John."

"And you're not just saying this to keep us safe?" Dean countered.

Bobby sighed and smiled up at Ellen as she delivered his healthier baked chicken with steamed vegetables. "I ain't gonna pretend that I don't wanna keep you boys safe. You're my boys and you know it, but I'm serious, Dean. They're awfully formal little sons of bitches, Fairies, and while they might haul your asses before their magistrates to question the killing, as long as it's either John or Sam, it will be viewed as an honorable kill."

"Okay," Dean said, squirting ketchup onto his burger before cutting it in half. "I guess we wait until Dad comes back into town, then. But what do we do if the Hunt leaves before Azazel comes back."

"That's a good question," Bobby mused. "I might have a Fairy summoning spell, but I need to look into it."

Jess was just relieved that Sam was going to be kept out of it. She still didn't like that Azazel would be killed, but it was better that John would do it. He was already cursed to the Hunt.

The man at the bar got up and walked across the room to the men's room, and Jess was unsurprised when Adam excused himself and followed. Jess caught Sam's eye, and he shrugged.

"He actin' weird?" Bobby asked.

Dean shrugged. "I think he's got his midterms coming up. Probably stressing out."

Jess found Castiel staring at her, the side of his mouth quirked upwards. They both shared a secret look as Dean and Bobby started discussing the collection of the various ingredients needed for the spell. In an unspoken understanding, both Jess and Castiel moved closer.

"Who is he?" she asked.

"His name is Michael. He is a friend of mine."

Jess's eyes got wide. "Michael the Archangel?"

Castiel nodded. "The very one."

Jess looked down, thinking about the fact that both Adam and Dean had attracted Angels. How the hell did she fit into this family? She wasn't Supernatural in any way; she didn't even have Sight. Jess knew that Sam loved her, she knew that he wanted her, but not for the first time, she wondered what a guy like him was doing with a girl like her. Azazel's words came back to slap her in the face. "You are distracting him from his true purpose." What was that, exactly?

Sam came over then, as always just when she needed him, and set a refill of tea next to her plate. "You need anything else, baby?" he asked, kissing her hair.

Jess shook her head. "No, I'm fine."

"Hey, why don't I ever get a kiss, Sammy?" a lady at the bar yelled.

Sam smiled and waved his long arm at her, then turned back to Jess. "What's the verdict? Are we going to do this thing?"

"John is," Bobby said. "Or, he will if he ever gets his ass back here."

Sam nodded. "Okay, I can accept that." He kissed Jess once more. "Gotta go back to work, baby. Love you."

Jess smiled as Sam made his way back to the bar, dodging hands that reached out to playfully slap his ass, the sound of catcalls in the air. She wasn't sure what it was that she brought to the table aside from astounding normalcy, but he seemed to love her. That was all that mattered.

"Tell me about Michael," Jess ordered Castiel as Dean and Bobby went back to discussing their plans.

Heiðr/Heith/Heid, is attested as a witch and a Seer in the Völuspa and is often thought to also be Loki's wife, Gullveig/Gullweig. I'm calling her Heidi, which I would imagine would be a natural progression for a several-thousand-year-old goddess who doesn't want to draw too too much attention to herself. According to the Völuspa, wicked women worship Heidi and she has a great love for gold and shiny objects. I sort of think the old Norse were shippers and were like, "Those two would do all sorts of damage together! Let's ship them!"

Laufey is attested as Loki's mother, a Jötunn giantess (you can decide if Marvel was being misogynistic when they made her a man in the Thor comics), and I sort of like the idea that since I made a universe where Angels can give a kid to anyone they feel like it, Gabriel chose Laufey so that he could be a god in this world. In the Eddas, Loki is referred to more as Laufey's son than he is by his father's name, which is actually unusual, but then this is Loki we're talking about.