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“Christine?”
“Hm-hm?” Christine turned the page of her book, snuggling a bit closer against Stephen. They were cuddled in bed, both amusing themselves with reading. Or maybe not much longer.
“I think we are getting visitors tomorrow.”
“Oh.” She lowered her book and looked at her husband. “Should I leave?”
“I… don’t think so. They might be pretty nice.”
Christine raised her eyebrows. “Nice and visitors?” Usually, when Stephen learned of ‘visitors’ it meant chaos, blood and a variable number of deaths. Most often on the higher side.
He shrugged. “Not sure yet.”
She smiled and then chuckled. “You have to work on your fortune-teller abilities,” she teased.
---
Sam stared at the flickering fire. Jo. Ellen. Bobby. Now Dean was close to dying. Again. Fucking angels. Fucking demons. Just… all of it.
“Maybe I should just say yes,” he muttered under his breath. Maybe he could make a deal with the fucking devil. Bring his family back, spare them. Whatever came after, spare them. Angels were bound to their promises, weren’t they?
“Don’t you dare!” Dean protested from his comfy armchair and once again coughed up blood. Zach had given him lung cancer and this time, refused to undo it. Until he said yes. Fair deal, right? The fucker had said and vanished.
“You really can’t heal him?” Sam asked, turning to Cas, who stood in the corner of the room, looking decidedly dejected. Like a lost puppy.
Their angel shook his head. “I’m sorry.”
Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck. He wouldn’t lose Dean either. He glanced at his brother, who was convulsing in another coughing fit. Maybe a week. And he knew Dean wouldn’t say yes. Maybe, probably, the angels would bring him back, but for what? Just to torture him some more?
Awesome. Just awesome.
“There must be a way.”
Only no demon would take a deal. No angel would help him out either, besides the big bad one he didn’t want to talk to.
“There… there could…” Cas said. “But it’s dangerous.”
Sam turned to stare at him. “Everything is dangerous. In case you didn’t notice!”
“Sam,” Dean said.
“What? They are all dead, Dean! They are… you will…” They had all died for them. And for what? So that they could fuck it up and give up anyway? So that he could say yes to Lucifer?
“Hey. I’ll get out of this. Somehow. They won’t let me die.” Which was followed by a violent coughing fit. He spit more blood into Bobby’s handkerchief. Normal tissues hadn’t hacked it anymore. Soon they’d have to change to fucking towels. “Uh. Is that…”
“What?”
Dean cleared his throat, which sounded like raspy gurgling. “Nothing.”
Sam crossed the room and snapped the handkerchief from Dean.
“Hey, gimme!”
Tissue. He had coughed up tissue. Dean snapped it back, only to cough again, hiding his face in the once white cloth. It was more fully red now.
“What could we do, Cas?”
“Remember when Dean time travelled?”
“But you don’t have access –”
“We could get to the source. Heaven just taps into it and uses it as it sees fit. In some dimensions… time is embodied.”
Sam stared at him.
“As far as I know, he is reasonable. If we can get to him, of course,” Cas carried on.
“Wait. Time is a dude?” Dean asked.
Cas looked at him. “Sometimes. Crossing over is hard, though. I can’t do it alone. We would need help.”
“Help how? By whom?”
“A powerful demon should be enough. A ritual.”
“That sounds like a plan,” Sam said and turned. Crowley would be their best shot. Summon him and then…
“Wait, wait, wait. What are the consequences of this time mumbo jumbo? If it was easy, you’d have said so before.”
There was nothing on Castiel’s face. Just blank. “Time might decide to undo you. It would be as if you never were. Heaven won’t be able to change it.”
“Well. One apocalypse less if I don’t exist.”
“Dean.”
“It’ll get worse. Way, way worse if you don’t exist. There are other possibilities too. If you meddle with the natural order… This world could end. Just vanish. All of us, everything. Or we could pull things from dark places. Worse things than demons or angels. Lucifer will look like a child.”
They were quiet for a moment.
“Well. Sounds like a plan to me.” He coughed again. Somehow, it was still getting worse than before. “Let’s go kicking while I still have a lung.”
---
“You are nuts,” Crowley said, staring at the sigils they had drawn up. “Absolutely nuts.”
“It’s our best bet,” Castiel said.
“I hate it right now, but I gotta agree with the angel,” Dean said. He leaned against or rather held onto, one of Bobby’s bookshelves, a backpack stuffed with everything they could think of on his back. Sam was carrying one too.
“If you do this, if at all. If I agree. There must be something in it for me.”
“God, always with the deals.”
Crowley grinned. “I told you. I am a businessman. I don’t have a life right now, thanks to you. Because you fucking morons can’t shoot!”
“He survived, alright?! The Colt didn’t do jack shit!”
“I did not know!”
“We were through this already,” Cas said. Dean and Crowley just kept on yelling.
“Guys? Guys!” Sam intervened after a little, fearing Dean’s next coughing fit.
“I won’t do it. Unless you undo the apocalypse.”
“We can’t do that,” Cas said matter of factly. The apocalypse could not be undone.
“If he is time, he sure as hell can. Turn the clock back long enough, before our fuckwit kills Lilith.”
“Make it before I break the seal.”
“Dean.”
“No. Before I die. You help me out of the contract. Steal it from Lilith or whatever. Then help us kill the bitch before it all starts.”
Crowley looked uneasy for the first time. Scared, even. But only for a second. His smug smile popped right back up. “Do they keep what’s on their body? We could send you time travelling with the Colt.” He was sure they had it packed right now. “I’ll let you know when Lilith is where, when she is weakest and we got us an averted apocalypse.”
“Theoretically. When I sent Dean back, he kept what he had.”
“Well, that sounds like a plan,” Sam said carefully. It still sounded too easy.
“Absolutely,” Crowley jumped on it, rubbing his hands. “So, how does this work? You need my blood, you said?”
“It will not work,” Cas said again. “You cannot undo the apocalypse.”
“Eh. That’s because you didn’t try. That’s what they want you to believe. Isn’t heaven pretty big on all things lying lately?” Crowley said. “If we can tap into the source, sure as hell you can undo it. Or sure as heaven.”
They fell quiet. Cas didn’t object again.
“So. I’m in,” Crowley said, oddly excited. “How do we go about it?”
“No. Wait,” Sam interrupted. “We make a deal first.”
Crowley smiled slyly. Nearly got away with it. “Sure.” He would have loved to not get involved, but someone had kept his brains. “Do we do it or…”
Sam’s gaze was like ice. “Sure.” They kissed on it. Crowley shuddered once they broke away. What was he doing? Helping angels, morons, all the like. They had failed killing Lucifer. They would fail the rest too. He was probably already dead. Might as well chain a huge neon sign reading ‘traitor’ to his neck.
They burned some extremely rare incense, threw some herbs, which ought to be extinct, and bones of questionable source into the mix. Castiel started a slow chant in Enochian. Grey smoke rose. It smelled like death.
“Okay. Now.” Castiel said, and his angel blade appeared in his hand.
“Oh, that wasn’t –”
“I’ll only nick you,” Castiel said ever so casually and nicked Crowley’s arm. He felt the holy energy rush through him, burn its way, and dissipate. Castiel nicked his own arm too, and they took hold of each other’s arms, their blood mixing. Cas continued his chant. Dean started to cough, while the smell got ever worse. Sam joined his brother, placing a hand on his shoulder.
“You alright?”
Dean smiled weakly once the latest fit ended. “Never been better.” They actually had a shot now, a shot at undoing all of this shit.
“Take hold of me,” Cas said.
Sam moved-dragged Dean along and touched Cas’ back. A drop of their mixed blood fell. Another. Crowley stared at the fire. He could feel its power, but nothing happened.
“You sure –”
A fourth drop fell, the fire hissed, and they were gone. Crowley stood alone in the room, while the fire died down. Well. Time to get back to his vacation to nowhere ever.
---
The white light faded. Sound came. His body hurt. Hell, everything hurt. How would Dean feel? Sam felt as if he had gotten beaten up worse than ever before in his life. Groaning lowly, he got aware of voices. Someone ran into him.
“Move, idiot.”
He got pushed to the side. Dean whimpered. Hands took hold of him, and he got dragged along. When he could see at last, Cas was in front of him, holding up Dean at the same time. They were leaning against some wall, people just streaming by beside him on the sidewalk. Didn’t look very apocalyptic, alright.
“Where are we?”
“Over there. We’ll have to find time.”
“Do you know where he is?”
“I can feel him.”
“Uh… Cas? Are you, like, sure?” Dean asked, staring up ahead.
“Yes. Why?”
“Cause that’s just New York.”
Sam turned and followed his gaze. The Empire State Building. That really was just New York.
---
The brothers exchanged a gaze. Cas had certifiably lost his mind. They were standing in front of a grocery store and a tattoo shop.
“So… time is handing out free tattoos as well?” Dean tried to joke. “One bitch stamp for you, and one for you and…” he ended up coughing again.
Sam placed his hand on Dean’s shoulder again, ever so carefully gripping. In case he fell.
“No. Things aren’t how they seem to be.”
God, angels.
“Hold onto me,” Castiel said and walked straight for the wall between the two shops. Again, the brothers exchanged a gaze.
‘Nuts’, Dean mouthed at Sam, who grinned weakly. At least he could still make jokes. They followed their weird angel and touched his trench coat. The concrete got closer and closer.
“Ehm, Cas?”
“Have faith.”
Have faith?!
Suddenly Cas was gone. Dean could still feel his trench coat under his hand, but he was gone. “No way.” Something, probably Cas, gripped his wrist and pulled.
“Nononono-“
The wall rushed towards him. Dean turned his face at the last second, felt his cheek hit the concrete. Rasp a bit along. Blood started to trickle. “Cas! This isn’t –” and then the wall fell away.
Dean and Sam stumbled through open doors into a dim entry hall. Some old-fashioned vases were standing around. Pictures. A huge staircase led to an upper level.
“Hu.”
“Guarding magic,” Cas said, as if not knowing was stupid and turned. “I guess upstairs is our best bet.”
The house was creepy, to say the least. So weirdly dim. Nearly as if it was haunted. Dean stopped in front of some widows out to the sea and stared. “That looks weirdly real.” And opened them, only to get blasted by cold wind. Some water droplets hit his face. He closed the window again. It was real.
“Crazy,” he muttered.
“Dean!” Sam hissed from up ahead. He had pulled his gun to join the flashlight. Dean hurried up, and whistled, praying for not another coughing attack.
“Guess we found his weapons chamber.” For what did time need weapons, please? He could just poof people away. Well. He guessed everybody needed hobbies. “Nice axe, though.”
Sam snorted and shook his head. “Let’s move on. Careful, now.”
“Yes, sir. Eh. Sammy.”
Another snort. But they did. Moved on how they usually did, covering each other, carefully clearing the corridor and adjoining rooms.
Low noise came from the next room up ahead. Sam signalled him. Dean nodded grimly. Castiel watched them without saying a word, one step away from shaking his head. Humans.
Sam carefully unlocked the door, threw it open and the brothers jumped in, guns ready. Dean couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
A living room. The TV was on, making the low noise. The room looked more modern in comparison to the rest of the house. No weird rags and old-fashioned oil paintings, less alone the creepy vases. Or weapons. A big couch at the back of the room with a good angle to the TV, some more bookshelves, a sleek table. Normal, framed pictures here and there. Some flowers and plants. A woman sat on the couch, her legs stretched out on the sectional.
“Oh. Hey guys” She turned off the TV. “No need for the guns.”
---
“Okay, okay, let me get this straight. Time has a girlfriend?” Dean asked.
Christine smiled weakly. “You could say so.” She wasn’t about to correct those guys. She rather looked at Castiel. “You really are an angel?”
He nodded.
Stephen finally entered the room, cloak on his heels, which got eyed by Sam rather skeptical.
“You didn’t tell me angels are real,” Christine said.
He didn’t even look ashamed. “I said it's real.”
“Yes, yes, yes. You said Supernatural is real. All of it?!”
“Oh, you got the damn books too? I’ll so kill Chuck.”
“It’s a TV show over here,” Stephen said casually.
“A what?” Dean asked.
“A TV show. The actors look pretty much like you. Creepy, if you think about it. But then again, I am starring in Sherlock too. Guess that’s normal.” He shrugged and sat down beside his wife.
The two brothers stared at the guy. What?
“So… you really don’t have angels? No Michael, no Lucifer. No apocalypse,” Dean said.
Stephen smiled weakly. “We have other things. Maybe worse, maybe less so. Depends on your point of view.”
They fell quiet, which got pierced by another one of Dean’s coughing fits. He spit blood again, and more tissue. Christine frowned and got up.
“What…” She placed a hand on his shoulder, staring at the blood and the pieces and bits on his jacket. “Is that lung tissue? That’s impossible.”
Dean smiled weakly. “Say hi to angles. They make it possible.”
She just stared and shook her head. “They really are assholes.”
“How far are you into the show?”
“Well…”
“Can you undo it? Turn back time before the apocalypse.” Cas cut in.
Stephen didn’t reply for a long time. Just stared at him.
“I think I could. But you have to understand – the apocalypse is a fixed point.” He knew it! Only Castiel didn't feel like smiling. “If you meddle with those, things can get so much worse.”
“How much worse could it be?” Dean asked weakly. “I mean, it’s just the end of the world.”
“Think…” Stephen fell quiet and closed his eyes.
“What is he doing?” Sam asked.
“Listening to time,” Cas replied instead of Christine. He stared at the man. To be able to hold time itself. He had to be extraordinary. If they had more time – ha – he would love to talk with him. Exchange ideas and knowledge. All the things he could learn…
“Something called the empty could swallow you. I gather that’s worse than the end of the world. Or maybe purgatory takes over your reality. Doesn’t sound much better. Or maybe Lucifer manages to get free somehow and hunts you. Or maybe Death goes on a field trip. Or God himself, cause he is pissed you screwed his plans. Powerful entities may remember, that’s another problem. I may change things, but I may not change all of it.”
“But…”
“Time is fluid,” Cas said softly. “Some of us may remember it bent.”
“Yes, exactly.”
The what? Anyway... “Do you know if Lilith would remember?”
Stephen hummed, fell quiet and listened. “Inconclusive.”
“Fuck.”
“We don’t have another choice, do we?” Dean said matter of factly. “Maybe it won’t get worse. Maybe we screw the apocalypse and that’s it.”
“You could try. But I won’t undo it again.”
“Why are you helping us in the first place?” Sam asked.
Stephen smiled weakly. For a second, he nearly reminded him of Crowley.
“Curiosity. I never screwed with a fixed point.”
“Ah. So, we are your guinea pigs.”
Stephen shrugged. The sly smile had gotten worse. Something dark moved in his eyes. “You came to me in the first place.”
“Stephen,” Christine said very softly and touched his shoulder. They hadn’t even realized she had walked back to him. The man blinked and the darkness vanished.
“Oh. Did I get carried away?”
“Hm-hm.”
“Sorry.” He kissed her gently.
“What was that about?” Dean asked.
“Time is…” Stephen sighed.
“It’s too powerful,” Castiel said, as casually as he ever did. “It consumes you when you dip into it too long.”
“That’s not it, not entirely. It’s…” Stephen’s gaze wavered. Christine’s hand was on his shoulder again. You don’t have to. But he wanted to. Castiel was maybe one of the few things who could understand.
“I know everything when I tap into it too long, you know? Everything that ever was, everything that ever could be. I am time, then. It made me able to handle it, but because I’m human…” he shrugged. “Think of Lucifer's vessel. I don’t decay. I go insane, one tiny bit at a time. And with that comes something dark.” Something utterly evil.
“She can… get you back, just like that?” Sam asked, feeling oddly self-conscious about it all. Dean had tried to bring him back, back when he was in it with Ruby. He had said fuck him.
Stephen smiled and looked at Christine. Something perfectly gentle danced in his eyes. “Of course. I could never harm her so…” Christine smiled back at him. Sam got the odd feeling he was intruding on something very personal. “… I stop. That always gets me out of it,” Stephen finished his sentence and got up, looking at them.
“Anyway. One time turning coming up. If you still want it, of course.”
“Will you be able to handle it?”
“Pff, of course. If I can focus on something, it’s no big deal.”
“Ha. Good to know.” Dean coughed again. “Will this shit –“
“Never have happened. Good as new.”
“Will we remember?”
“Sure. Everybody who is present will know.”
“What about Crowley, though?”
“He is bound through my blood. It’ll work,” Castiel said.
“You sly dog.” Dean grinned.
Castiel looked at Dean ever so slightly confused. A what?
“You have to give me a point in time. Best works if you tell me of a place too. Then I can focus on that while I turn time.”
“Hmm…”
The two brothers discussed in hushed voices, until Dean glanced at Stephen. “Don’t you already know?”
“I could, but I don’t want to right now.”
“Hm.” More hushed voices. Some No, Deans, and buts, and some more coughing.
“It was an honor to meet you,” Castiel said in the meantime, turning to Stephen. “I never dreamt of meeting time’s vessel.”
Stephen smiled. “I never dreamt of meeting an angel either.” He sighed and glanced at the brothers, only to look back at Castiel. “May we’ll meet again. At the end of things.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
They looked at each other for a long moment. Christine, the only one who watched, felt a shiver run down her spine. They talked, no, looked at each other like two things who knew more than words could ever say, hell, more than words could ever mean. And were actually looking forward to talking. At the end of things. Because the ‘may’ wasn’t part of it, not really, and they both knew it.
“Hey, ehm, Castiel?” Christine got up and joined her husband, taking hold of his hand, entangling their fingers. She felt oddly possessive right now. “Could I… maybe… you know… see your wings?”
Stephen chuckled and shook his head. “She is kind of a fan.”
“Hey, you made me rewatch it.”
“I just mentioned you might want to –”
“Your might want tos are –”
“Of course,” Castiel said softly. Whatever he could do for the lady of time.
The lights flickered, the brothers finally looked at them again, and his wings got visible. Just for a moment. Christine stared at him with big eyes. “Wow,” she whispered. Stephen smiled softly, mouthed a ‘Thank you’ to Castiel, and kissed her hand.
“Made a decision, guys?” He spoke up, looking at Sam and Dean.
“Yes. We think…”
He nodded. Sounded good. Probably.
“The place, can you…”
Castiel touched him. Stephen felt energy rush into him and he saw a picture in his mind.
“Oh. Okay. Thanks. Can I touch you for your way back?”
“Sure.”
Dean eyed the two. Something was going on there.
Stephen placed his hand on Castiel and moved his other hand. A golden circle turned up out of thin air, leading to a desolate street on the other side.
“Okay, then. I can’t walk over there –”
“You can channel through me,” Castiel said. “I used your powers already. Less, yes, but I should be able to handle it.”
“What if you can’t?” Sam countered.
Stephen stared at Castiel. “He will.”
Castiel nodded and stepped halfway through the portal. One leg on the street, the other in the living room.
“Take my hand. I channel through them.”
Stephen nodded and took Castiel’s hand. They were surprisingly soft. He could feel the holy energy pulse within him. “You two, touch him.” Sam and Dean did. Once again, they laid hands on the trench coat.
He looked at Christine and shot her one of their private smiles. Soft and gentle and full of love. “See you in a second.” He winked.
“Ready?” He asked while he looked back toward the portal.
Another one of Dean's coughing fits. He felt more of his lungs fall apart.
“Never been more ready,” Sam muttered. They were getting a second chance.
“Well then.”
Green light blinded them. Sam blinked alarmed, for a second worried they got ambushed by some new crazy demon, but it wasn’t a demon. It was just Stephen, glowing green. Like…
The green lantern? Dean thought, staring as well. Cas started to glow green too; only his eyes stayed white. And then the world on the other side of the portal moved, which made him sick to his stomach.
No, not the world. Time.
Castiel felt exhilarated. So much power. And it was only a tiny piece, he could feel it. Stephen kept the might of time carefully under control, and still, it pulsed through him, stronger than anything he had ever felt. Stronger than archangels, even. Right now, he could have wiped out heaven and hell with a mere thought. Make it be. Force reality to his will, whether it wanted to or not. That a mortal could hold such powers… but he wasn’t mortal anymore, was he? Stephen may not tell anybody, may not even tell himself, but he was like his own vessel. Like Jimmy. He would exist forever and ever…
Good luck, he heard Stephen’s voice in his head, while the world blurred away, time turning backwards at alarming speed. You have to tell me how it went.
No, he knew.
And then they fell.