Desolation Comes Upon the Sky

Master of Puppets

July 1st
Sioux Falls, South Dakota

The soft beeping of her alarm jolted Alex awake, and her eyes flew open. She was enveloped in blankets, the heavy warmth brought about by the thick sheets of the spare bed in the home of Jody Mills. The young hunter rolled over to silence her phone, blinking sleep from her eyes as she stifled a yawn as she looked around at her familiar surroundings. Her reason for showing up on Jody's doorstep late last night was twofold; she was meeting Castiel, who, having fully healed Sam to the best of his ability, was returning from the bunker. But the second, most important reason was that Crowley had sent her there.

The manilla folder lay on the floor beside her, and Alex peered down at the scattering of papers. There were four names - four demons of Abaddon that were high enough up the ladder that they needed to be neutralized.

Alex threw back the covers and rolled out of bed, kicking the folder beneath the dresser as she rolled her shoulders back in a stretch. She could hear movement downstairs; Jody was already up and getting ready for work, but there was something else, a low, deep voice.

Her feet carried her down the stairs to find Castiel standing in the entryway. Dark circles sat under his eyes, and when he turned to Alex, his gaze was shy and uncertain. "You're awake."

"Yeah. Hey." Alex crossed the room and leaned up, pressing a soft kiss onto his lips. She felt him stiffen slightly, and she curled her hand around his neck before she pulled away. "I'm glad you're here. How's Sam?"

"He's doing well, despite our attempts to remove Gadreel's grace." Castiel's face grew grave. "He wanted to use it to track Gadreel's location, but I couldn't remove enough of it to complete the spell without killing him. He will have to find Gadreel another way, but at least he is well enough to do so on his own."

"Glad to hear it." Alex glanced towards hallway where Jody was loading up the washing machine. "I missed you, by the way." She reached out to take his hand, squeezing it gently to emphasize her point. Guilt constricted her chest, and she forced another small smile, but before she could say anything else, Jody returned.

"Hey, you." The sheriff shot Alex a warm grin. "How'd you sleep?"

"I slept fine, thanks." Alex returned the smile, unwilling to admit that her dreams had been plagued with nightmares of Cain, hunting her down no matter how fast she ran. "You work today?"

"Yeah. You two are welcome to stay here, though." Jody tucked in her uniform. "Anything you need, you just let me know, alright? I'll be home by six, if I'm lucky." She pulled Alex into a side hug and pressed a kiss on her temple. "See you in a bit."

"See you." Alex watched as Jody left, and she heard the throaty growl of the sheriff's truck as it roared to life. "So, uh, you ... you probably want to talk." She turned back to Castiel, her toes scuffing against the wooden floor.

"No." Castiel's voice was soft. "What I want is for you and I to have a normal life. But that isn't going to happen, is it?"

"I ... I want it to." Alex shifted forward. "I've been thinking, Cas, and I do want that kind of a life. It's just ... I can't explain it right now." She turned away as the words stuck in her throat. "I just need you to trust me, Castiel."

"I'll always trust you." The seraph was at her back, so close that Alex could feel his heat. She leaned back, eyes closed as his arms enveloped her, rocking her gently from side to side. His lips came to rest against the back of her head. "I'm just worried for your safety."

"I know." The words sounded hollow. "But you shouldn't." Alex reached back to curl her hand in the seraph's hair, and his lips dipped down to rest against her neck. "I'm going down to Bobby's today," she explained after a moment of silence. "It feels only right, seeing that he left the land to me. You're welcome to accompany me, of course."