Supernatural Fan Fiction ❯ Angels and Demons: A Supernatural Fanfic ❯ Light and Dark ( Chapter 17 )

17. Light and Dark

Bobby sighed and got up out of his recliner, wincing as his body protested in pain. He was stiff, having slept in the chair in the same position all night long. Getting up and ignoring the sounds of his bones cracking, he walked into the kitchen, intent on making a pot of coffee before watching the early morning news and then beginning his research. His eyes widened and all of his breath whooshed out of him, feeling like he'd been punched in the gut. Standing there in front of the stove stood his long dead wife. As had been her habit when she was alive, she was making pies. She turned around and smiled at him, motioning for him to take a seat at the kitchen table, and there he found another shocking sight. Sitting at the table were John and Mary Winchester. They both smiled at him but he couldn't find the words to say, he could barely catch his breath. This can't be real, can it? I must be dreaming. He thought. A cup of coffee was placed in front of him and he looked at his strange visitors disbelievingly. What the Hell could have happened to cause this? They couldn't have just risen from their graves or gotten out of Hell. Someone's done something, but who and what? The boys are going to have fun with this one.

“Wow, you look awful. Was it another nightmare?” Dean asked as he and Grace walked out of their room at the same time that Rachel and Castiel were leaving theirs.

Rachel looked at him with tired eyes and grimly nodded. “Unfortunately yes Dean. It was yet another nightmare. As I understand it however, you were having some of your own. Hell isn't that pleasant of a place to find yourself in, is it?”

Dean looked a bit taken aback at her snappy tone but nodded. Hell was a horrible place indeed. “Sorry, it's just you look like you haven't slept at all.” He amended, not meaning to accidentally offend her. He knew she was dealing with more than just nightmares.

“I'm sorry, I'm just a little stressed. I never look forward to having to kill someone, even a demon. I just want this all to end.” Rachel responded wearily, sounding eons older than she looked, the obvious wisdom that her words and tone carried making her both look and sound ancient.

“I know. Before you know it, it will be.” Dean said, trying for Rachel's sake to sound genuinely happy and confident about it. She gave him a ghost of a smile, seeing right through him but appreciating his lackluster effort all the same. She turned, along with everyone one else, as a door creaked open. Sam poked his head out and his eyes widened in surprise. “You're all up early. I guess no one slept good last night.”

Rachel and Dean shook their heads. Sam and Ruby walked out of their room and for a minute everyone stood in the hallway, saying nothing.

“I have a feeling this isn't coincidence.” Grace quietly murmured, voicing everyone's unspoken thought. The fact that none of them had rested well seemed just a little odd, eerie. She had a sinking feeling that it was more than a bad omen. “Well I don't know about you guys, but I want some coffee and I'm getting claustrophobic just standing here, so if you'll excuse me.” Weaving her way through the small crowd she walked down the stairs. She turned to walk into the kitchen but paused, confusion clouding her face. Looking up at everyone she frantically motioned for them to come down.

“What is it Grace?” Rachel asked curiously, coming to stand by her friend. Looking into the kitchen however, her eyes widened and her face paled the slightest bit. “How is that even possible?” she whispered in wonder, looking at three people who were supposed to be dead. Castiel came up behind her, and when he saw the mobile corpses of the dead, looked completely and utterly dumbstruck. Ruby's mouth gaped open, sporting a similar expression, her features consumed in disbelief and shock.

“What's going on? Why are you all just standing here?” Dean muttered in annoyance, his friend's bodies blocking his view. Grace and Rachel exchanged nervous glances.

“Should we let them see?” Grace whispered uncertainty.

“I don't know. This isn't right. Something's gone terribly wrong somewhere, somehow. We can't exactly stop them though….” Rachel responded, seeing the confused looks on Sam and Dean's faces. Dean rolled his eyes and moved past Castiel and Ruby.

“No! You can't go in there!” Grace hissed, placing her palms on his chest, standing in between him and the entryway.

“Why not? It can't be that bad.” Dean said, grinning in amusement. She was obviously trying to protect him from something, and he found it slightly amusing. Grace looked frantically over at Rachel, not knowing what to say.

Rachel looked at a mildly befuddled Sam and sighed. “Let him go Grace. Dean and Sam deserve what little time they're offered. Enjoy the reunion boys.” She murmured as she moved to the side.

Grace did likewise and Sam followed his brother into the kitchen. For a moment there was dead silence.

“I don't think this was a good idea.” Grace whispered, looking worriedly into the kitchen and at a speechless Sam and Dean. Rachel shrugged. “Sam never knew his mother Mary, and now is his chance. I can't take that away from him. Dean's missed her too I know, and they've both missed John terribly. At least in the midst of all this Hell that we've had to go through, they can be happy for a little while.”

“Yeah, I guess you're right. I just hope this doesn't make things worse.” Grace muttered glumly. She heard Dean stammering something about how great it was to see his parents again.

“We should give them a minute.” Ruby murmured. The four went into the living room and quietly discussed how it was even remotely possible for the dead to be resurrected.

“It could be the work of a powerful witch.” Grace said.

“Maybe it's Anya.” Ruby suggested.

“It could be Raphael's handiwork for all we know.” Castiel sighed.

“You really think it could be angels? You're supposed to be the good guys.” Grace said. Rachel shrugged. “Nowadays, anything's possible.”

“Hey, Dean wants to introduce you guys to our parents.” Sam said as he walked up. Grace and Rachel exchanged glances, remembering the first time they'd been assigned to the infamous Winchester family. Castiel and Ruby had never met John or Mary. They followed Sam into the kitchen and while he slipped an arm around Ruby, Dean did the same thing to Grace. It amused Rachel the slightest bit to see the boys blushing as they introduced their wives to their mom and dad, who looked both surprised and pleased.

“Welcome to the family.” Mary murmured happily, getting up out of her seat and hugging the two women. “You certainly know how to pick `em boys.” John said happily, clapping both Sam and Dean on the back. “Who are they?” he asked curiously, looking intently at Rachel and Castiel.

“Oh, well these are our friends Rachel and Cas. They're hunters, just like we are.” Dean said, waving them over. Mary, a beacon of light and happiness, hugged them both. Even though it was out of Castiel's comfort zone, he managed to hide his embarrassment and after a moment of stiffness, gave her a small hug back. Rachel gave him a small reassuring smile. Then Bobby introduced them all to his wife and another round of hugs, laughter, and happiness ensued. Once the introductions had been made, everyone but Castiel and Rachel sat down. They excused themselves, claiming the need to do a little more research on a hunt, and went upstairs to their room. Rachel got out her laptop and for the next couple of hours, she and Castiel did some further research into finding out about how and why the dead had been brought back to life. An hour into it, Rachel got a call from Ellen.

“You tell me what the Hell is going on right now young lady. My husband is sitting in my kitchen talking with our daughter as if he never left.” Ellen sounded both angry and worried, and Rachel knew it was only because she didn't understand what was going on. Rachel herself didn't know much at that point, but she told Ellen what she'd been able to find. “Well, the only thing I've found is that this eerie supernatural phenomenon is only happening to hunter's who've had a family member die. I don't know who is doing this or why, but as soon as I know something I'll let you know. I would just enjoy the time while you can. Don't think about it and be happy. You're getting the chance that no one has ever gotten before. If nothing else, enjoy it for your daughter's sake. I'm sorry, but that's all I can tell you.” Rachel responded.

“Alright. I guess I will. Thanks Rachel. I'm assuming John, Mary, and Bobby's wife are all back?” Ellen murmured.

“You're correct.” She said.

“Well, say hi to them for me.” Ellen responded. Rachel assured her that she would do so and hung up.

Rachel turned her attention back to her computer and after another hour came up with an idea. “Hey Cas, what if Raphael really is doing this? The only thing I could think of is that the seals on Purgatory are being opened. If Raphael desires power than the easiest way to do that is to absorb souls.”

Castiel sucked in a breath. “We need to find out for certain.” He called out to Cassie and a second later she appeared, looking a little worse for the wear. “Hey guys, what's up?”

“We need you to clear something up for us. The dead are reappearing to hunters all over the country. The only explanation we can think of is that Raphael is breaking the seals on Purgatory, wanting to absorb souls for power. Are we right?” Castiel asked. Cassie sighed and nodded. “Unfortunately yes. It appears that is exactly what Raphael is doing. He still has a few seals to go, but he's unlocking them fast, and it's not just hunters that this is affecting. Many people around the world have similar stories. It gets worse too. Angels and demons are skirmishing all over the globe, hence all the natural disasters you've heard about. War is more than likely going to break out soon. I heard that you gave Raphael your sword and power. You should be careful.” Cassie murmured, looking at Rachel skeptically. Rachel nodded, explaining the visions and nightmares she'd been having. “When will I get my powers back?” she asked. Cassie looked at her sympathetically. “I wish I knew.” She responded.

“Do you have any news of Michael or Gabriel?” Castiel asked. Cassie sadly shook her head. “No, sorry, I don't. The only thing I've heard is that they might have found Joshua, but that's just a rumor. No one knows for sure. This whole fiasco should be fixed soon though. We've got numerous people working on this huge rift in the space time continuum thing. Hopefully it's resolved by the end of the day. I'll tell you more when I know more. Stay safe and be careful you two. Good luck with being human Rachel.” With a wink and a smile she was gone.

“Well….this sucks….” Castiel glumly muttered.

“You said it. Why are we doing this again?” Rachel asked.

“We have friends and family to worry about.” He responded.

“The ties that bind.” She said.

They wend downstairs and briefly shared the news with Grace and Ruby, seeing as Sam and Dean were occupied with conversing with their parents. She and Castiel found themselves sitting quietly in the living room, not sure what to do. Rachel had the eerie, nagging feeling that Anya was behind it all, but emotions and feelings were never constant, always changing. She rolled her eyes and concentrated on the happy chatter and occasional laughter that could be heard coming from the kitchen, along with the smell of baking pies.

Pretty soon they joined everyone for lunch and the conversation continued to be happy and joyful, laughter becoming second nature to everyone present. For a good hour and a half everyone spoke of happy memories from the past. After lunch Castiel and Rachel drifted back into the living room and flipped through the TV channels looking for something to watch. Shortly after settling on Jeopardy Rachel went to the bathroom, looking like she didn't feel good. After she was gone for more than a few minutes Castiel became a little concerned and hoping that it wasn't lady issues, knocked on the door. “Are you okay?” he called.

“I'm fine Cas.” Came Rachel's feeble reply. She shook her head and took some medicine to settle her stomach and take away her nausea. She had thrown up her lunch. Figuring that the tuna salad had upset her stomach, she flushed the toilet and grabbed a damp washcloth to clean her face. Looking into the mirror she saw how tired her eyes looked, a little bloodshot and dull. Her face was a little paler than usual, but that was probably due to the fact that she wasn't feeling all that great. She hadn't slept decently in days after all. Deciding she needed a good nap, Rachel opened the door and nearly ran into Castiel, who stepped back at the last second.

“Are you sure you're alright?” he asked worriedly, cupping her face and looking concerned. It hadn't escaped him how tired she'd been. “Are you sick? I can take you to a doctor you know. You're human now, so maybe you've caught something.”

Rachel nodded. “I think you're right. Don't worry though, it's probably just a little stomach bug. If I'm not better in a few days then I'll see a doctor. In the meantime however, I just want to sleep. I don't know what's wrong with me but I feel so tired Cas…”

“I know you do. Come on, let's get you to bed. Maybe a little nightmare free sleeping will do the trick. You never seem to have any during the daylight anyway.” He said, leading her into the bedroom. Laying under the soft warmth of the covers she was asleep in minutes. Castiel stayed by her side the whole time, not wanting to leave. Rachel had never been sick before, but of course she had never been human for so long either. The happiness he could sense coming from below stairs helped to calm him though. For the next couple of hours he was content to listen to the conversation, all the while keeping a close watch on his wife's dreams, allowing her to truly rest.

Rachel awoke just as the sun was beginning to set. Dusk was settling by the time she wandered down the stairs. Grace came out of the kitchen, looking at Rachel with concern. Exchanging an indecipherable glance with Castiel, she led them into the kitchen.

“Are you feeling better Rachel? Sorry if my cooking made you queasy. I haven't had the chance to practice in awhile.” Bobby's wife amended. Rachel smiled. “Don't worry. It's not your fault I'm sure. I probably just caught a little stomach bug or something.”

“Well, it's good to see you up and around anyway. We were a little worried about you.” Ruby murmured.

Suddenly the house shook slightly and the lights flickered. Everyone looked at each other with slight apprehension. Sam and Dean pulled their guns out of their pockets and Bobby got out a flask of holy water while Rachel grabbed some salt out of the cabinet and Grace and Ruby pulled out their demon blades. Sam and Dean had two extra guns between them and tossed them to their parents. A second later the windows shattered and the electricity went out. A whole horde of demons descended upon the house and a flurry of gunfire and pandemonium followed.

“We need more ammo!” Dean yelled, firing his gun and fast running out of bullets. Grace and Ruby exchanged glances, disappearing and a second later reappearing with more rock salt and guns. Tossing some to Sam and Dean, Grace handed Rachel a gun and she made a mad dash for the kitchen window, shooting a few demons and covering the edge with salt to prevent any further demons from coming in through there. She was suddenly grabbed and heard a gun shot. Thankfully Grace had shot her assailant in the face. While Mary salted the back door and the gunfire continued, Rachel heard windows breaking in the next room.

“Come on Grace, I need back up.” She said, running into the living room. While Grace covered her she salted the doors and windows, nearly being overtaken by half a dozen demons but being saved by Dean and Castiel. While Dean made short work of the first three, blasting them chalk full of rock salt, Castiel consumed the others in holy fire and then they headed for the library, following Grace and Rachel.

Ruby had gone upstairs, taking Sam with her and salting every possible entry point to further prevent any more demons from getting inside. Thankfully John, Mary, and Bobby's wife had followed them up, and while Ruby lined every door and window with a thick barrier of salt, the rest covered her, shooting at least a dozen demons. After checking all three rooms they went downstairs, meeting everyone else in the living room.

Grace had captured one particular demon that claimed to know what was going on and while holding her demon blade to its throat, the demon told them what it knew.

“I bet you're surprised to see me here.” Meg said, smiling up at Dean as she remembered their last encounter.

“Not really, you guys are like cockroaches.” He retorted.

“Now, tell them what you told me.” Grace murmured.

“Alright fine. I know why the dead are walking the Earth. You see, it is one of the seals being broken that keeps Purgatory locked away, but Crawley has been making deals with the archangel and in exchange for souls his pathetic life will be spared, unlike the rest of us. Thankfully, we no longer have that to worry about.” She said laughingly.

“What do you mean?” Rachel murmured.

Grace looked at her and smiled. “Well, well, look who's mortal. You really have to ask? Deep down you already know the answer. She's won, and she's coming to destroy you. Nothing can save you from Her. You're dead. You're all dead.” She sneered. Dean opened his mouth to say something but then noticed that his parents' were starting to look transparent, flickering, like ghosts.

“Mom? Dad? What's happening to you?” he asked. Sam looked at them wide eyed. Bobby saw the same thing was happening to his wife and pointed a gun in Meg's face. “What did you do to them you bitch?”

“I didn't do anything. That hole that the broken seal created in the cosmos is closing, no doubt the work of your angel friends.” Meg said, looking warily at the gun.

“So, this is goodbye?” Sam asked.

Mary nodded. “Yes Sam, this is goodbye. It means so much to me that I got to see you all grown up. You're a good man Sam. I'm so proud of you.” She hugged him. He felt tears sting his eyes.

“I'm proud of you son. You've done well. You and Sam stay together now, watch out for him.” John said, hugging Dean who was at the moment too choked up to say anything.

“I love you Dean, and I'm proud of you too. You've become such a good hunter, a good man.” Mary said, hugging her oldest son. “I love you too mom, and I miss you.” He tearfully responded.

“I know you do sweetie, I know.” She replied, kissing him on the cheek and looking into his eyes one last time. Even with tears rolling down his face, Dean couldn't force himself to look away, wouldn't.

“I always knew you'd make a fine hunter Sam. Keep up the good work. Family is what's important.” John said, hugging Sam, who smiled grimly. “Yeah dad, I know.” He sniffed. He let go and Sam took a step back. Bobby was saying goodbye to his wife, who was telling him how much she loved him and that he should forgive himself because she had forgiven him a long time ago. Sam looked away, wiping his eyes, unable to look at the tears rolling down Bobby's face.

Ruby grabbed his hand and gently squeezed it, comforting him as best she could. He gave her a tearful smile and squeezed back. Dean, with visible effort, tore himself from his mother's embrace and Grace slipped an arm around him as his parents and Bobby's wife slowly faded away.

Once they were gone the group stood in silence for a minute and then heard glass breaking. “Oh crap, we forgot about your back room.” Ruby said. Meg laughed but it was cut short because Grace slit her throat. A dozen demons flooded the home, surrounding the group and just standing there, not making a move to fight. Even when Sam, Dean, and Bobby pulled out their guns and Grace and Ruby held their blades, the demons didn't flinch. Grace and Ruby exchange glances, their eyes widening.

“She's coming.” Castiel murmured, putting himself in between Rachel and the circle of demons. Grace and Ruby said nothing but flanked her on either side. Sam, Bobby, and Dean all looked ready for a fight, completing the other half of the circle behind her, their guns at the ready. Rachel stood in the middle, feeling more than a little nervous. It was finally happening, and she felt powerless to stop it. If any of her friends died for her then she'd never forgive herself, wouldn't be able to live with herself.

More demons filed in and stood around them, blocking any possible escape. Even with their weapons and skills, everyone knew they would be hard pressed to kill the amount of demons that were in the room. As the second ticked by silence enveloped the whole house. It was as if the very world itself was holding its breath, waiting, waiting…..

And then she came.

“My, my, I must say I'm surprised. Surely you can't expect your friends to be able to protect you. Poor mortal Rachel, are you really willing to let these people die for you? Of course, now that I think about it, you always were a coward.” Anya stood there, her dark eyes glimmering with bloodlust, surveying the group like a predator stalking its prey. She snapped her fingers and the demons disappeared.

She took a few steps toward them and paused, smiling and looking half mad. Her reddish brown hair flowed as she moved, walking around the circle. Anya paused in front of Sam and Dean. “You must be the Winchester boys.”

They said nothing.

“Well, your daddy proved to be fun in Hell all the same. He never stopped screaming.” She chuckled darkly. Dean's jaw clenched but he said nothing.

Anya turned her attention to Bobby.

“Ahh, you're the hunter who killed his wife. How humane of you. You thought she was a demon right? Like me? Stupid mortal. In the back of your mind you thought you knew what you were doing, but you were wrong. You messed up and an innocent life paid the price. Funny thing is, no one can hate you as much as you hate yourself, isn't that right?”

If looks could kill then Anya would have dropped dead. The death glare that came from him was powerful, but unfortunately it wasn't instantly fatal. Anya smiled sweetly and went on.

“Long time no see Ruby, I hear you and Lilith had a whole lot of fun deceiving Sam and getting him to free Lucifer. Since then however, I've heard that you've changed your ways. Apparently you're quite a good little demon now, and you would be, becoming a human's bitch. I know you though, and there's just sometimes that the bad girl comes out again. You're tempted to steal, murder. A leopard can't change it's spots, and you can't change your nature. You tell yourself it's all for Sam right, that you love him? well I have news for you girl. One day you'll snap and he'll see you for the monster you are. You're just trying to prove to yourself that you're worth something right? Well you're not. You know just as well as I do that you don't deserve anything, least of all what you have. Once a whore, always a whore.”

Ruby glared at her and lashed out with her blade, stabbing Anya in the arm. Anya screamed but because it wasn't in or near a vital organ, it didn't kill her, it only slowed her down. Anya knocked the blade out of her hand, hissing and grabbing her, throwing her against the far wall. Ruby hit her head so hard that she passed out.

Dean, Sam and Bobby started firing salt rounds into her but were dismayed to find that their technique didn't work either. Anya shrieked in anger and grabbed Sam and Dean, throwing Sam so hard that he went through the staircase. She punched Dean in the face, splitting it open. Dean howled in agony and dropped to the floor.

Anya felt another stab of pain, this time in her shoulder, and screamed in rage as she whirled around and grabbed Grace's arm, yanking so hard that it broke. Ignoring her scream of pain, Anya knocked her off her feet and punched her a few times in the face. “I'll kill you bitch. It was me she should have saved, not you. Never you.”

Castiel pulled Anya off of an almost unconscious Grace and punched her so hard that for a second her jaw was dislocated. She flew across the room, skidding on the floor and hitting a nearby wall. He walked over to her and picked her up again, intent on snapping her neck before consuming her in holy fire, but she grabbed him in a vise like grip and hurled him into the adjacent wall, kicking him in the gut and then in the face.

A few rounds of rock salt found their way into her back and she whirled around, rage consuming her features, her eyes completely black. Faster than the eye could see she materialized in front of Bobby and yanked him off of his feet, throwing him into a nearby bookshelf.

She heard footsteps behind her and turned, following their source. She found the person she was looking for in the library and cornered her. Rachel's eyes were wide with fear, her face pale. It amused Anya to find her trembling. She slowly closed the distance between them, knowing that even if Rachel wanted to she couldn't run. There was no way out now.

“You have no idea of how long I've waited for this day. It's been a long time sis.” She said, laughing darkly as she heard Rachel's heartbeat quicken. Rachel remained silent.

“You're going to die. Not today, not tomorrow, but you will. Don't worry though; I'll make it nice and slow, painful. Those visions you've had will be nothing compared to what I'll do to you.”

Rachel gulped, shuddering, but said nothing. Anya went on. “Too bad you're human now right? As the Guardian you might have stood a chance.” Anya grabbed Rachel by the throat and slowly squeezed, feeling a rush of excitement at how helpless she was.

Rachel's eyes glazed over but before they rolled back into her head Anya was tackled by Castiel. Rachel hit the floor, gasping for air. Anya hissed in outrage and pulled something out of her pocket. She stabbed a shocked Castiel in the gut with the angel blade. His scream of utter agony caused something in Rachel's fearful state to snap back to reality and anger filled her up, giving her a voice to speak.

“Why don't you get what you came here for you black eyed bitch?” she snapped. She scrambled to her feet. Anya moved from Castiel to Rachel in milliseconds and backhanded Rachel across the face so hard that blood pooled into her mouth. She hit the floor with a loud thud.

Anya grabbed her by her hair, mercilessly yanking her up and ignoring her yelp of pain. “Your speech isn't nice for an angel.” she barked, slapping her again. This time Rachel felt light headed. “I shouldn't be surprised. I forget that you're a mortal, a stupid, unclean, defiled mortal. You're worth less than nothing. And you know what?” she yanked Rachel's hair hard again and tears pooled in Rachel's eyes and slid down her pale cheeks. When Anya spoke next her voice was filled with loathing, hatred, pure evil.

“You don't even have a soul.”

She and Rachel vanished.