The Last Goodbye

4

Sam's initial surprise upon his arrival at the warehouse was the sight of the Impala pulling out of the next building. He was relieved to see his brother, alive and visibly unharmed, grinning behind the wheel. His second surprise was the enchanting woman who followed Baby out of the garage, a sweet smile across her face.

"Hey!" the larger Winchester bellowed as he warily approached his brother.

Dean waved at Sam without looking up from the impala's interior. He was obsessively inspecting every mechanism inside his car.

The woman smiled enthusiastically and skipped towards Sam. Taken aback by her apparent familiarity, Sam's body stiffened. The beautiful stranger wrapped her arms around Sam's arms, which were positioned robotically at his sides. She squeezed him shockingly tight. There was no way she was human.

He rocked back on his heels and nearly stumbled when she relinquished him from her embrace.

"I am very sorry, Sam. It's been too long!" The woman quickly stepped out of his space when she sensed his discomfort. "I don't mean to startle you. I do apologize for the difficult situation I have created. And I am especially sorry for the worry you certainly experienced when you rushed over here to rescue your impulsive brother."

Sam's hazel eyes were locked into the woman's uniquely deep storm-blue eyes trying desperately to place her identity. He realized his mouth hung stupidly open as he combed his memory. He shifted his feet and cleared his throat.

"I...I'm afraid I have no idea who you are, ma'am," he said in a half-questioning tone.

Dean was now hunched over the hood of his precious car, either admiring his reflection or searching for any signs of new damage. He stood up and shouted, "Yeah, I'm afraid I don't either!"

She pursed her full lips and stared pensively at Dean's scowling face as he approached her.

Dean's head burned bright with rage, his thoughts scrambled. He was relieved to have his car back, but dammit, the fact that it was taken from him by an angel. He was pissed. His fists were clenched so firmly they were tingling from lack of oxygen. He stopped with barely a foot of empty space between them. He loomed over her as menacingly as he could manage, but an unexplainable sensation fluttered in his core, distracting him from his attempt at intimidation.

She raised onto her toes and leaned her face forward, parallel to his tautened jaw "Dean..." she uttered nearly inaudibly, "Dean... breathe."

Sam watched his brother's expression morph from furious to unnerved when the woman whispered into his ear.

The proximity between Dean and the woman sent warm shivers crawling up the base of his spine up to his neck. Goosebumps prickled down his rigid shoulders and arms. Her cheek was painfully close to, but not touching, his jaw. The fraction of air between his face and hers was like sitting too close to a bonfire. What could have only been a few seconds, seemed like an eternity. She exhaled as she leant back and Dean felt the faint sensation of her breath on his neck. His throat constricted and he couldn't speak. He could only stare intensely at the woman. Searching. Her eyes intentionally avoided his and she turned to Sam. She looked up at him despondently.

"I would like to tell you who I am, but I cannot unless absolutely necessary. As Dean is aware, I'm an angel...You may refer to me as Elle. That was the name of my vessel. I came back to help you. You know me though, just not yet..." she paused so the boys could conclude that she was from the future without her having to say it outright. "I need your help, Sam... Dean. I know you are struggling to trust me, and I know I am suspicious, even for an angel."

Dean remained silent. He stared at Elle's profile, eagerly trying to recapture her gaze. He wanted- needed- to keep searching the infinite blue. Strange desire burned in his chest, breathing became a battle. What the fuck is this? His heart continued to race inexplicably.

Sam quickly became concerned with Dean who was fully fixated on Elle. Entranced by her. Had the new angel done something to him before Sam arrived? But as far as he knew, it was impossible for an angel to use angelic magic against them. Cas made sure the Enochian sigils carved into their ribs were thorough.

"Why do you need our help?" Sam inquired.

"It's Cas, Sam. Cas is gonna do something stupid according to Elle, here," Dean's voice splintered when he spoke, like he had just awoken from a full night of sleep. "You still haven't told me what it is we have to stop him from doing," he directed toward the angel.

Elle sighed and she studied the cracks in the floor of the warehouse, "When the time comes, you will know. Castiel knows... that's sufficient for now. Cas has been a little off for a few weeks now, yes?" She looked up from the ground to Sam's face, her eyes darted briefly to the right to examine Dean, but she was still clearly trying to avoid catching his gaze. Sam nodded thoughtfully. "Well, let's get back to the bunker then?" the question may as well have been rhetorical, because before either hunter could argue, she climbed into the back seat of the impala.