Ketch Me as I Fall

I lurched forward, gasping for air as a sharp cold covered my face. Disoriented, I blinked a few times before registering the water dripping from my hair and down my face. The room was busy as I gathered my senses, Dean tossing a plastic cup to the side, the culprit behind the water.

I steadied my breathing and glared at him. "What was that?"

"Sam didn't come home last night." He said gruffly.

"So?" I asked.

"It's almost five in the afternoon, Alex." Dean walked away from the bed. "You slept all day. We need to find him."

"I slept…" I whispered. Then I scrambled to look at the bedside clock. I hadn't even remembered falling asleep. It had been years since the last time I had even felt tired without the need to heal.

"Would you just come help me?" Dean was agitated, but I knew it wasn't directed at me. "We need to find him. He's not answering his phone."

"I can't find him either," Jack explained, shaking his head. "I've been trying to find him all morning."

"Well, we do have wards carved into our ribs." I reminded the room as I got to my feet. I shook the water off my sloths the best I could. "Where's Cas?"

"Still looking," Jack said as I went to the bathroom searching for a towel.

I dried myself off as quickly as I could and then searched for my pistol. "Did he say anything else last night? Call? Text? You sure he's not just held up in bed?"

"You know as well as I do that he would've told us," Dean grumbled, his duffle bag over his shoulder now and phone held to his ear. "Cas, we're heading back to the bar. Let us know if you find anything." He said into the receiver before sliding the phone into a pocket. I grabbed Sam's laptop off the table before following him out the door. "You try calling him."

I felt in my pockets and sighed, suddenly remembering the dumb decision to leave my phone at Dean's place. I climbed into the passenger seat of the Impala and reached over to take Dean's from his pocket. He graced me with a curious look before concentrating on driving as Jack entered the back seat. I dialed Sam's number from memory and frowned when I got his voicemail. Or rather, Dean's voice on his answering machine.

"Hey, Sam can't talk right now because he's waxing. Like…everything. But leave a message…"

"Dean, what are you doing with my phone? Dean, come on!" Sam's annoyed voice came after.

"Nothing," I muttered as I passed Dean's phone back to him.

"Can I help with anything?" Jack asked, his voice so innocent. I passed the laptop back to him.

"What was Sam researching? I feel like I'll get car sick if I try looking at that thing." And that wasn't an exaggeration. It was a strange feeling to suddenly feel like my stomach was churning. My head spun with it, thrown for a new loop with every turn Dean took.

Jack took the laptop from me and the car fell silent. We had barely pulled into the bar before Dean slammed the car into park and we were jumping out of it.

"We're not open ye…" The bar keep tried to protest as Dean shoved through the door.

"I don't care." My older brother seethed. He was on high alert. He always was when Sam disappeared without reason. "Last night we were here with our brother. He was hanging out with a bunch of chicks."

"You mean the super tall guy?" The barkeep asked, looking all too tired to care. "Long hair?"

"Ya. He went home with a girl named Ginger." I explained in a kinder tone. "She had red hair."

"Ah, the pastor's daughter." The man nodded. "They live by the old graveyard on the edge of town. Little grey house."

"He sure knows how to pick 'em," Dean grumbled. He tapped the bar a few times before turning away. "Thanks. Com'on."

Jack was waiting patiently for us as we got back in Baby. "It looks like people have been going missing at the state parks. Just from the forties to now, there have been fifty-four people that have gone missing." He stated. "And just recently there was a girl who was found in the woods with bite marks. Police are calling it a coyote or something of the sort, but the boy that was with her says he thought he saw something else in the forest."

"Did Sam have any theories?" I asked as the engine roared to life.

"Something called a Kohonta. Some Native American legend. Like a windigo but the natives would curse someone before they changed." Jack commented. "And it spits acid."

"Isn't that the green thing covered in vines?" Dean asked.

"There aren't any pictures," Jack answered.

"We'll worry about it later then," Dean muttered, shoving the car into park as we rolled into the gravel driveway. He left the car as soon as it was still. I leaped out and followed him across the lawn and up to the house.

"Shouldn't we think this through a little first?" I asked.

Dean didn't reply and I sighed. He was always so easily angered when it came to Sam being in danger. He acted without thinking and ripped the screen door open. He pounded his fist against the door, impatiently knocking again a few seconds later.

"I'm comin'!" an annoyed voice sounded from the other side of the door. It swung open suddenly and revealed an older man in a suit and tie. The anger on his face seemed to melt away once he'd seen us. "What can I do for you? You look troubled."

"Is Ginger here?" Dean jumped right in. His anger was starting to slip into his words. It was good to know that at least seemed to be a family trait.

"What do you need with my daughter?" The man said.

"We just need to speak with her for a minute." I tried to explain in a kinder tone. I took Dean's arm and squeezed it gently. "Can we see her please?"

The man looked us over for another second before turning into the house and yelling. "Ginger! There's some people here to see you!" Then he turned back to us. "Would you like to come inside?"

"No, this won't take long," Dean said, his voice low.

We heard footsteps coming from down the hall before the same redhead we had seen the night before came around the corner.

"Do I know you?" She asked, confusion on her face.

"You left the bar with our brother last night. He never came back." I explained. "Do you know what happened to him?"

"You went to the bar again?" Her father demanded. The smile that had been on her face fell and she rolled her eyes.

"I'm twenty-two. I can go to the bar, Dad." Ginger hissed at him. "Sam didn't make it back?" She turned her attention back to us. "I dropped him off at that sketchy motel myself."

"And now a sketchy motel?" Ginger's father couldn't have looked more disappointed. "We need to have a serious conversation about your friends."

"Not now Dad." Ginger hissed again. "We made out in my car for a bit, but he said he had something important to take care of and had me drop him off at the motel."

"What time was that?" Dean asked. "When you dropped him off?"

"I don't know. Around three?" Ginger shrugged.

"And that's all you know? Did he say anything at all?" I asked. There was nowhere he would've gone without us.

"Just something about that stupid legend." She shrugged again. "The one about the cannibal."

"A cannibal?" Dean and I asked together.

"Ya. It's some old native story." The pastor spoke up again. "A man got snowed in during the winter and ate his family to stay alive. Once spring came around, the tribe cursed him with immortality and an endless hunger. He supposedly wanders the woods looking for food. And if he doesn't eat, then his body eats itself. But it's just an old story to scare the kids."

"Is that the Kohanton story?" Dean asked.

"Ya." The pastor nodded.

"We're right by the woods," I muttered. "Did you hear anything last night?"

"No. We were all out by then." Dean shook his head, "I'll call Cas. We need to get going."

"Thank you." I gave them both a small smile as we walked away.

"Do you need help looking for him?" Ginger called after us.

"I think we've got this," Dean called back. 

He climbed back into the car, wasting no time starting the car and driving back down the road once I was inside. My door hadn't even closed all the way yet.

"Fuck. Where is your phone?" Dean asked me, checking his phone. "There's a billion of messages from Elly on here."

"Just let me see it once you've called Cas." I rolled my eyes. "Jack, did you hear anything weird last night?" 

"Weird how?" Jack asked, tipping his head to the side.

"Sam was dropped off around three last night." I said, "Did you hear a car? Or Sam?"

"There was a car. It didn't stay long." Jack nodded. "But I didn't hear anything else. I was reading about how werewolves once affected hunting in Victorian London."

"Sounds riveting," I mumbled. I caught Dean's phone as he tossed it to me.

"Cas is searching to woods," Dean explained. "He'll let us know if he finds anything, so try not to be on that thing too long."

I dug through the contacts until I found Elly's number and hit dial. It only rang a few times before she answered.

"Finally!" She started. "I've been calling all of you like all day."

"Hey, Elly." I smiled.

"Oh thank god you're safe. I was worried sick." And she did sound like it.

"What's up, hun?" I asked.

"We've been having a couple of issues here." She sighed, mumbling something in the background.

"It hasn't been too great here either," I admitted. "What kind of issues? Please don't say Ketch related."

"I….wasn't going to." Elly sounded confused for a second before clearing her throat. "The bunker was attacked."

"What? Is everyone alright?" I asked.

"Ya. Everyone is fine. Cael took Ally somewhere to keep her safe. Didn't have much of a choice." Elly didn't sound thrilled by the last part.

"What attacked?" I had warded the bunker against most things, so it left only the weaker monsters that could attack it. But there still wouldn't be much of a reason to.

"It was a coven of vampires. But they were kinda weird." Elly's attention shifted to someone in the background again briefly. "Beheading them didn't kill them right away. We had to shoot them with silver bullets. And they seemed stronger than normal."

"That..is super odd." I agreed.

"Ya, there's more." I didn't need to see her to know she was rubbing her temples. "This happened in the show too, but it was a group of werewolves who had to be beheaded, and apocalypse Michael was behind it."

I rubbed the bridge of my nose and sighed. Michael somehow coming back from the dead was something we didn't need right now. "We can discuss that more when I get home, ok? Just put up what you have to to make the bunker safe. Get a bunch of garlic or something."

Elly laughed lightly. "I wish that worked. It doesn't even work on normal vampires."

"Stay safe." I said, "I'll be home soon"

"You stay safe too," Elly said softly before hanging up.

I was about to hand the phone back to Dean, but it started ringing in my hand again. "What'd you find Cas?"

"Not Sam." He stated. "But I did find another body. Bites just like the newspaper said. It doesn't look like an animal did it. Her throat was ripped out."

"Where are you?" I asked.

"There's an old hiking trail behind the motel. I'm about a mile down, by some restrooms." Cas said.

"Right. We'll be there soon. Don't go too far." I instructed before hanging up.

"What did Elly want?" Dean asked once my ear was free.

"Vampires attacked the bunker. I'm assuming they wanted Ally. Just another thing to deal with when I get back." I said.

"Are they ok?" Jack asked, sitting forward in his seat.

"Ya. They're fine. Cael took Ally out and Lucifer and Elly took care of the coven." I assured him.

Baby came to a stop again in front of the motel and we all jumped from it. I went around to the trunk and started gathering various gear from it. A knife and a few extra clips of bullets from each of us among them. Once we were all set, we started down the trail in search of Cas.

We found him about twenty minutes later. He pointed out the body that he was still standing next to just off the trail. The poor young woman was covered in blood and pine needles. There were long, deep scratches down her arms and her throat had indeed been ripped free from her body, nearly severing her head. The bones that showed through almost looked licked clean, the edges around every cut almost seared.

The sight of it made me weezy. It had been a long time since a body like this had made me nauseous, but there was something about this one that made my toes curl and my stomach churn. I reached out blindly and grabbed hold of Cas to steady myself. He was the closest person in reach.

Cas looked over at me with concerned blue eyes, but I shook my head and didn't push it further. He took a step closer to me to give me something more to lean on and turned to Dean, waiting for whatever my brother had to say.

"Still no sign of Sam?" I asked him.

"Nothing as of yet." He said.

"I have an idea," Jack said. We all looked at him quizzically. "According to the research, people were attacked when they were alone at night in these woods. I wouldn't mind being used as bait. I'm sure that thing can't hurt me."

"We should think this through a bit more, kid." Dean offered. "I don't want to use someone as bait if we don't have to."

"We might not have a choice. We don't know anything about this thing." I sighed. "Jack is the only one who did any research. Maybe bait is the best option we have."

"There's a church a little further in that we can use." Cas offered, pointing through the tree line.

"Right. We can set up there." Dean agreed. 'We'll see if there are any other ideas once we get there." 

"What about the body?" Jack asked. "We shouldn't just leave her here."

"We can call someone to come get her once we get rid of the monster. Right now we need to worry more about the people who are alive rather than the ones we can't anymore." Cas kept an arm around me as walked past the body and in the direction he had indicated earlier. "Are you alright?" He said softly once we had separated a little bit.

"I've just been feeling a bit off." I tried to explain it all away. I had no idea what was wrong with me. It was probably just some weird demon illness we had never run into before. "I'll be fine. I just got a little dizzy."

"We don't get dizzy," Cas mumbled. "Are you sure there is nothing wrong?"

"I'm fine. Thank you, Cas." I squeezed his arm and released it in hopes he would drop the subject.

And as luck would have it, we came across the church just then. The stone was old and weather-worn, overgrown with ivy and moss. The steeple was damaged and the cross that once hung above the door now lay sprawled across the forest floor. Some of the windows were smashed, but some remained intact. But it all mostly just looked, forgotten. Like it was nothing more than a fairy tale.

"Let's set up shop," Dean called out, marching for the front door.

I took a step to follow after him but stopped as a sudden pain filled my chest. It burned in my feet and caused a pounding crush in my head. I dropped to my knees, the air leaving my lungs as if it had ripped from them.

"Alex!" Dean called, racing to me. I looked up at him through blurry eyes. He was on his knees next to me. "Are you ok?"

"Hallowed ground." Cas' voice came from somewhere in the distance. "Maybe this isn't the best place…"

"I'll just stay outside." I coughed, trying to smile as Dean helped me to my feet. "I can let you know if the monster shows up. No worries."

I paced outside the church, forced to only be able to wait. I could pull my hair out from the roots with how nervous I was. It didn't feel fair. I wanted so badly to help them. What the hell else was I supposed to do? Right now I just sat and waited. 

I knew Dean and Sam could take care of themselves. They had been hunting together longer than I had. But I knew that even with that, they were still accident-prone. We all were. There was always some unnecessary injury at least one of us was nursing.

The sun was beginning to set now, the last sunlight shining through the trees as I hid among them, casting a sleepy golden spell over the area. Dean was still huddled in the church, waiting. Cas had gone off to search for Sam again. And Jack was somewhere on the other side of the church out in the open, waiting to be bait. The forest around us was quiet and still. It wouldn't have been a surprise to learn that this church hadn't been touched in many years before us.

I turned my head as the leaves rustled behind me, I rested my hand on the gun that was still holstered at my side. But relaxed with the flutter of a trench coat.

"Hey, Cas." I sighed.

"I was just coming to check on you." He said, taking a spot next to me, his hands clasped behind himself. "Are you doing alright? I know how restless you Winchesters get when you feel useless."

"I'll be fine Cas," I said with a small smile. "I have too much on my mind to honestly be restless."

"And yet." He gestured to the small patch of kicked-up dirt at my feet. "Here you are."

I sighed, closing my eyes and tilting my head back as I soaked up the last rays of warm sunlight. "Here I am." I nodded. I inhaled deeply, taking in the scent of the pine trees and warm summer air. "Cas, do you ever feel like there's something important you're supposed to accomplish and you're the only one who can, but you can't figure out what it is you're doing wrong?"

"That feels strangely specific." Cas mused. I straightened again and looked over at the darkening church as he continued. "I suppose I have felt like that, but I knew that everything would work out the way it was meant to. It always has, even if you three are the biggest pain in my ass I have ever met."

I laughed a bit. The angel didn't cuss often, but when he did, it was pretty great. "I guess we did fuck up armageddon. I never did figure out what it would've been like to be Lucifer's vessel."

"I'm not sure you would've liked it. Uriel would've been a better fit in my opinion." Cas commented.

"Really? Uriel?" I asked. This was news to me.

"Yes. Even though he was…pigheaded as Dean would say, he was still good at what he did and could have learned from you as much as you could have him." Cas nodded. "And that is the point of a true vessel, to learn from one another and grow together. You and Lucifer would have never been fully one."

I bit my lip. "Right," I muttered. "Almost wish I hadn't asked."

Cas chuckeled softly. "I am glad you are you and not either of them, though. Both are too self-righteous. The angel of God's wisdom or the one he threw out for loving too much." he scoffed and I smiled a little. "They're just as much in the dark as we are."

"I'll be honest. It would be nice to have some of God's guiding wisdom right about now." I kicked the leaves at my feet. "Cas, do you know what's going on with me?"

"The not being allowed on hallowed ground thing is pretty on point for being a demon." He said.

"Not that." I sighed deeply, the chill of the night starting to set in around us. "I don't sleep. I don't eat. I don't feel pain or get sick. But…"

"Ah. Well, I also take part in more human endeavors than most celestial beings. But you were human before. I'm sure it's just habit." Cas gave a half smile and I knew he didn't believe the words he was saying.

"How are things with Dean and Jack? You three make a pretty good family." I started to pace again, standing still starting to eat at me. Cas followed along with me, slowing it down to more of a comfortable walk around the church rather than my anxiety-induced jog.

"It's good. Dean doesn't hunt as much as he used to, which I suppose is ok. His mind is always working, always worrying when he hunts. I'm shocked he isn't more shut down than he is. But he has been homeschooling Jack, so I think he's in a different kind of worry now." I laughed a little at the thought of high school dropout Dean trying to teach Jack math or history. "He gets frustrated most times. But I think it's good for the both of them. Dean's been talking about opening up a bar as well."

"A bar?" I chuckled. "He would be good at that. He's amazing at mixing drinks. And I did always think that Dean would make a good dad. Sam too, in their own ways."

"Everything has changed in the last five years." Cas nodded. "I like where we are now. But Dean wants to move back into the bunker. He misses hunting all the time."

"He's never liked hunting," I muttered. "I've lived with him long enough to know that he still has nightmares and cries when he thinks he's alone. He doesn't want this life. He just thinks it's all he's good at. It's all he's ever known. And he doesn't like change. It scares him too much. But if anyone deserves a normal life, it's him and Sam. They've literally given their own lives countless times for this job. They've given up their souls over and over again for a world that doesn't know monsters exist. They deserve so much better than this, Cas."

"And you don't?" That was not the question I was expecting.

It made me pause in my steps. I looked down at my feet. "I…deserve what I've got. I deserve this fucked up life. I've never deserved anything else."

"Then why keep trying to succeed in this destiny Cael gave you?" Cas continued to question. "What do you plan to do after?"

I was at a loss for words. I hadn't thought about what I would do after. I had just been so focused on how to get through tomorrow. It wasn't like I hadn't thought about why I was still trying, but every time I did it ended up with me face down in a bar, two liquor stores deep, wishing Cael had never told me about it in the first place. And after? What would I do? Had I even expected to live through this?

"I guess I'll rule hell if there is one?" That was another good question. If I was trying to end everything, what about Hell? Or Heaven for that matter. What would happen to angels? "Chuck knows more than us, right?"

"Usually. Not everything has made sense in the last few years though. But it always works out the way it's supposed to." Cas said. "You just need to trust in him."

I stuck out my tongue. "This is getting way too religious for me, Cas. I wouldn't believe in any of it anyway if I hadn't met Chuck myself. And even now I'm not sure I believe it." The forest sat quietly around us as the conversation paused. "Cas, what will happen to you if I get rid of all the monsters? Are you a part of that? I don't want to take away the good, just the bad."

"We can figure that ot when we get to it. I'm sure there's a lot that needs to happen before then. So we can discuss it when the time comes." Cas smiled.

"When we're done with all this." I looked at Cas, "Can you help me with Ally? There's something wrong with her. She hasn't been here since I took her soul. Cael is trying to help, but I don't know what it's doing other than turning into an…interesting relationship."

"I will see what I can do." Cas shrugged. "But if he can't help her, I'm not sure I could do any better."

"Maybe you should go back to Dean and Jack. It's getting dark. If that monster is going to show up…" I trailed off. Cas nodded and smiled at me kindly before working his way back towards the church, crossing back onto the ground I couldn't follow him onto. "Where are you Sam?" I muttered to myself, looking up at the growing stars.

I walked back to the edge of the woods, found a nice tree, and sat with my back against it. I hated being alone with my thoughts, but I didn't have much of a choice right now. I hated sitting here and waiting for the monster to just show up even more. And Sam was still nowhere to be seen. Was he dead somewhere like that girl we found earlier? Would we find him like that? Would we even find him at all? 

I shook my head. I couldn't think like that. It wouldn't do anything to help the situation. I was still in this and I still needed to fix it. It was at the top of my ever-growing list of things to do. A list that never would end. I felt more of a slave to it than its completer. Just the thought of it made me want to drink until I couldn't anymore. Until I was completely numb and my blood was more than ninety proof.

A tree branch cracked in the distance, and I found myself slinking into the shadows as I looked around the forest for the noise. I couldn't see anything. There was another snap in an opposite direction than the first one. It was followed by an eerie whistling that chilled my bones. I looked towards the sound but still didn't see any movement. No large monster. No person. Not even a squirrel.

Where was the fucking thing?

Glass shattering broke me from my focus and brought me to my feet. I could make out figures shifting through the glass of the church. I suddenly wanted too badly to race forward when I saw Dean fly across the church and hit the wall with a sickening smash. But my foot hit that invisible line and started to burn. It was like holy water, salt lines, and hellfire all rolled into one.

But that didn't matter anymore once I saw Cas get flung out of the church doors and into a tree. I had to do something, anything. It was Jack calling for me that finally pushed my feet forward. If an angel and a Nephilim couldn't handle this thing, then maybe a demon was needed.

With all the strength I could muster, I pushed forward. I was immediately filled with a splitting, suffocating pain. It didn't want me to move any closer to the church, and it only grew as I got closer. I stumbled on the pine needles but kept pushing forward. Forced my feet to go further. Tears were starting to tumble down my cheeks.

I rounded into the church and hopped from foot to foot as I tried to stop the burning feeling the old stone floor was causing. I did my best to see through the tears that clouded my vision. Jack had been backed into a corner, Dean was slumped against the far wall, and there was a disgusting form on all fours, crawling towards Jack like it was the Exorcist girl.

"I can't…It's not working!" Jack called as he saw me, backing further into the wall.

I doubled over as my chest and stomach constricted. But I had to help him. I wasn't going to let them die here.

My fingers quivered as I reached through the blinding hurt for the gun still clipped to my hip. I aimed the best I could and pulled the trigger in several quick bursts. The sound echoed loudly in my head. But then it was on me. So much taller as it towered over me, its rotten breath filling my nose as it came closer.

Bullets weren't going to work. What was I supposed to do? I had nothing but that gun. I tried again regardless. It was all I could think to do. It was the only thing that made sense, the only thought I could hear over the pounding in my head. I emptied the clip into the thing. But it did nothing save for pissing the thing off.

It tossed me to the side like a rag doll. I hit the floor and wanted nothing more than to just lay there, wishing to be wiped out of existence. 

"Alex!"

I tried to lift myself, but my arms only shook underneath me until I hit the floor again. The floor was so hot. I could hear the movement around me, and I looked up to see Dean staggering to his feet, a knife in his hand. He raced at the thing as it came at me again. But the Kahonta knocked him and the blade to the side again, the blade tumbling away from him.

The thing crawled over Dean and I could hear the growl come from it before a scream. It was Dean. That shattered through any agony I was feeling. I needed to help. I needed to do something. With Cas down and Jack unable to use his abilities, it was left up to me and me alone.

I scrambled to my feet, ignoring the pain that seared through my bones. I ripped Dean's knife from the ground and stumbled towards his screams. I couldn't see, so I trusted my feet when they hit something solid and came down on it with the knife. The form in front of me seemed too large to be human, and I drove my knife into it again and again. 

There was an unnatural scream, leaving enough time for Dean to roll away from it as it turned to me again. I fell back and collapsed onto the ground, breathing hard, doing my best to simply stay conscious now. I must have done enough. The thing melted and smoked in front of me, turning into a bubbling mess of disgusting liquid on the church floor.

I coughed and curled into myself, unable to move again.

"Dean, are you ok?" I heard Cas.

"Cas, get her out of here," Dean ordered, his voice hoarse.

"Dean, Sam's under the church!" Jack called from further away.

"Sammy!" 

The pain stopped in an instant, leaving me with nothing more than a dull ache and the rush of wings. I gasped as the cold night air hit my lungs and I clawed at the dried leaves and pine needles. Then the coughing came, it was like I hadn't ever taken a breath before. Every cell greedy and screaming for it.

"Dean, it hurt you." Cas questioned, "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine. Check on Sam." Dean ordered.

"I…I'm fine." Sam. He was alive.

"Where's Alex?" Dean demanded next. "Alex?!"

"Here…" I choked out between coughs. Tears still fell down my cheeks. Dean's hands took hold of me, holding me tightly. It felt so nice to be amongst something soft and warm. "I want Crowley."

I wasn't sure why those words came. Maybe it was because he had always been the one to help me when I was at my lowest. The one who had healed and fixed me. Every time I felt like I wasn't strong enough to carry on, he had been there for me. More so than Cael had ever been. Maybe Crowley was meant to be my guardian.

"Shhh." Someone cooed. "Let's get back to the motel."

The next thing I knew, I was lying in the back of the Impala and my head was in someone's lap. Fingers played lazily in my hair in a way I assumed was meant to be comforting. When my brain was starting to function again, and the rumble of Baby's engine had calmed my frantic heart, I opened my eyes to see Jack looking out the window. His fingers still gently caressed through my hair. It must have been something he picked up from Mary.

My eyes widened and I shot up in the seat. "Sam?!" I groaned as a dull ache filled my stomach, I clutched at myself, suddenly afraid I had ruined something. I laid back down on Jack's lap.

"I'm here," Sam assured me, a hand patting my leg. "I'm safe and sound. Thank you for finding me."

"Dean called someone to get the girl we found," Jack explained. His fingers started in my hair again. "I can stop if you want me to."

I closed my eyes again. "It's fine. Thank you."

"I can drive, Dean." Sam offered after the car jerked once slightly. 

I opened my eyes again and sat up slowly this time. Dean was clutching his shoulder with one hand and attempting to drive with the other. He shook his head at Sam's request.

"Please let someone else drive." Sam tried again.

"Let me heal you." Cas insisted. "You're losing so much blood."

"When we get back to the motel," Dean said. "We're not far."

"What happened Dean?" I asked, arm still draped around my middle as I straightened up a little more.

"It bit me," Dean answered, yanking the steering wheel back as the car drifted again.

We were on a lit road again, the street lamps out the window passed quickly. In their light, I could barely see that Dean's jacket was soaked in blood. Cas was right. He was losing a lot of blood.

"What the hell were you thinking Alex?" Dean scolded me. "Going into that church like that?"

"I save your life, jerk. Don't take it out on me." I grumbled, folding my arms over my chest, even though my heartbeat still lay much lower. "I'm glad you're all safe." I felt Sam take my hand and squeeze it gently. "It kept you hidden away? It killed all the others." I said, turning to him.

"I don't know. Maybe he was saving me for last. It took me to that church and it sounded like several people were laughing. It ripped the floorboards up and left me there. I assumed it went after another person." Sam sighed.

"And how did you find him, Jack?" I asked.

"That monster burned the floorboards when you killed him," Jack stated matter of factly. 

"Why didn't you call out for us earlier?" I questioned Sam.

"I was gagged." He explained. "The damn thing was smart."

The car screeched to a halt, Dean hitting the brakes hard and putting Baby into park. We all jolted forward and into the front bench. Everyone around me jumped into action. Sam raced around the car to help Dean out of it. Dean leaned against him heavily as his legs gave way. Cas was swift to take up his other side. Jack waited by his open door to help me out of the car last.

I took his hand and let him pull me from the back seat and back into the cool night air. I stumbled, my legs jello beneath me, and Jack caught me. He kept his arm around me as we started towards the motel room. 

"Thanks, Jack," I whispered.

I closed the door behind us and watched as Dean fell back onto one of the beds. He was out cold by the time Sam started trying to pull his jacket and shirt off. I pushed from Jack and roughly fell into one of the chairs beside the bed. Jack went to the bathroom, returning with a wet cloth and a small bowl a few minutes later.

Cas took two fingers and placed them against Dean's head, his eyes closing. "It nicked one of his arteries." His voice was low as if he had said it more to himself than out loud.

Jack walked over to the side Sam was on and handed him the bowl and rag. Sam took it and started to Ceal Dean's shoulder to take a better look at the wound. The angels stared at each other for a few seconds before nodding, coming to a silent agreement. They placed their hands over Dean. The cool blue glow of Cas' grace and the warm gold of Jack's filled the room and I watched as the large chunk of Dean's shoulder began to close up. There was a silent moment before Deansharply inhaled and sat straight up on the bed. Sam did his best to try and catch him, to force him to lay back down, but Cas was faster. He pulled Dean into him, curling their bodies together on the bed.

Dean's trembling hand took a fist full of Cas' shirt as he hid his face in the angel's shoulder, breathing hard. Cas clutched to him just as tightly, resting his head against my brother's. 

"Stop being so bullheaded," Cas ordered.

I smiled. They were going to be ok. They were meant to be.

"Let's rest here for the night before heading back," I said. "I think we all need the time."

"I agree," Sam nodded. "Rock, paper, scissors for who gets the first shower?"