Chapter Fourteen
Sons and Suckers
Vatican: June 19, 2010
Bobby collapsed into the well-loved chair he'd been using at the Vatican. He and Azrial had just gotten back to Rome when Rowen had called them. The exorcist had sounded cagey and said he needed to speak to them both before they got started on research again. The exorcist had given a muted greeting, before handing Azrial a heavy-looking white envelope with, from what Bobby could see, a coat of arms. The archangel snatched the envelope with an excited look, ripping into it without hesitation. She'd been reading the multi-page missive the past half hour, her emotions jumping between amused and giddy, to thoughtful and morose. When she finally set the letter down, Bobby raised an eyebrow.
"Care to share with the class?"
"We need to make a small change in plan."
"Which part?" Bobby asked, sitting up. "The research or heading home?"
"Both," she sighed. "We can still go back and see the others, maybe even stay a week or two, but then we, and likely Rowen, need to be on a plane to Japan."
Bobby blinked, glancing at Rowen to see if he'd heard the archangel correctly. His friend looked just as confused, so Bobby turned back toward Azrial.
"All right, princess, gonna need you to explain."
"So, the Valerius family just saved us a ton of time," she said. "The head of the family was issued an invite to a massive occult weapon and antique auction that's being held in Japan."
"That's convenient," Rowen said after a moment. "How does that involve me?"
Azrial snorted. "Orion dug around, and the Vatican got an invite as well. If I say I'm going with Bobby, what do you think the Vatican is going to do?"
Rowen groaned, tilting his head. "Send me along to babysit."
"Bingo!" Azrial laughed. "So just accept it. The bastards will probably slap an expense account in your hand to get them some goodies, anyway."
"Why am I going?" Bobby asked. Azrial bit her lip, looking slightly unsure.
"They need a representative," she said tentatively. "Obviously I'll be going, but I also need to be careful. It's best that I'm a plus one, rather than the invitation holder."
"They ain't about to let a hunter in," he pointed out.
"Eh, actually they'll let anyone who has the money in," she said. "But, you won't be going as a hunter."
"I won't?"
"No," she said, shifting to the end of the letter and holding out a sheet. "You'll be going as a son of the Valerius family."
He took the paper, not bothering to respond yet. His eyes ran over the profile and he pursed his lips slightly. This looked no different from pretending to be an FBI agent, but it also felt a hell of a lot more official. There was even a wax seal at the bottom of the page, made up of a raven clutching a gladius with its beak opened in a caw. There was also a small note below it in green ink; Take care of Azrial in our stead, and take with you the blessings of our family.
Yeah, this felt way above his pay grade.
"You can say no," Azrial awkwardly said. "It was presumptuous for them to assume you'd want to go along with it."
"And...if I went along with it?"
"I'd be grateful," she said. "It would also be a chance for you to see not just parts of the supernatural community I doubt you've ever experienced, but also the mundane."
"How so?" he asked, setting the profile down.
"As I said, you get into these events with money. If you have the coin, there is always someone willing to sell; regardless of whether you're a run-of-the-mill human or a pagan god."
"So there will be other humans there?" Bobby clarified, and Azrial nodded.
"Yes. As I said, even the Vatican has an invite. I'm sure Crowley does as well, though he won't be going since it would paint a target on his back."
"So it's a who's who of those interested in the occult?"
"Basically," she shrugged. "It will give you a chance to do some information gathering, and see the other side of the curtain, so to speak."
Bobby was silent and considered his options carefully. He could say no, and stay home and help the boys. That would leave Azrial's back relatively unguarded because he doubted she could be seen as buddy-buddy with the Vatican. That meant Rowen would have to keep his distance from the archangel and could leave her open to attack. Crowley would also insist on going at that point, and he could already hear the argument that would cause. He'd likely have his two cents to throw in at that point and then be stressed the entire time Azrial was gone.
"Looks like I'm going to Japan again."
Azrial raised an eyebrow. "Again?"
He smirked at the archangel, happy to finally have one-up on her. "Wouldn't you like to know, princess?"
Line Break
Bobby's House: June 19, 2010
"So, she's really your mother?"
Crowley was going to brain Dean, and the only thing staying his hand this long was his affection for Bobby.
"For the last time, yes."
"You gonna explain how?" the hunter asked.
"No, now shut up."
"Look, throw me a bone," Dean sighed. "Especially while she's not in the room."
Crowley pursed his lips, glancing at Castiel who'd remained oddly silent through this whole mess. The angel met his gaze and raised an eyebrow. Crowley rolled his eyes and looked back at Dean.
"She was a horrible mother, a massive bitch, and only cares about herself. You'd do well to keep that in mind when dealing with her."
"Two of those things she passed on to you," Castiel muttered. Dean shot the angel a look, but Crowley glared at him.
"You're enjoying this," he accused. A ghost of a smile pulled Castiel's lips, but the angel shrugged.
"If you say so."
"Sadist," Crowley muttered. He glanced toward the door to make sure Rowena was still away before turning back to Dean. "If you must know, she hates my existence and tried to sell me off before eventually abandoning me when that didn't work. There is no love lost between us, as you heard yesterday."
"Some mom," Dean said. "Well, the sooner we find Gabriel, the sooner we get rid of her."
"Won't be soon enough," Crowley sighed. A comfortable silence fell over the room, and Crowley took the chance to think about Azrial and Bobby. He was worried about his angel. He'd only seen her like this a few times, and the fact she'd shut down was concerning. The last time that had happened was shortly after her stint in Hell. He'd practically had to drag her out of the shower she'd been using to scrub herself raw once they were topside, and after that, she'd slept for a solid week. For a month she'd followed him like a duck, wanting to be close to someone she knew could offer protection. Looking back, she'd placed far more trust in him than he thought he'd ever deserved. Something had fundamentally shifted between them after that though. She'd kept her silence, suffered under Alistair's hand, to honor their deal. He had come to respect her after that, and in turn, she seemed to drop some of her walls around him.
Now they were even closer, and he was sure if something like that happened now, he'd torture whoever dared to raise a hand against his archangel.
"Fergus, must you look so dour?"
Crowley growled, his mother's voice breaking him from his thoughts. "Yes," he huffed.
"You really should do something about that stick up your arse," she lectured. Sam snorted at her side, and Crowley moved his glare to the hunter making him raise his hands in peace.
"Ready to try the spell, Crowley?" Sam said, directing the conversation back to the matter at hand.
"We really should begin, Fergus. The sooner we find this lost archangel, the better off we'll all be."
"It's Crowley," he stressed as he stood up. "And yes. Everyone will be better because we'll be rid of you."
She scoffed but didn't bother to respond again as she began prepping the spell. The last ingredient to be added was one of Castiel's feathers, and the moment it fell in with the other ingredients, Crowley quickly began chanting the spell with Sam as his mother set the wooden bowl on the map they'd laid out on the table. It burst into deep blue flames, and Crowley swore he'd never been so damn happy.
Then the godforsaken spell marked two places on the damn map.
One was a massive black spot that took up most of the state of Nevada, indicating the spell couldn't get a clear reading. Then, a more precise burn settled on Italy. Specifically where Rome was marked on the map. His mother's eyes narrowed on the map before looking up.
"Something you boys want to explain?" she coolly asked.
Sam looked abashed and bit his lip. "Well, we can say with certainty that the mark in Italy isn't who we're looking for."
"And how would you know that?" she waspishly asked. "I thought we were past secrets, Samuel."
"It wasn't my secret to tell," Sam said firmly. "It was up to Crowley or Castiel to tell you."
His mother's hard gaze moved to him. "Well?" she demanded.
"The moose is right, Italy isn't the marker we need. We'll have to find a way to focus in on Nevada."
"You know that isn't what I was asking!"
"Do I look like I care?" he coldly replied.
"Crowley, we can't hide it from her," Castiel calmly cut in. "Rowena will meet her eventually."
"Meet who?" the witch demanded. "I want answers or I won't be helping you any further. This spell should have only sought out an archangel on Earth."
"And it did," Castiel said. "That dot in Rome? It's my older sister."
The calm way Castiel delivered the news seemed to kill whatever furious comment was building in her throat. Crowley snorted, happy someone was able to shut her up.
"And you failed to tell me this, why? And how does it involve Fergus?"
"It wasn't prudent at the time," the angel said. "As far as your son goes-"
"Shut it, feathers," Crowley said warningly. The angel glanced at him, and Crowley narrowed his eyes at the smirk Castiel sent him.
"Your darling son is, much to my abject horror, having relations with my sister."
"You're an utter bastard," Crowley snarled.
"Coming from you, that means very little," Castiel said with a dismissive wave.
"Well," Dean popped the word looking around the room. "This is awkward."
Line Break
Rome: June 20, 2010
Rowen sat on the bed, watching Bobby pack up the last of his clothes. They were heading home tomorrow morning and it was clear Bobby couldn't wait. Rowen was only mildly upset at having to fly back rather than getting flown across the ocean by Castiel, but he understood the need. After all, it was only the Vatican that stopped the Italian government from looking too closely at any of their passports.
"Where's Azrial?" Rowen asked as he paged through the list he'd been given from the Vatican. The archangel may as well have been a seer. As soon as she and Bobby signed onto the auction, he was told to go with them. She'd been rather smug since then, but Rowen let it pass. He was just happy to go home for a few weeks.
"Harassing Valerius. She said something about pizza and wine."
"Better stop calling him Valerius and switch to brother," Rowen teased. Bobby scoffed, and Rowen lowered the list to glance at his friend. "What's wrong?"
"I still don't know much about them," Bobby said. "It's annoying."
"Why not ask Azrial?"
"She's so damned tight-lipped about them. It's like she's hiding something."
"Well, she's lived a long time. Maybe her connection is a bit more personal than she's willing to say." Bobby froze, and Rowen raised an eyebrow. "Did I say something wrong?"
"You don't think," Bobby paused then shook his head. "Never mind."
"Come on, spitball your idea," Rowen said as he set the papers down. "Better me than her."
Bobby shut his eyes, clearly mulling over his idea. He set down the shirt he'd been folding and looked back up at Rowen.
"I think she established the family," Bobby said.
"Oh-kay," he drawled out. "That's...a pretty out-there idea. How'd you get to it?"
"Certain things she's said. She spoke of Rome with more affection than I've heard her talk about...well anything but Crowley."
"Or you," Rowen muttered, earning a glare from his friend.
"Drop it," Bobby huffed. "My point is, she seems to...identify as a Roman, as dumb as it sounds."
Rowen mulled it over and thought back to the accent Azrial had when speaking Italian. He'd been positive that it came from a more rural area, but was that just because he'd never actually heard it before? No one knew what the Latin spoke in Ancient Rome sounded like. Sure, translations existed but that didn't mean anyone knew what it sounded like. Maybe some old gods, but they weren't likely to share that with normal humans.
"You may have a point," Rowen said. "But if that's the case, does it really matter?"
"If she established the family, she may actually have kids out there," Bobby said softly.
"Okay," Rowen exhaled sharply. "That's kinda a large leap, Bobby."
"Is it though? Think about how she acted with Orion, how she spoke about the boy's sister."
"Bobby, that doesn't mean she has kids," he said firmly. "Nephilim are a huge deal, and who the hell knows what would happen if an archangel had kids."
"Like you said, it was a stretch," Bobby sighed. "Let's drop it."
"Bobby, I'm not shooting you down. I'm just saying, in this case, it may be a leap. It's possible she had a lover in the family a long time ago, and since then has watched over them."
"Maybe," he sighed. "You're probably right. I'm overthinking this."
"There are other options too," Rowen said. "Maybe you should ask her directly."
Bobby shook his head. "No," he said firmly. "She said she'd tell me when this is all over and...I believe her."
"I think she likes to make you puzzle it out, too," Rowen said. Bobby rolled his eyes, chuckling softly.
"You have no idea. Come on, help me finish packing."
The next update is Saturday, January 22, 2022