Remember

Chapter One

Disclaimer: I don't own it. The CW and Erik Kripke does. I'm just playing with their toys in my demented little sandbox. I hope they don't mind sharing.

"I will be glad and rejoice in your love, for you saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul."

- Psalm 31:7

"I will not ask you again... where is the Queen?" Crowley growled as the underling in front of him literally shaking with fear.

"After Dalia cursed her, Queen Raelynn was reborn on earth, shielded from discovery by Dalia's powers."

Growing frustrated, the King of Hell sent the rather unhelpful demon slamming into the stone wall of the throne room. "I already knew all of that, you prat!" he screamed. "Where on earth?!"

"I... I... don't kno... know, si... sir."

"Well, you better start thinking you, half-wit!"

Dalia, the mortal world's oldest living black witch, had met her end over a month earlier, dispatched by the Winchesters, and Crowley was still no closer to finding his Queen.

"I can only tell you what Dalia told me... and she was very cryptic, Your Highness." The demon masquerading as a teenage skateboarder's voice was growing an octave higher with every word that he spoke.

"Speak, NOW!" Crowley's control was slipping and his eyes flashed red. He had gone for far too long without his mate.

"She said that by the blood of Raelynn's blood, she would be reborn. She also said that a demon being reborn on earth doesn't come without signs. Queen Raelynn was separated from her ustrina when she was reborn."

A demon's ustrina was like an angel's grace. It was the source of their powers. This, Crowley could work with.

"There's more, sir, a date!" The skateboarder with the black eyes rushed to add.

"What date?" Crowley growled.

"December 14, 1989,"

That was all that Crowley needed to know. "MOTHER!" he hollered.

The door to the throne room opened and in stepped Rowena MacLeod... probably the only other witch with powers anything matching what Dalia's had been. "Yes, my boy?" she smiled and crossed her arms in front of herself.

"Take care of Dalia's little bitch, please," he didn't spare the worthless waste of ustrina another glance.

"Yes, my boy," Rowena grinned wickedly but her expression turned serious when she looked him in the eye. "Bring my daughter-in-law home, yeah?"

"Yes, Mother," he nodded. He would bring his mate home... even if it meant asking the blasted Winchesters for help.

"Let me get this straight," Dean Winchester smirked. "You misplaced the missus and now you want our help finding her?" Crowley wanted to torture the gleeful tone right out of the hunter's voice. "Why would we want to help you find the Queen of Mean anyway?" Dean scoffed and kicked his feet up onto the table.

"Because she's NOT the Queen of Mean, you fool! She's my Omega! The one who keeps me balanced!" Once more, Crowley's eyes glowed red and he couldn't control it.

Sam Winchester's eyes widened. Obviously, he knew the lore about mated demons.

"Dude, I don't like that look." Dean shook his head.

"We have to help him," Sam said firmly.

"Why? He's a complete dick!" Dean protested. "He's the King of Hell, remember?!"

"When a demon mates... it's for eternity," Sam began to explain. "Mates are rare in Hell but when they occur, the bonds are impossible to break. On earth, they would be called soul mates. There is always a dominant, or Alpha, partner and a submissive, or Omega, partner. Once bonded the consequences of a pair being separated are... bad."

That was putting it mildly, Crowley thought.

"Bad how?" Dean eyed his brother.

"Raelynn is probably either a very mentally unstable and/or depressed human and if Crowley doesn't get her back soon, his ustrina will literally explode."

"Doesn't that mean bye-bye Crowley? That's a good thing, Sam." Dean looked confused.

"No," Sam shook his head. "It's not. A demon's ustrina is like an angel's grace... it's powerful. Crowley's ustrina is tied to Hell. If Crowley goes... so does Hell."

"And everything above it... FREAKIN' WONDERFUL!" Dean kicked the table.

Sam rolled his eyes. "Crowley, tell us about Raelynn."

For the first time in damn near thirty years, Crowley almost smiled as he thought of his Queen. "Raelynn was born in Belfast, Ireland in 1893. Her father worked at the Harland and Wolff Shipyard; helped to build the Titanic. Her name was Raelynn Corby back then, and she was a Catholic at the wrong time. Her father, Marcus, wanted to make a better life for his family away from the persecution of Irish Catholics by British Protestants. He bought steerage tickets on the Titanic. He took his wife, Brenda, and three youngest children with him on the ship. Raelynn stayed behind because they couldn't afford another ticket. Marcus was going to save up money and send for her once they family arrived in New York City. She was going to work as a nanny while she waited. The ruddy ship sank on her nineteenth birthday," Crowley laughed bitterly. "I had... associates in the Belfast area after the sinking looking for weak souls. I was pointed in Raelynn's direction. The moment I met her I knew that she was my Omega. Instead of offering her a deal, I made her my Queen."

"And you pissed off Dalia how?" Dean questioned.

"Made a deal with her lover... he wanted to escape her. I made it happen and she went after my mate in retaliation," Crowley explained.