**Grace Awakening** Supernatural Fanfiction: Book Two

Part One: There's Always a Catch

For a long time, she had been nonexistent. It was a strange feeling, because, in that nonexistent state, she felt as though she could see the darkness. She had been in a void, lying there for years; never speaking, never thinking, nonexistent; not in Heaven or in Hell. It was if, she had never fully perished; her soul lingering in a fermenting state.

As her lids parted ways, she could see the glimmering stars through her blurred vision, growing bright as they came into focus. Soon, she realized she was breathing, the cushion of lush, green grass against her back. The breeze around her cooed in her ear, catching the glimpse of her chocolate colored hair as it danced along with the wind.

The time passed, sifting through her memory and gazing owlishly at the night sky. Her state was tranquil, but her body felt weak and frail. As if she had only just been born into the world- completely venerable, and yet, she had never felt better. She felt new.

Sophie remembered it all. Her fall, the Winchesters, Castiel and her untimely death by angels, but how long she had been gone and who had resurrected her. Surely, it had not been God, who's good graces she had strayed from once before. The angels, even those who were not corrupt, couldn't have brought her back from the hands of Death. Her first thought may have been Castiel, but she couldn't fully grasp the idea seeing as he, too, had been stripped of his abilities. Even if he had recovered his Grace, he would not have had the ability to revive her.

What was she doing out in the grass? Where were the Winchesters and how had they been fairing? Since Sophie had no knowledge of how long she had been dead, she wondered what had become of Sam and Dean's lives. Still hunting, no doubt, and probably better off now that they weren't babysitting.

Sophie's own thoughts hurt her, pondering on why she would even think such a thing. Had death made her a bitter soul? Was she still the same Sophie?

Her ring finger on her left hand twitched, causing Sophie's head to drift lazily to the side. Who knew how long she had actually been lying there? Her head rolled back to the stars, still shimmering brightly. She pushed her back up off the grass, taking a look at her surrounding, only to find she was alone in a green field.

Sophie raised her hand, running her slender fingers down her hair shaft and bringing the strands into her sight. It was longer than she remembered and, upon looking down at her attire, she wore the same white sundress she had been the day she died; stainless and brilliantly white. "Who did this?" She murmured, her eyes drifting back up to the sky. "Why am I alive?"

"Some would be grateful," a voice said.

Sophie's head pirouetted, contorting her torso to look behind her. His skin was olive in color, his brown hair cut short and his eyes chestnut in color. He wore a crisp suit, his stature poise and proper. Even though Sophie could see his wings, light grey in color, she would have been able to tell he was an angel just by the way he dressed.

"Who are you?" She asked, more wearily than she would have like.

"You don't recognize me?" He quipped, watching her stoically as she struggled to stand to her feet. She could have sworn she saw him smirk in the slightest bit, appearing amused when she finally gained her balance. "I recognize you, Sofiella."

"I might be kind of famous," Sophie retorted, recognizing the Winchester sarcasm upon saying it. Now she was amused.

"More famous that you know," the angel paused. "I am Sampson."

"Sampson? Are you the one who brought me back?"

"We aren't certain. You're resurrection came as a surprise to all of us."

"How long have I-"

"It's been three years," Sampson interrupted. "A lot has happened since then. The angels who executed you are no longer with us."