Wish

Chapter Five: Hot Flash

"Wait, so, you've been following us?"  Dean looked at me, his eyes wide and accusing.  "And stealing our food?"

"I...I was trapped in the Impala all night and half of the day, and I couldn't exactly order pizza."

"You're paying me for those fries."

I rolled my eyes, reached into my pocket, and handed him a five.

As he accepted it, Dean frowned as if he was expecting more, then shrugged and put it in his own pocket.

"Can we go somewhere...less public?" Cas asked.  He was obviously uncomfortable.

"What, you don't like girls?" Dean said.  As he was taking a sip of his drink, he muttered, "Even after he lost it, they still scare him."

Sam and I were the only ones that had heard his comment.  I watched a smirk rise on his face as he looked down at his hands and watched Dean from the corner of his eye.  He looked up, straight at me.

I stood to my feet, pushing my chair under the table.  I walked over to Cas, and then I heard Dean groan behind me as he got up as well.  He slapped a wad of cash on the table.

When we made it outside, Sam was the one full of questions.

"So, where are you from, exactly?"

"Athens, Georgia.  But not the one from here.  A different universe?" I was uncertain.  So many new things were being dumped on me, and I wasn't sure what to make of it anymore.

"In her prayer, she told us that Dean's amulet was the source of the power," Cas said.

"My...amulet?"  Dean subconsciously looked down at his chest where the amulet had been years ago.

I showed them the amulet around my neck.

"Nice tat," Dean said.

"It wasn't there before I put this on," I said.

"So you're saying, the amulet did that?" Sam asked.  I nodded.

"It seems like it is draining her energy to fuel its power, which she has no control over," Cas explained.  "She doesn't feel the effects of the drain quite yet, but she will very soon."

"How do I stop it?  How do I get it off?" I said, my heart rate increasing.  "It could flash me anywhere at any second!"

"I'm not entirely sure."

"What?" I felt my face getting hot as panic washed over me.  "So I have to live like this forever?"

"Nicole..." Cas said, but his voice was fading.  My vision was blurring, and I was growing dizzy.  "Nicole..."

I collapsed to the ground, and everything was dark.

-

I opened my eyes.  The room was blurry.  I struggled to sit up.

There were two figures by the motel door.

"Hannah, I have to stay here for a few days.  You go on.  Follow our lead."

"But, Castiel..."

"Don't worry about me, only the mission.  Just go."

"Okay."

One figure left, and the other came my direction.  I blinked several times, and I could finally make out his face.

"Cas?" I mumbled.

"You fainted," he told me.

"Yeah, I think I figured that out."

"It seems like intense emotions, yours being panic, jump-started the effects of the power drain."