Chapter Text
***Dean POV***
January 3, Morning
Dean didn’t really understand what was happening. There was an invisible wall holding him back from reaching Ember, Lucifer, and Castiel. He could sense, somehow, by the feel of the magic, that the wall had been created by Ember. She was so powerful now…
Castiel, Lucifer, and Ember were all screaming, and he could see Castiel’s wings growing larger in the shadows on the wall. How was she doing it? Was she taking power from Lucifer and converting it to remake Castiel’s wings? Could she even do that? Would this be good enough for her to conquer her demon side?
And then, at the same time, several things happened. Castiel and Ember dropped to the ground, unresponsive. Everyone else in the room, himself included, fell forward, no longer struggling against the invisible wall. And Lucifer darted out the door.
Sam was the quickest on his feet, but even he took far longer than Lucifer to recover. Claire and Eileen darted after Sam, but Dean, Jody, and Krissy rushed to Ember’s side.
***Castiel POV***
January 3, Morning
Castiel came back to consciousness slowly. It felt like slogging through mud. Sleeping… he never got to do this… Not… not human…
Ember! My wings!
Castiel sat bolt upright. Krissy, who had been leaning over him investigating, scrambled backward in shock.
“Ember!” Castiel said, moving around the room and rushing to his girlfriend. He put his hands on her head and sighed with relief.
“Back to normal,” he said. “She’s dreaming, peacefully. They’re good dreams… like the dreams she would’ve had before her demon side had control.”
There was silence. Then Krissy said, “Why is she sleeping?”
“Oh,” Castiel said. “She’s very weak. She overexerted herself, I think. She’ll need to sleep off and on for the next couple of days, but… her demonic side is back under control, I think.” He said a quick thank-you to his father, and pulled Ember into his lap, cradling her there. If he had been able to cry, he would have done so. He was so, so happy…
“Cas, what happened?” asked Krissy.
“She… she fixed my wings,” said Castiel.
There was silence.
“How?” Dean asked.
“I’m not sure,” said Castiel. “She diverted power from Lucifer, but… I honestly didn’t know she could do that. The power required to remake an angels’ wings…” He shook his head in awe.
Suddenly Dean’s eyes widened. “Cas! Your wings! Can you go look for Lucifer?”
Castiel’s heart sank. “No, I… I’m sorry. They’re still stiff. I can’t really move them right now… it’ll be a day or two. If I try now, I’ll fall…” He wished he could help. But he would help, in the future…
“It’s cool, man,” said Dean, though he looked disappointed.
Sam rushed through the door then, Eileen and Claire behind him. He looked at Dean and shook his head.
“Damn it!” Dean said. “We had him handcuffed! What-…”
“Ember broke them off, accidentally. They couldn’t take the surge of magic leaving Lucifer and going into her, and they burnt up,” Castiel explained. “I’m really sorry. Ember thought she was doing good. She-…”
“Is she okay?” Sam asked hurriedly.
There was a lot of talking after that, a lot of rejoicing about Ember’s condition, and a lot of commiserating about the fact that Lucifer was, once again, free.
“Look,” said Dean, smacking Castiel on the back. “Don’t worry about it, man. We’ve caught him before, and we’ll catch him again. And, look at the bright side: you have a girlfriend and wings!”
Dean definitely had a point there. They were just like his old wings, before he had burnt them in Hell. These new ones were white, and majestic, and proud.
More importantly, Ember was back, and she was going to be okay.
***Ember POV***
January 5, Morning
Ember awakened fully nearly two days later. When she finally did, she was surprised to find herself at the bunker. Castiel, Dean, and Sam were gathered around a table.
“Ember!” Castiel said, sensing she was awake.
“Cas,” she said croakily. “What’s going on?”
“How are you doing? Wait… what month is it?” Her voice sounded dry and cracked.
“It’s the fifth of January,” Castiel explained. His hand was on her head, and she could already feel him attempting to calm her.
“No, Cas!” she said, fighting his hand off.
Thoughts raced through her head as memories came back quickly. Being imprisoned with Lucifer… the beach in the dream with Castiel… finding out her father was Azazel… losing herself to her demon side… begging Castiel to put her to sleep… waking up, and being instructed to attempt to do something good… channeling Lucifer’s grace to rebuild Castiel’s wings. It had been the first good thing she could think of that her demonic side hadn’t refused outright, a sort of “hail Mary” as she had fought between her demon and human halves.
“Where’s Lucifer?” she said finally.
The other three looked at each other uncomfortably.
“When you rebuilt my wings… he escaped,” Castiel said. “We’re doing all we can to look for him. We’re sorry.”
Ember put her head in her hands in anguish. “I’m sorry!” She exclaimed. “I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry he-…” She stopped. “How did he escape Asmodeus’ jail?”
The men once more looked uncomfortable. “He was the only one who knew how to make you better,” Castiel said finally.
Ember once more resumed sobbing. She thought that perhaps she may have been angry, if she wasn’t so tired. “Dammit! God dammit! I’m sorry. I’m so sorry! I never meant to-…”
“We didn’t even expect him to come back from the other universe,” said Sam gently. “But we’ve found him and trapped him before. We’ll do it again.”
Ember was still distraught. “And Azazel! God, Dean, Sam, I’m so sorry, I didn’t know, I…”
But she broke off, her sobs turning into hiccups as she fought for breath. Castiel put his hand on her face, and this time she allowed him to calm her mind somewhat.
“You can’t help who your father is,” said Sam gently, and he enveloped her in a big hug. “It doesn’t change the way we look at you. Right Dean?” he added, giving his brother a significant look.
Dean smiled, though his mouth was still set in a line. “Bobby is your father,” he offered. The look he gave her said clearly that the fact that Azazel was her biological father was never to be brought up again, nor would he ever discuss it. It had clearly gone on the long list of “Things Dean Winchester Will Avoid Forever.”
In the end, this was probably for the best.
---SPN---SPN---SPN---SPN---SPN---
Ember was overwhelmed by everything that had happened while she was gone. Her father… Azazel. And Jack, in the other world… she wished she hadn’t been asleep! If she had been there, perhaps she could’ve helped fight off the angels, and he never would have gone to the Apocalypse World. But, if she hadn’t used her demon powers, they also never would have gotten out of Asmodeus’ jail…
It was a lot to think on.
Beyond this, there was the fact that Ember had been asleep for nearly two months. There was a business to rebuild (again), and bills to catch up on (again), and children she needed to become reacquainted with (again).
At least this time, she hadn’t caused any lasting damage. As far as number of casualties, this time there had been only two deaths of humans with meat suits that would have otherwise survived an exorcism. All of the other meat suits Ember had exploded in Hell already had critical injuries. (She had recognized this at the time, though she hadn’t cared.) The “death toll” was relatively low compared to what it might have been, leaving Ember’s mind free to dwell on Lucifer and Jack.
Lucifer was nowhere to be found. The group assumed that he must’ve found a way to tattoo himself or get other warding, because even Castiel couldn’t find him.
Still, Castiel was hopeful. Ember hadn’t seen him in this good a mood since Jack’s disappearance. She knew it was because he had his wings back, and also because she was once more awake. They didn’t discuss it, but Ember could see in his thoughts during the times he allowed her to share her mind with him that the past few months had been difficult for the angel. His mood was infectious, and soon Ember found that she also felt more optimism than she had before her two months asleep.
Castiel devised a plan to find Lucifer. According to Lucifer’s story, the Kevin Tran in the Apocalypse World had used a spell found on the Apocalypse World’s angel tablet to open a rift between universes. Perhaps they could use the same spell, if they could figure out what it was.
They didn’t have the angel tablet, because Castiel had smashed it to pieces in the process of overthrowing Metatron. They did have the demon tablet, however, and Castiel wondered if perhaps the spell to open the rift would be printed on the demon tablet as well. It couldn’t hurt to look, so the Winchesters recruited Donatello, the prophet, to decipher the demon tablet.
Meanwhile, Castiel got a tip through angel radio about a cupid that had been killed. He flew the four of them to investigate, smiling shyly at Ember in thanks for his new wings.
Ultimately, they followed Lucifer’s trail to Elgin Hall, the workplace of a supposed “faith healer”, Sister Jo. Sam, who had gotten the tip from a homeless man Lucifer had spoken with in the streets, suspected that “Sister Jo” was actually an angel, and Castiel agreed.
Instead of Lucifer or Sister Jo, however, they came face to face with Arthur Ketch. “It’s only you,” he said, lowering his weapon and rolling his eyes in disappointment.
“What the hell!” yelled Ember. “Mary Winchester shot you in the head!”
“Yeah,” said Dean. “Turns out, didn’t take.”
He turned to Ketch. “What the hell are you doing here?”
Ketch sighed. “Do we really have to do all of this again? Last time we were together I saved your lives and you shot me. Doesn’t that make us even?”
“No, I guess not,” said Dean.
“Dean asked you a question,” snapped Sam. “What are you doing here?”
“My sources tell me Lucifer’s back,” said Ketch. “He’s weak and he is, or was, in this wonderful little slice of Americana. I was going to try and kill him. As were you, I assume.”
“Okay, who are you working for?” asked Sam.
“Isn’t it possible that I am simply trying to strike a blow for the good of humanity?” Ketch asked.
“No. That’s not possible,” said Castiel, who could identify the lie.
“Truth be told, taking out Lucifer would be an enormous feather in the cap,” said Ketch, switching tactics. “My business model is very, um, word of mouth.”
“Alright, so if Lucifer isn’t here, where is he?” asked Sam.
“Ah, excellent question,” said Ketch. “I propose we team up. Share intel. Cover more ground. Hmm? Huzzah!”
Castiel was apparently unamused, and put Ketch to sleep with a touch on the forehead. The four of them drug the sleeping Ketch to the Impala.
“Alright, I say we take dickbag back to the bunker and find out what he knows, put a bullet in him and burn his bones and flush his ashes,” said Dean.
“I like that plan,” said Castiel.
“Hey, check this out,” said Sam, pulling up his tablet. He had found a video of Sister Jo.
“That’s Sister Jo, the faith healer?” Dean asked.
“No, that’s an angel,” said Ember.
Castiel nodded. “Her name is Anael.”
---SPN---SPN---SPN---SPN---SPN---
Sam had managed to trace the credit card of Sister Jo’s vessel to a motel on the edge of town. He also found her phone number, and called her and convinced her there was a problem with her card that she needed to come take care of. When she left the motel, the four of them cornered her, Ember invisible.
“Anael,” Castiel said bluntly.
“Castiel. What are you doing here?” she asked, surprised.
“We were going to ask you the same thing,” said Dean.
“We’re looking for Lucifer,” filled in Sam. “Have you seen him? Do you know where he is?”
“Yes, he’s in the room,” said Anael. She glanced downward at Castiel’s hand, but he caught the move and dropped Ember’s hand very quickly. None of them wanted her to know that Ember was invisible.
“Has he hurt you?” asked Castiel.
“Not yet. He’s threatened,” said Anael. “He wants to drain my grace.”
“So he’s still weak?” asked Sam.
“Very. You have to help me,” she begged.
“We will,” said Dean. “But first you’re going to have to help us.”
They explained the plan.
“Lord Lucifer?” Anael said a few minutes later, knocking on a motel room door. “Can you let me in? Sorry, I forgot my key.”
Lucifer opened the door, and Dean came rushing inside. Castiel flew Ember into the room, cornering Lucifer.
“Morning sunshine,” said Dean.
“Sup, Gents? Guess ya’ caught me.”
“They made me,” Anael said to Lucifer. “They forced me to tell them how weak you still are.”
“Well, great seeing you,” said Lucifer. “It’s been a long time. Eh, nice jacket there, Dean. Your hair, Sam, it’s magnificent. Is that a leave-in conditioner you have there? And your wings, Cas! Guess it helps to have an abomination on your side. Speaking of which, where is your little piece these days?” he winked at Castiel, whose hand balled up into a fist.
Lucifer must truly be weak if he couldn’t see Ember, she thought. At his full power, he was more than able to.
“We got this,” Sam whispered to Sister Jo. “Go.”
“So what do we do now?” Lucifer asked. “You gonna kill me?”
“Mmm, eventually,” said Dean, holding up the angel cuffs.
At that moment, however, Anael launched herself at Sam. Lucifer pushed Dean into a corner with his powers, then began grappling with Castiel. The two seemed somewhat equal in power, though Lucifer appeared to have the upper hand.
Ember was about to add her force power to Castiel’s when she saw Sam tossed aside, hitting the wall and falling like a rag doll. She redirected her force powers against Anael, slamming her against the wall. “The demon is with them!” Anael yelled to Lucifer, sloppily fighting off Ember’s grip. “We need to go!”
Suddenly, there was a loud BANG! and Lucifer and Jo vanished.
There was silence for a second, and hazy grey smoke floated around the room. Ketch had appeared out of nowhere and launched a demon bomb at Lucifer and Anael.
“Did you just-…” asked Dean, helping Sam off the ground.
“No, they vanished before it went off,” Ketch grumbled. “But you’re welcome.”
“Congratulations, you just helped Lucifer escape,” snapped Dean.
“Put another way, I opted out of my own escape and put myself in harm’s way to save your lives,” snapped Ketch. “Again. That angel – Anael? – has been helping him. His grace has been rejuvenated, at least in part. And the four of you – even you, Ember, wherever you are – can’t capture and kill an archangel and another angel, even at half their power.”
None of them had any response to that. Ember became visible gain, and Ketch acknowledged her with a nod. Ember hated that her secret was out now to all-comers, but she’d known that this would happen when she made the choice to give birth to Jack.
“How did you get out of the trunk?” Sam asked finally.
“I’m Ketch,” he said, as though it were self-explanatory. Perhaps it was. “I found the demon bomb in your weapons cache and I thought it might make a dent. Lucky I did, too. Now that Satan’s found a new source of grace, he’s far more formidable. Who was the female angel?”
“Her name is Anael,” said Castiel. “In Heaven she was nothing. She was a low level functionary.”
“Yeah, well, now she’s Satan’s gal pal. That’s awesome,” said Dean.
“Gentlemen, this may once again fall on deaf ears, but I shall have another go. Clearly, Lucifer is more dangerous than we thought. I propose we pool resources and go after him together.”
“Dude, why would we ever trust you?” asked Sam.
“Fine, as proof of my sincerity, I shall come clean. I’m working for Asmodeus. Happy?”
“No!” exclaimed Ember. “He had me imprisoned!”
“And, yet, here you are,” said Ketch. “Just as impervious and indestructible as the rest of us.”
The group stared at him with narrowed eyes. “It also presents an opportunity,” Ketch continued. “If I’m working for him, I can pass information to you.”
“Oh, right,” Castiel snapped. “And you would do that, for us.”
“For everyone!” Ketch protested. Then he sighed. “I know you think I’m a monster,” he said.
“Because you are,” said Dean, and Ember firmly agreed.
“But even I must draw the line somewhere,” said Asmodeus. “And letting Lucifer free upon the earth? Well, as it turns out, that’s my line. Not to mention the whole Michael situation. I know you want to kill me. I know you can’t forgive me but if you think about it I’m the lesser of, well, at least three evils. All I ask is that you wait to murder me until after I prove useful. Hmm?”
Ember sighed, sharing a look of resignation with Dean, Sam, and Castiel.