Supernatural Fan Fiction ❯ Angels and Demons: A Supernatural Fanfic ❯ Insurrection ( Chapter 4 )

4. Insurrection

A few weeks had passed since Lilith had broken another of the 66 seals and Dean had learned just how truly dark Sam had become. During that time Sam had seemed to grow darker and darker and withdrawing more and more. Dean just couldn't take it any more, and after he had given his little brother a stern talking to, Sam promised to stop. Much to Dean's relief, his brother finally seemed to be on the mend.

But unbeknownst to Dean, Sam hadn't stayed true to his word, and he would soon have to pay the consequences. It was the middle of the night when he sneaked out of Bobby's house, leaving a slumbering Dean on the couch. He drove to a deserted barn a few miles away and met Ruby there.

After exchanging a long wet kiss in greeting they got down to business. Ruby pulled out a knife and sliced open her arm, offering it to Sam. He took it and drank in her blood, feeling more and more power unfold inside him with every drop. In the back of his mind he felt bad because he wasn't being honest with Dean, but a voice inside his head told him that it didn't really matter because he was saving people, and that's what they did anyway right? As a bonus he was also sending demons back to Hell, and that was a good thing too. So what if he needed some demon juice, he could stop any time he wanted to, couldn't he?

Once he was done he wiped the blood off of his mouth and looked at Ruby. “You taste good.” He said smirking and giving her another long kiss. As well as the demon blood, Sam still hadn't sworn off Ruby either, and quite honestly, he didn't want to. She wrapped her arms around him, deepening the kiss, and before either of them could stop themselves, they were on the floor. Sam slid his hand down her clothes until he found the zipper to her jeans. He yanked them down a bit along with her panties and found that Ruby had a similar idea, because his pants were down too.

“I wish we had more time to do this, but with Dean being so watchful lately, I can't be gone for too long without getting a thrashing when I go home.” Sam murmured, cupping her face. Ruby gave him a sympathetic smile as she straddled him. “I know. I wish we could have more than a quickie here and there, but oh well. At least now that Dean thinks you're clean he isn't having Grace babysit you.”

“That was actually Rachel's idea.” Sam said, gasping softly as Ruby went down on him. As she began riding him, moving up and down, she kissed him, hard, biting his lip so hard that a few drops of blood smeared on them. She heard him groan softly and picked up the pace, kissing him deeper and moving her hips faster. She dug her nails into his arms, pinning him down, loving the way she could bend him to her will so easily. The plan was set in motion and even if Sam and Dean did manage to uncover it, they wouldn't have any time to stop it. Once Sam was done and had sated his urges, she rolled off of him and stood up. She straightened her clothes and Sam did the same, getting up off of the dusty dirt covered floor. “So, same time tomorrow?” she said. Sam nodded. He turned, starting to walk away, but then he felt something strange and he stopped. “Hey Ruby.” He said, his eyes narrowing. “Do you sense something odd?” Ruby looked around and shrugged. “Nope. Everything seems fine to me. You probably need to get home soon though. Dean is going to be pissed if he finds you gone again.”

“Yeah, you're right. It's probably just my imagination anyway. Bye Ruby.” He said, and walked out of the barn. He drove away in his car, and she waited until the tail lights were no longer visible before disappearing.

Grace snorted as she watched Sam drive away and sensed Ruby disappear. She had been watching through a hole in the roof of the barn the whole time. She had looked away during the sex scene though. That was just unnatural she thought, shuddering. Going at it on the barn floor Sam, with a slut like Ruby no less? Ugh, mortals can be so disgusting sometimes. As she walked to the edge of the barn roof she couldn't help but wonder what Dean was going to say when Sam got home.

Sam quietly, almost noiselessly opened the front door and shut it behind him. He tiptoed across the floor and turned to go in the living room, but Dean was standing there.

And he looked pissed.

“So, did you have a late night attack of the munchies or something? Maybe it was something else. Mind explaining it to me Sam?” he said, sounding more than a little perturbed.

“Dean, I didn't do anything wrong I just went to see Ruby.” He said, licking his lips nervously.

“You went to see Ruby? I thought you two were history. How can you even stand to look at her and not want to kill her, not to mention fool around. Sam, she's a demon, we hunt things like her! She could kill you! I don't trust her and look at what she's done to you! You're still hooked on the demon blood crap and it's not helping. Sam, over these last few weeks you've changed, and it's scaring the hell out of me. I barely know you anymore!”

Sam crossed his arms and felt anger well up inside of him. “You don't want me to sleep with Ruby? Wow Dean. You're a real hypocrite you know that? It's not like you and Grace don't do the same thing. I've seen the way you two ogle each other. As for the demon blood, it's not really hurting me. It just makes me stronger. I can control myself, it's not harming anyone. And hey, if I've changed a little then you've changed a lot. Dean, not once since you've been back have you mentioned what it was like in Hell, and I keep asking you over and over. I can tell that it really got to you, messed you up, and that's okay. But why should I talk to you if you won't talk to me? What was I supposed to do all those months that you where gone? Bobby and I buried you! I was alone and grieving! Give me a break why don't you?”

Dean let out an exasperated sigh. “Well at least I'm not sleeping with a whore.”

Sam looked at Dean for a moment, anger flashing in his eyes as rage consumed his features. Before Dean could react Sam had him by the throat. Tightening his grip, he picked Dean up and threw him across the room. Dean hit the side of the staircase, hard. The wind was knocked out of him and for a moment he couldn't breathe. Fear overcame his initial shock as he lay there, trying to get some air. Sam walked over and Dean heard him laugh menacingly as he picked him up by the collar of his shirt and threw him again. This time Dean skidded into the kitchen and hit the leg of the table. He looked up into Sam's face, or the man who used to be Sam. I should have stopped it the instant Castiel told me to and now I'm out of time. I never thought that Sam would become such a monster. How could he do this to me? To our family? He saw Sam pull something out of his pocket.

It was a knife.

“I'm going to kill you now Dean. You don't get to tell me what to do anymore. Have a nice time in Hell and say hello to dad for me.” Sam said, putting it to Dean's throat. Then Dean saw a flash and Sam ended up pinned to the back door.

Grace stood there with her own dagger in hand. “Dean, are you alright?” she called anxiously, never taking her gaze away from Sam's face. Both of them looked fierce with their eyes consumed in black. Dean managed to sit up and winced as his chest protested in pain. He slipped his hand under his shirt and when he touched his side nearly yelped in agony. It hurt to breathe, and he knew with certainty that Sam had managed to bruise, if not break, a few of his ribs. He looked up in time to see Sam fling Grace off of him like she weighed no more than a feather. The dagger she held flew out of her hand and she hit the cabinet. Glass and dishes broke and fell onto the tile floor, shattering. She lay on the floor, glass shining in her hair, unmoving. Dean realized with a pang of fear that she was bleeding. “Grace.” He whispered feebly, still trying to recover from Sam choking him. He managed to crawl a few steps towards her before Sam grabbed him again. He heard footsteps coming down the stairs and prayed that Bobby didn't get hurt. His brother punched him a few times in the face and the nose. Dean felt his body growing weak fast and his vision blurred. For the first time in a long time he found himself praying for help, any help. Sam dropped him on the ground.

Dean heard a rustling that sounded like wings and felt a cool, soft hand touch his face. He also heard what sounded like Sam getting hurled across the room. Judging by the obscenities that were flowing out of Sam's mouth, Dean concluded that it must have been Castiel. Dean's concentration was broken by a soft calming voice in his head, whispering words in a language that he didn't understand. Instantly his body felt better, healed. He opened his eyes and found Rachel kneeling over him.

“Grace….” He croaked. Rachel nodded in understanding, leaving his side and walking over to where her friend lay. Placing a hand on her, she murmured a few words in that weird language again and Grace began to stir. But then, out of the corner of his eye, Dean saw Sam punch Castiel in the face and throw him so hard that the angel went through the wall. Sam walked over to where Castiel was, grabbing him by the collar of his jacket and throwing him onto the tiled floor. Sam managed to kick Castiel in the side a few times before Rachel tackled him.

She kneed him in the groin and then round house kicked him in the face so hard that Dean could have sworn he heard bones crash into each other, breaking. Sam dropped to the floor, screaming in agony as blood poured from his wounds. Dean smiled grimly, thinking the angels had the upper hand, but then Sam leapt up and swung his leg around, knocking Rachel off of her feet. Before she could get up he pinned her to the floor and pulled out a blade. Dean scoffed, thinking of how stupid his brother must be to think that a normal blade could harm an angel, but then the blade began to glow with an ominous bluish white light.

Rachel looked up at the demented Sam Winchester with wide eyes and her face paled in fear as she realized what he held in his hand. Sam fixed the defenseless Rachel Anderson in his harsh black gaze, enjoying the fear that consumed her features. He reveled in her trembling body, knowing just as well as she did that he was about to kill her. As he raised the knife above his head, he vaguely wondered what angel blood would taste like. He stabbed the blade deep in to Rachel's gut.

And she screamed. It wasn't just any scream however, it sounded like a human being consumed in the worst torture imaginable, suffering horribly while dying. It didn't just hurt Dean's ears; it was a sound that brought back all the agonies he had suffered in Hell a hundred fold. Dean found himself paralyzed in a hopeless fear, felt the sense of ultimate despair jolt through his body. His heart lurched in his chest painfully, and Dean feared that it would burst with sadness and heartache. Everything that was made of porcelain or glass in the room completely shattered and fell like glistening rain to the floor.

A cold gust of wind flew by Dean and he saw Grace pull Sam off of Rachel. She hit him with such force that he was knocked out instantly. While Grace was preoccupied with kicking the ever loving crap out of an unconscious Sam, Castiel crawled to Rachel. He yanked the blade that Sam had used to stab Rachel out of her and swore. He looked grief stricken as tears began to cascade from his steel grey eyes down his cheeks. He pulled a small flask of blue liquid out of his coat and poured it down Rachel's throat, murmuring words in the angel's language in an attempt to heal her wound and keep her from bleeding to death.

Once Grace was through beating the hell out of Sam she walked over to Rachel, took one look at the blade, and burst out crying. “This can't be happening, this can't be happening, this can't be happening!” she sobbed. Dean got up and walked over to them. Taking one look at Rachel's broken body, however fast it was healing, caused his eyes to mist as well, and it was everything he could do to keep from crying along with Grace and Castiel.

Then Bobby walked into the kitchen. “Hey Sam and Dean…..What the Hell?” he stood there in shocked silence as Dean explained what had transpired. At the end of it Bobby looked pretty shaken up, and Dean felt that way and even more so as he held a sobbing Grace in his arms. Once Dean managed to get his voice even, he spoke.

“So, that blade did something to Rachel, didn't it? Did it kill her? Is she dead?” his voice sounded hollow.

Castiel took a shaky breath. “That blade is the Angel blade. You know how the Demon blade can kill demons? Well, this blade can do the same to angels.”

“Is she going to die?” Grace asked in a small voice. “I don't think that Rachel is going to die” Castiel responded, “because she wasn't hit in any vital organs, but this doesn't bode well. She's still unconscious and I don't know exactly what that means. I'm scared Dean. I can't sense her power. At a time like this, that's what we needed the most.”

“Does this mean she's human?” Grace asked, her sobs turning to hiccups. Castiel shook his head. “I don't know Grace; we'll just have to wait until she gets up. In the meantime, I think it's best if you detain Sam somewhere. We don't need him harming anyone else tonight.”

After making sure that Grace was okay, Bobby and Dean carried the unconscious Sam down to Bobby's safe room and locked him in. As they walked up the stairs Dean and Bobby exchanged worried glances but said nothing. At this point, neither of them knew what to do.

They found Grace and Castiel in the living room. Rachel lay on the couch, Grace on one side and Castiel on the other. Grace's eyes were red and puffy from crying and Castiel's eyes held worry and weariness. He cleared his throat, glanced at Rachel to make sure she was still breathing, and spoke.

“Rachel and I were already on our way here to speak with you before you prayed for help Dean. We were going to share some interesting news with you. During these past few weeks, Lilith has managed to break almost all of the seals that bind Lucifer. In addition to this, Rachel and I have both been visited by an angel named Zachariah who has warned us that interfering with you or your brother could be potentially harmful to us as well as you because in doing so, we are rebelling against Heaven. Rachel and I agreed however, that you take precedence over other priorities at this moment. Neither I nor Rachel knows why he is interested in you and Sam or what he has planned for you. We will however, stay with you until you tell us to leave.”

Dean nodded. “Go on.”

“I am going to ask you to keep a watch over Rachel while I am gone. You see, after visiting with you here, we were planning on going to meet with some other angels over a particular crime that needs solving. Somehow, and we don't know how yet, but someone, Lilith we suspect, has gotten a hold of Lucifer's blade and has murdered seven angels. Please understand that it is nearly impossible to kill us. The only things that can do that are the Angel blade, Lucifer's sword, combat with another angel, or the words of God himself. I'm sure you can see why this is a disturbing problem.”

Dean nodded. Grace spoke next. “But can't you just narrow down your suspects? After that you can use Rachel's sword to destroy Lucifer's can't you? I mean, they're polar opposites, so they should just cancel each other out. Lucifer's sword kills angels and Rachel's sword slays demons.”

“I wish it were that simple Grace, but unless Rachel herself appoints another to take over her position as Guardian, we can't use her sword. She was going to come with me to interrogate a few suspects, but now that she's human, I'll have to go alone. Insurrection among the garrison will not be tolerated.”

“Well, I hope you find who it is. Good luck. Don't worry, Rachel will be safe here, we'll keep a close eye on her.” Bobby said.

“Thank you Bobby. I am in your debt. Before I go though, Grace, there's something you should know. It appears that Lilith and Anya are both working together as a means to an end. We don't know why exactly, yet. So, just keep a close eye on Rachel. Because she's human, Anya shouldn't be able to track her as easily as she did the last time she escaped, but it's better to err on the side of caution. I'll be back in a few hours hopefully.” Grace nodded, looking around cautiously, heightening her senses so as to better be prepared.

Castiel looked at Rachel one last time and swept a lock of her midnight hair out of her face. He leaned over her, whispering something in the ancient language that no one was able to understand, and kissed Rachel on the temple before dissipating in the air.

“What did he say? Could you pick up anything?” Dean asked, just for curiosity's sake. “Well, I picked up something, but it wasn't much. I haven't spoken the angel's language for so long that I don't know hardly any of the words anymore. But I did catch that it was a protection spell. Castiel is really worried about her you know.” She said, glancing at Rachel's sleeping form.

“So, they are together then? I thought so, what with the way his eyes follow her everywhere she goes and all. She's the same way. Who is this Anya person that Castiel was talking about?” Bobby asked.

Grace took a deep breath and sighed. “Okay, I'll tell you the story, but it's going to be awhile so make yourselves comfortable.” Dean got some beer and pie and Bobby got some whiskey. Grace took a beer from Dean and after a few sips began her story.

“Long, long ago, before humans were ever created, Rachel and Anya lived a nice life in Heaven. They were sisters and close ones at that, but from the beginning they were different. While Rachel was, say, a model citizen, Anya was anything but. Rachel always forgave her however, because she loved her. When Lucifer tried to wrench control away from God however, war began. Everyone took sides. The two sisters were split up, their loyalties divided. Anya wanted power, so she chose Lucifer. Rachel had faith, so she stayed with God. After man was made and Satan was cast out of Heaven, well, you know the story of Adam and Eve. At the end of that little incident, Rachel was appointed as the Guardian of Eden and given the flaming sword to keep mortals form entering the gates. Anya meanwhile, had been wreaking havoc among the mortals and Earth. I had been doing my own little share of chaos up until that point, but I never went as far as Anya did. She had stupid mortals sacrificing themselves and worshipping her like she was some Goddess or something. Talk about insane in the membrane. Anyway, after awhile, God grew weary of the mortals he had created and decided to destroy them, everyone but Noah and his family that is. You know that story too I'm sure. After the flood, the location of Eden was hidden and Rachel was told that she could leave. Rachel agreed to leave Eden, but asked that she be allowed to stay on Earth and impersonate a human. She wanted to help people in their lives and teach them all the good things about God and what not. God allowed her to do this, and because of her faithful service, he gave her a choice. So she wouldn't be so lonely, he allowed her to choose a companion to inhabit Earth with her, and he gave her the choice of her sister or me. Now, don't get me wrong, Rachel loved her sister, but she knew that if Anya was allowed to roam free that there was no way that she could be controlled and that Hell would soon be upon the Earth. Rachel feared it would get so bad that God would destroy all of mankind. Not to mention that fact that Anya had done some horrible things, like blasphemy, idol worship, murder, infidelity, and all that other horrible stuff. So Rachel chose me. In her eyes, I was the lesser of two evils, and I was her friend and treated her a lot better than her sister did. That pissed Anya off, but she also got mad because Rachel made it a point to personally put her under chains of darkness so she wouldn't ever be loosed upon the Earth again.”

Grace paused to drink some more beer. Dean, who was done with his first piece of pie, got a second. “Couldn't Rachel have chosen another angel to be her companion though? No offense.” Bobby asked, taking a drink of whiskey. Grace shrugged. “I don't know, I've never asked Rachel that. She probably wouldn't have though. Even among the angels themselves, she never really got close to anyone. Truth be told, she can be a little anti social when it comes to angels. She was always different, even among them.”

“Hmm, so if she wanted to, she could've chosen Cas to be her companion and not you huh?” Dean said.

“Well, yeah, I guess. But she and Cas didn't really know each other well back then.”

“How did they meet each other anyway?” Bobby asked.

Grace nibbled her bottom lip in concentration. It was hard for her to remember, considering it had been centuries since Rachel had told her. “Well, if I remember correctly, a few high end demons got loose and caused a pretty big stink here on Earth. I think it had to do with world domination or something, but anyway, Michael, the archangel, wanted Rachel to give him her sword to hunt them down. He had Castiel's group of soldiers with him. Apparently he told her that she wasn't strong enough to do it by herself and that she should let more powerful angels, like he himself, handle it. Rachel doesn't take crap from anyone, even Michael, and it really pissed her off that he flat out told her she couldn't do the job. Hey, even angels have their sexist moments. As the story goes, Rachel refused him. Believe me, it was a titanic deal to refuse an archangel anything. I personally think they're snobs' because they like to push everyone around. So, Rachel refused him, and that took some balls guys, but then it gets even better. She told him that she'd have all those demons back in Hell by the end of the day without any help from any of them. And she totally did it! Michael's been so pissed about that day that he hasn't asked for the sword since. It really spoke volumes to the angels that she'd refused him and stayed true to her word. She got a lot of respect for that, and she deserved it too. So anyway, Castiel was so in awe of her that he managed to overcome his shyness, because he was very shy back then, and they started talking. They had a lot of things in common, Rachel told me about it, and if they weren't immortal it would be freaky, but they became close friends. That friendship has lasted till this very day.”

“Wow, that's pretty awesome. No wonder they seem close. I guess its fate, them ending up together.” Dean said.

Bobby gave Dean a weird look. “My goodness Dean, that sounded like a Lifetime movie quote. Is there something you need to tell us?” he teased. Dean just rolled his eyes and shoved a piece of pie into his mouth. Grace laughed. Rachel began to stir however, and all eyes focused on her.

“What happened?” she asked groggily.

“Well, first off, we all thought you were dead for a minute.” Grace said. “Yeah, you really worried your boyfriend.” Dean said. Rachel blushed but murmured for Grace to continue. “Then we realized you weren't dead, but that you were human.” Rachel looked a little annoyed but nodded for her to continue. “And so Sam is in the basement and Castiel went off to look for that angel that murdered seven of you guys and he told us to watch you until he gets back. He told them about Lilith and how most of the seals are broken. Oh, and you're sister's out for your blood apparently, but you're human so it'll be almost impossible for her to track you. I think that's all you've missed.”

Rachel let all that information sink in and sighed. “Well, it could have been worse I guess. How's Sam?”

“I don't know.” Dean said shrugging. “I left him in Bobby's safe room to cool off. I haven't checked him since.”

Rachel nodded. “Where's the angel blade?”

Everyone looked at each other. “I'll go check the kitchen.” Dean said. He came back after a few minutes and shrugged. “It's not there, and Bobby and I searched Sam for any weapons when we put him down there, so I'm guessing Castiel took it.”

“Well, now that you're one of us lowly mortals, is there anything you want to do that you didn't do because you were an angel?” Grace asked.

Rachel shook her head. “No, not really, but some coffee would be nice, and I'm not talking Folgers, I mean the fancy stuff.”

Grace and Dean exchanged glances. “Well, I guess we'll get you some, after all, you're mortal only once.” While they searched the town for a Starbucks, Bobby and Rachel went to check on Sam.

“He looks pretty bad if you ask me, of course, with all of you beating the crap out of him, that's bound to happen.” Bobby said, looking at Sam, who was still sleeping, through the small window of the door. “I'm glad he didn't hurt himself too badly, but I have to admit, this is one of the things that Cas and I worried about.” Rachel said.

“Is there anything we can do to nip this demon blood thing in the bud? Or do we have time?” Bobby asked. Rachel sighed and looked at Bobby. Her brown eyes held a weariness that he had only seen in the oldest of people. There was still light in them though, and that gave him hope. “I think you might be cutting it close, but honestly I don't know for certain. Lilith doesn't have very many more seals to break before the end comes.”

“Well that's good to know.” Bobby grumbled. Rachel looked at him sympathetically, and he noticed that she had a hand on the door to steady herself. He mentally berated himself, realizing how tired she must feel, and grabbed her arms to steady her further. “Come on honey, we need to get you to a bed so you can sleep. Tell you what, I'll give you mine. It's the most comfortable in the house.” He said, leading her up the stairs.

“But, it's yours, and you need to sleep, you're human.” Rachel said.

“Well I didn't almost die today. Besides, you need to heal, and sleep is the best way to do that. I wouldn't put you on the couch after all.”

He led her to a small bedroom upstairs at the back of the house. The room was small, but cozy, and as Rachel crawled between the comforter and the sheets a weariness that settled into her very bones overcame her. With a yawn she realized how tired she was, but she was almost afraid to sleep. She wasn't certain that she wanted to have dreams, and if Anya was looking for her then she might find her, and sleep wasn't really the best option with that thought in her head. Bobby came and sat by the bed in a chair, shotgun and a flask of holy water in hand.

“Castiel told us to watch out for you, and that's what I'm going to do. You just go on to sleep now, I'll make sure that no harm comes to you while you rest.”

Rachel gave him a weary smile. “Thank you.”

He nodded.

“Oh, and Bobby?”

“Yeah?”

“Well, I just wanted you to know something. Your wife forgave you a long time ago. She's watching you from Heaven and she loves you.” Rachel murmured, allowing herself to give into her sleepiness. Bobby, on the other hand, remained wide awake, thinking of life with his long ago wife and feeling peace that she had forgiven him. He realized as well, that he needed to forgive himself now too.

Dean and Grace walked into the room, coffee in hand. “How is she?” Grace asked.

“Asleep.” Bobby replied.

“So we went to town for nothing?” Dean said. “Just put the coffee in the fridge.” Grace said. “How can you be complaining? You got more pie!”

“Yeah, I guess you're right.” Dean said. They went downstairs. After a good hour, Dean came to relieve Bobby of his vigil, along with Grace. They kept watch for another two hours before Castiel reappeared. He informed them that the traitor had been none other than Uriel. When Dean and Bobby asked him what to do about Sam, he said that it would probably be in everyone's best interests if they kept him under lock and key for a few days, so that he could detoxify. Castiel warned them to prepare themselves, because Lilith didn't have many more seals to break, for the coming Apocalypse.

After the discussion, it was getting close to dawn, so Grace and Dean went downstairs to sleep in the living room. Bobby went to his office, planning to do more research but falling asleep.

Dean changed into a faded pair of pants and a t shirt and lay on the couch. Grace, who had changed into a pair of shorts and a tank top, was lying on his chest. Dean ran his fingers through her hair and down her back, resting his hand on her butt. She squirmed a little, hooking one of her legs under his, and traced circles around one of his nipples. They both tended to play this game in some form or another every night, slowly building the arousal until they both gave in to their baser urges, but tonight was different. Tonight, they both wanted the intimacy more than the sex. For a long time neither of them said anything. They just wanted to hold on to something warm, real, reassuring. Grace was feeling a little worried and scared because she'd nearly lost her best friend, and Dean was terrified because he had no idea of how to help Sam or stop him. In each others arms though, they felt these feelings fade away only to be replaced by comfort. They both secretly knew that there was more to their relationship than good sex and chemistry. It was something that went deeper than that, and in the back of their minds, they both had an idea of what that thing was.

“I love you Dean.” Grace whispered, afraid to say it any louder.

Dean's hand stilled, up until that point he had been squeezing her butt muscles, and Grace waited for a long, trepidation filled moment for him to say something.

“Grace……I love you too.” He said, sounding as if he was telling it to himself for the first time. “I love you.” He said again, sounding happy. Grace looked up at him and smiled and he beamed down at her. They kissed then, nice, long, slow, hot, and sweet their tongues mating languidly, exploring each others mouths and tasting one another as if they were dying of thirst. After they both came up for air Dean tightened his hold on her, never wanting to let her go. Grace just sighed in contentment and reveled in the feeling of being loved.

“Hey Grace.” Dean murmured.

“Hmm?” he was stroking her hair, and it felt nice.

“You know what else I love?” there was a slight hint of amusement in his voice.

“If you say pie, Dean Winchester, I will kick your ass.” Grace said playfully.

“What? I wasn't going to say that, you didn't let me finish! I was going to say your eyes, or your laugh, or your smile, or your butt. Why in the world would I say pie?” Dean said, laughing, knowing full and well that Grace knew exactly what he was going to say.

“That's what I thought.” She murmured. Their conversation faded once again into silence and within minutes they had both fallen into a much needed and contented rest.

Castiel meanwhile, had been sitting upstairs in Bobby's room with Rachel, who was asleep. Besides mumbling a few indistinguishable words in her sleep she hadn't moved, so he moved and sat on the opposite side of the bed. His movement must have awoken her, because she rolled over and through sleep lidded eyes, looked at him.

“Cas?” she asked softly.

“Yes, it's me.” He replied. “ I just wanted to move closer to you so that I could get a better look. I like watching you sleep. It makes you look young and vulnerable, not so care ridden and weary. You look peaceful instead of gravely serious. But if it's making you uncomfortable, I'll leave.” He amended quickly.

Rachel shook her head, giving him a soft smile that put butterflies in his stomach but made him happy all at the same time. “Please stay with me. I don't want you to go. You can even lie down beside me if you want to.”

So Castiel laid down on the bed after he had taken his coat off, and Rachel laid demurely by his side. He slipped an arm around her, holding her close to him, and she laid her hand on his chest and buried her face in his neck. Castiel smiled gently and turned his head, meaning to kiss her forehead, but the instant he turned his face down, she turned hers up and their lips brushed.

For a moment they both froze, uncertain about what to do, but then Rachel pressed herself closer to him, her lips included, and after a moment of hesitation, Cas pressed his lips back to hers too.

They both felt tingly inside, and felt heat envelope them. They both involuntarily shuddered as they pulled apart, feeling like electricity was jolting down their spines. Rachel smiled and Castiel smiled and she fell asleep in his arms, content to let her dreams take her wherever they may.

Castiel didn't sleep however, content to watch Rachel slumber and hear the whispers of her mortal dreams inside his mind. He watched as the moon's light cascaded on her features, giving her skin a pale glow, and he continued to watch even when the sun rose and cast shadows on her skin. As he lay there holding Rachel, a single question kept repeating itself in his mind.

How, exactly, do you tell your very best friend that you're in love with her?