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The lights were dimmed in the bunker asDean Winchester squinted at his computer. Could what he was seeing really be true? A mystery was brewing in a place he hadn't set foot in since High school. As he looked more closely at the pictures in the Keene, NH paper, he could clearly see this was no case the the police could solve. Each victim had that same tattoo. He'd seen it once before, in a place called moondor. He didn't like the looks of this at all. If it was truly a fae doing this, he and his brother would have a tough time killing them. He was going to need more iron. A lot more.
Dean intook a sharp breath as he finally stretched back into his chair. "Fate has a cruel sense of humor, as usual" he muttered to himself, going to grab a beer from the refridgerator. As soon as Sam woke up, they could start on their way, so he took a big gulp of his beer, packing the things he'd need and stuffing them into the trunk of the impala, set on getting himself some sleep before he went to face his past. There were few happy moments in Dean's chilhood, but being in Keene was one of them. It was the place he'd lost his virginity, and it was also the place where he'd met a girl he still had feelings for now, and ironically enough, she was the preacher's daughter.
Queen Krystal Kobayashisat in the living room of her New York City penthouse. She stared at a mirror, her nose scrunching and eyes beginning to squint she looked at was unfolding in Keene. "Hmm... murders. A curious thing for that place. It bears checking into" she muttered to herself, moving some stray blue hair from her face. She used her mirror as a breach in the worlds, getting herself a look at the police reports. She immediately frowned, eyes narrowing. Someone was using her spell for evil, and she didn't like it. Fae from other courts had long been using her magic as a means to paint an unsavory picture of the dark court, and this time they had gone to far. This time it was personal.
Krystal ran a hand gently through her hair, letting out a sigh. She looked to her advisor and oldest friend, Roreck. "I'm going on a trip. You are in charge while i'm gone." She told him softly, and Roreck only nodded. He was used to this by now. Often the queen disappears and leaves him in charge. He chalks it up to her looking for her heart, but that's only half the truth. The pretty fae queen enjoys taking the time to hunt down her enemies and make them suffer. Whoever was causing the disturbance by killing innocent people was in for s major surprise. Not only did they have the Winchester brothers on their trail, they had her too.
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"How can it be the same thing? We took care of that guy," Sam insisted from the passenger's seat as they rolled through downtown Keene. "Think maybe somebody stole the spell?"
The closer to Keene they'd gotten, the more agitated Dean had become. Really he'd been agitated since he'd found the case, but Sam couldn't for the life of him figure out why. He'd probed several times, trying to read Dean as he mentioned the town, the police force, the case. All of it seemed to have his brother on edge and he visibly tensed as he clammed up whenever the topic of Keene or anyone in it was touched. Whatever was wrong about this town, Dean wasn't telling his brother.
"So..." Sam glanced sideways as they strolled through the parking lot of the sheriff's station, "who do you think we'll be getting this time? 'Stupid feds leave us alone we can handle it,' or 'thank God you're here'?" It was an old bet they had, one Dean was usually good at unlike rock-paper-scissors. When they entered the receptionist was gone from the front desk, so they stood awkwardly in the lobby and waited.
"Any luck, Sheriff?" Jude sat a box of Dunks on the table with the coffee and their hot plates. She had been the secretary, receptionist, and general gopher extraordinaire at the Keene PD for years now.
"Nope, nothing." Sheriff Parker's fingers were buried in his hair as he pored over the case files. There had been another murder last night and still they had no leads.
Jude sighed sympathetically and put a hand on his shoulder. "You'll get there. YouareNew Hampshire's finest, after all." And she meant it. Jude believed in the inherent goodness of mankind and the potential for greatness in everyone. With a gentle squeeze she got herself a cup of tea before returning to her desk.
And there he was. Judith McKinnon would have been certain she was dreaming again, were she not in her workplace with a cup of tea steadily burning her fingertips. She'd had this dream many times, but it never took place in her office and was usually much more...interesting. Of course he wouldn't look the same as he did when he was sixteen, but it was definitely him. The wind had blown Dean Winchester into her life fifteen years ago and they had raged like a wildfire for what she still considered the best six months of her life. And then he had shattered her heart, leaving without so much as a goodbye. She'd written a lot of terrible poetry and cried an ocean of tears, but she'd forgiven him long ago. With a shaking hand she slowly set her tea onto her desk, staring through the reception window, not taking her eyes off of his lest he disappear again.
The receptionist was draped in gauzy, billowy shawls and a flowingdressmore fit for summer than for the drizzly, chilly spring morning. The forecast was calling for snow later in the week, after all. She stopped and stared, mouth slightly open, and Sam figured she'd probably never seen an FBI agent before; they often didn't in small towns like this. He cleared his throat and flashed his badge.
"Morning, ma'am. Special Agent Hendricks, this is my partner Special Ag--"
"Dean?"
Sam stopped midsentence, eyes widening a little. "You ah...you two know each other?"
She ignored him. "Oh. My. God.Dean Winchester!" With a jangling of bangles she slipped her shoes back on and hurried around to the side door. Hair flying, jewelry jangling, the smell of lavender and orange trailing after her,Judecame flying out after fumbling with shaking hands at the lock that separated the lobby from the station proper and barreled into Dean with an enormous hug.
Sam tried really hard not to laugh. "I ah, I see you've met," he all but snickered as the tiny slip of a woman hugged his brother tightly around the middle.
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Dean frowned, focusing on the road as he drove to the sheriff's station. He took in a breath. "I dunno, Sam. It could've been, or it could be a rouge fae. When they get angry they can get nasty." He replied, knuckles whitening as he gripped the steering wheel. He hadn't ever wanted to come back here, but he couldn't ignore people in need. He coudn't ignore the fact that if he just passed over this case, he'd see Jude's name on the list of dead. He had alot of guilt, but even he wouldn't be able to stomach not doing anything when he knew he could help, especially in her town. Saving people, hunting things. The family business, back in swing, even if it meant possibly facing a woman he hadn't seen in 15 years.
Dean still remembered this town like it was yesterday, and he could still hear the shouts of his father. "Fine then! Try making it on your own! But don't come crying home to me!" John winchester had raged, leaving Dean in the last town he came to after a case he'd taken the boys on. He could still remember the hurt in his brother's eyes as they drove away, leaving him with a 20 in his pocket, his gun, and some clothes in a duffel bag.
Dean was shook from his memory as Sam spoke again. "I don't know. Probably happy to see us. I doubt they have any leads." He admitted, shuffling a bit as they stood in the lobby. He could remember sitting here, waiting for the town preacher to pick him up. The family had agreed to take him in while they looked for his father. It was surreal to find himself in this station again after all these years, but here he was. He sipped on the coffee he'd brought in with him, almost spitting out the hot liquid as he saw just who the receptionist was. He hadn't expected to run into her this quickly, even in a town as small as this.
Dean was at a loss for words as he followed her with his eyes, his posture showing his surprise, slight guilt and just a hint of love. He made a small oof sound as he was hugged, breathing in her sweet smell once again. He hadn't thought he'd ever be this close to her again. His words were just above a breathy whisper as he looked at her, though there was a smirk curling its way up on his face. "Hey, Jude. Been awhile"
Meanwhile, Krystal had already checked into a nearby hotel and was researching. She had a few of her fae magic books, and she practiced the reversal spell in her mind. She wouldn't let innocent people die because of magic she created, no, she wouldn't. It wasn't something the pretty queen would ever let happen. She coukd sense something big on the horizon, but she didn't realize just how big. She was about to find her long lost heart. The only problem was? She didn't remember him. Castiel would have his work cut out for him in order to break the spell Raphael had cast to keep them apart.
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To Dean's clever smirk was an open, wide grin on the receptionist. Jude seemed a friendly woman but on strangely familiar terms with Sam's brother. He watched Dean's posture change and frowned a little as he watched them. As Dean gingerly returned the hug Sam tilted his head slightly to one side and watched them. Dean had had plenty of one-night stands, of course, but if and when he ran into them he tried to avoid them and they weren't usually quite so friendly with him. Was she a friend then? A hunter his brother knew that he hadn't met?
"Look at you! FBI!" Jude stood back with her hands on his arms, looking him up and down. "This is incredible! I'm so glad you didn't waste your talents becoming a mechanic or whatever your 'family business' is. I knew you had more in you than that!" She grinned and reached up to gently touched his cheek, which was as far as she could reach; he'd grown so tall while she'd stayed much the same height. "I'm so proud of you, Dean," she murmured. "And now I can sleep at night, knowing what happened to you. Disappearing in the middle of the night, no note, no goodbye..." She shook her head and tapped his cheek gently. "Worried mesickfor a decade and a half! Dad'll be glad to know, too."
"Uh...Dad?" Sam's eyebrow arched higher and he looked at Dean.
"Oh!" the receptionist looked as though she'd only just remembered that Sam was there. "Sorry, yeah...your partner here spent some time with my family back in the 90s. I'm just glad he's safe, and an FBI agent to boot!" She beamed proudly again. "I'm Jude, by the way. Jude McKinnon. Well, Judith, but everyone calls me Jude." She pinkened fetchingly for a moment. "Sorry, I'm babbling; you're probably here about the serial killer. I'll go get the sheriff."
Jude hurried away and returned a few minutes later with the sheriff. If she were honest with herself, she was torn between picking up where she and Dean had left off, and not letting him get too close again; the life of an FBI agent probably didn't leave much room for a personal life. Sheriff Parker strode up to the two FBI agents and stuck out his hand.
"Gentlemen! Glad to see you. We could use a little help on this one." He wasn't about to reveal that he was desperate for a lead, any lead. Sam glanced sideways at his brother with a knowing look, but Dean was a million miles away.
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Dean winced slightly at her admittance that she had worried about him, and his eyes showed a mixture of emotions as he looked at her. You could tell by the way the older winchester stood that there was a whole lot he was saying about his relationship with this woman. "I didn't mean to worry you, Jude, but my dad and little brother Sammy needed me." He replied softly, a tone to his voice he only used with those who he was very close with. He leaned his head slightly into her touch, eyes closing for only a few seconds, but it was enough for Sam to have noticed, and he knew it.
Dean dreaded going back to the motel now, because he knew that his brother was gonna drill him relentless until he told him. That was not going to be a conversation he would enjoy, only because Jude and he had shared something even more special than he'd had with any other girl he'd known. He and she had been each other's first.
When she turned away to go get the sherriff, Dean gave his brother a stern look. "It's a long story. Don't even ask, Sammy." He half muttered, half growled, and you could tell that there was absolutely something more there that the elder winchester wasn't saying. There was alot of unresolved feelings there that he had tried to keep down for years, but at seeing her again as beautiful as ever, the careful wall he had built up around his heart was starting to crack.
When Jude came back with the sherriff, he shook his hand, hos free hand runnkng through his spiked hair. "We'll do all we can to help, Sherriff." He replied, smiling cordially, though his eyes never really left Jude's. Even if he had expected to bump into her, nothing could have prepared him for the reaction he received. It reminded him of all the reasons he had fallen so hard for her at 16.
Meanwhile, Krystal was looking around town for clues, sipping on an iced tea. She often drank as much as a gallon of tea when it was warm, or she was trying to get some work done on her novel, which she didn't know was actually an autobiography. It was the story of a brave soilder angel who fell in love with his charge... a beautiful fae princess. "There's gotta be some clues around here somewhere" she muttered to herself, hopping back into her dark blue lotus sportscar and heading to the next crime scene.
If there was one thing Krystal loved about being Fae, it was the ability to go invisible. She floated soundlessly around the crimescene, watching as forensics did their work. She found a severed arm in a bush, andbthe mark was clearly there. She sniffed at it, trying to discern which fae court may have tried to use her magic on humans, and what she smelt made her swear outwardly. This time it was the court of order who was trying to frame her for treasonous acts against humanity. Well, she wouldn't be having that. She was determined to find out just who'd done this, and why.
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Sam just shrugged when Dean instructed him not to ask about what had happened. He wasn't going toobeythat instruction, obviously, but for now he acknowledged it to avoid a fight. There would be plenty of time at the motel to suss out exactly what Jude was to his brother. In the meantime he kept one eye on the case file and one on his brother. Dean didn't seem able to stop looking at the receptionist. She was pretty, but notthatpretty; not the open-mouthed, beam-of-light, chorus-of-non-douchebag-angels pretty Dean seemed to think she was. He was lucky they'd already had a similar case or he would have missed a few of the key details.
"Well then, let's go check out the crime scene," Sam suggested. "We'll probably get a better idea of what's going on seeing it in person." They started to the door but were stopped by Jude's voice.
"Oh hey, Dean? Agent Hendricks?" Jude stood in the doorway to her office, watching them leave. She'd been agonizing the entire time they were going over the case with the sheriff and had come to a conclusion: she couldn't watch Dean Winchester walk away again. She didn't know what exactly she wanted from him now, but she knew that whatever it was it wasn't the radio silence she'd endured. "If you want, you guys can stay with me. I've got a spare room and a couch; it just wouldn't be right for you guys to get put up in a motel or something, not when you could stay for free in a bed you know is decent and clean. I cook," she added as an incentive. "Betcha don't get much in the way of home cooked meals while you're on the road."
Castiel was already at the crime scene when the brothers arrived. "Hello Dean. Sam," he said flatly. "Looks like it's definitely the Tree of Pain again. We're dealing with a rogue fae, I think; it's not really a common magic."
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Dean nodded at his brother. "Yes, lets go. There's bound to be clues there that will help us solve this case as fast as we can." Even if he wanted to stay around and maybe rekindle some of the fire that he and Jude had had as kids, at the same time he wanted to run away. He couldn't risk falling back in love in the line of work he did. It was to dangerous for her. He wouldn't be able to bear the pain of seeing her die because of him. Being a hunter was a lonely job, and he had convinced himself that Sam and copious amounts of one night stands was all he needed.
Dean's expression showed his shock as her words hit his ears. He could feel himself getting red, and he hoped to god if there was one that his brother hadn't noticed. He hadn't stayed with her since they were kids, and he was nervous, though he tried not to show it. He smirked slyly at her. "You promise to make one of your mom's famous pies? Cause then I'm in. I'm not sure about my partner though" He replied with a raised eyebrow, nudging Sam in a way that said he'd rather his younger brother stay at a motel. Yeah, there was definately alot more going on then the elder winchester was saying.
Dean ran a hand through his hair as he looked at castiel, unaware that they were being watched by a curious blue haired queen. He frowned. "Great, so how do we kill a fae, Cas? You seem to be the expert." He grumbled, emotions still raw from seeing Jude so he was lashing out a bit. If Sam didn't already know that there was something between that woman and his brother, he sure as hell did now.
Krystal couldn't help but over hear thier conversation as she watched the blue eyed man in the trench coat, scratching her head. It was here that she chose to descreetely appear to the boys, smiling softly. "You have to stab them with something pure iron. Anything else will just piss them off." She muttered softly, looking at the three men and making eye contact with the trench coated one for only a few seconds, once again scratching her head. There was a sillouette of a memory brewing in her mind, but she still had no idea why she felt so drawn to him.
Krystal let out a soft breath. "I'm Krystal by the way. Queen Krystal of the dark court fae. Someone's been using my spell. Now they must pay the consequences." Her expression was fierce and annoyed as she talked, but Dean could detect no lies coming from her mouth nor any ulterior motives. He let out a soft breath.
"Sam, Cas, I'm not sure why, but I think we can trust this woman."
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Another bright, easy grin bloomed across Jude's features. "Cherry pie it is then," she agreed before looking at Sam. "Agent Hendricks?"
There was no way Sam was giving up this opportunity. "Yeah! Pie sounds great! Thank you; your offer is very generous." He smiled back at her despite the Dean's glare, which he could feel burning into his neck.
"Awesome! I'm off at five so whenever you guys are done you can hang out here," she offered. "See you then,Agent Winchester." Jude grinned fondly. She was immensely proud of the boy who had broken her heart.
"So...do I get to know what happened?" Sam asked in the car, glancing over at his brother. "Because no way I'm sleeping in a skeevy motel bed and not watching how this plays out, you know." He'd already resigned himself to having to needle it out of Dean slowly over time; a decision he only confirmed when Dean got snitty with Cas. He opened his mouth to say something in the angel's defense, but was cut off by a quiet murmuring nearby. Sam raised his eyebrows at the blue-haired woman who had clearly heard their entire conversation. "And...who the hell are you?" he demanded.
The newcomer introduced herself as a fae queen, but Castiel already knew that. He knew she wouldn't remember, but why wouldn't she look at him? He stood like a marble statue for a few moments, mouth slightly open, hardly daring to believe it; if he'd had a physical heart it would have stopped. All these centuries and now fate or destiny or God, whatever it was, had brought her to him again. Castiel resisted the urge to grab her up and hold her in his arms, to smother her with kisses; socially inept though he was, evenheknew that that would scare her. Still, hehad tomake her remember somehow. Trying to do it all at once surely wouldn't work, but how could he slowly remind her of who she was? Whotheywere? Dean announced that they could trust her and he nodded slowly, still hardly daring to look away.
"Uh, sidebar guys?" Sam pulled both of them aside and murmured in a low voice, "Have you both completely lost your minds? A random fae shows up out of the blue, announces she's a queen--and oh, by the way, it's not her using this fae magic to kill people--and you think we should just...believe her?"
Castiel set his jaw. "We can trust her," he insisted. "I know her; I've been searching for her for centuries. I...she...I was her guardian." The angel's relationship with Krystal was deeply personal and he was hesitant to divulge it, even to the Winchesters. "Things happened, we were both caught up in a conflict and got separated. But I assure you, wecantrust her; she would never do something like this."
"Centuries? Cas, people can change a lot in a few years never mind a few centuries."
Castiel shook his head. "Not her," he insisted stubbornly.
Sam pursed his lips, cast another dubious glance over at Krystal, and huffed. "Fine," he said finally. "But if she turns out to be the killer, or if she betrays us or something, it's on you."
"This is a responsibility I'm willing to accept."
The boys and Castiel stepped back over to Krystal and Sam smiled tightly. "I'm Sam, this is my brother Dean, and Cas. So um, you know who's been doing this?"
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Dean grinned back at her. "Perfect. Cherry pie was always her best." He replied back, his body relaxing as he looked at her. Once she was back in her office, he glared at his brother. It wasn't so much he minded that he would be there, he just didn't want to explain yet, and he knew if Sam was with them at her place, it would become obvious fast just what was going on with the two of them. They a really intimate connection Jude and he, and dean didn't want anyone to know about just how close they had been during those 6 months he spent on his own.
Dean stayed silent for a moment, glaring out the windshield of baby. He looked like he wanted to murder something. "No. You don't, Sam." He replied simply, tone harsh. He wasn't gonna tell his younger brother anything about it until he absolutely had to. Jude was soecial to him, and the short 6 months they had spent together were the best of his life. The elder winchester couldn't admit it to himself, but he was still very much in love with her. It scared him shitless too, because anytime he'd tried to get close to someone and love them, they had been killed. He was a brave enough man to be able to admit losing her would destroy him, which was why he'd stayed away the last 15 years. To keep her safe.
As the 3 men conversed, Krystal couldn't help but stare at the one wearing a trench coat. She had only just saw him today, and yet she felt as though she'd known him her whole life. She held her head, flashes coming quicker and quicker the longer she watched the three who had only strayed a few feet from her to talk. She perked up st the sound of a gravelly voice. She knew that voice. She knew she did.
Dean spoke lowly to his brother. "Normally I would agree with you, Sammy, but if Cas trusts her, we know ahe is at least somewhat good. We'll play it by ear for now, and watch her, but I really don't think she's behind this."
Krystal smiled softly as she looked at the 3 men again, focusing on the blue eyed one despite answering the tallest man's questions. She shook he head, her spiked hoop earrings jingling. "Its good to meet you all. But, No, not specifically, I can tell you two things for sure, Sam. It wasn't someone from my court. It was a fae from the court of order, and it was a noble. No run of the mill fae has quite enough power to cast my spell, at least not in this way. It takes alot of power." She tried to explain, her eyes showing her hurt that this man didn't trust her. Despite being a dark fae, she wanted nothing but peace. She would never hurt a mortal. She loved them to much.
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Castiel kept glancing at her, trying not to stare. What should he say? How should he address their shared past? He shifted uncomfortably as she spoke with them, not sure exactly where to start.
"That's a pretty big pool of suspects," Sam admitted, still not quite trusting her.If Cas trusts her.Because Cas had trusted Crowley and Leviathans and the authorities of Heaven, and look at how all of that had turned out.
"Not as large as you might think," Castiel countered. "That actually narrows down the list quite a bit. The problem is the fae courts require absolute proof of wrongdoing before sentencing anyone. If we take out the fae ourselves, it would bring the wrath of the Court of Order down on all four of us." He looked at Krystal to include her, hoping something in his glance would seem familiar to her.
"So...hit the books?" Sam suggested, looking between them. What waswitheveryone today?
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Krystal blushed a becoming shade of pink as she noticed this "Cas" was looking at her. She couldn't put her finger on it, but she knew that she knew this man. She was drawn to him, and she wanted so badly to kiss him, even if she didn't know quite why. She was so confused, and yet at the same time she knew that she was meant to find him. To love him.
Krystal intook a breath. "Cassie is right. That does narrow the suspects by alot. It is probably someone who has a grudge against me personally or the court. We're not well liked. The other courts regard mine as mud they scrape off their shoes." She explained softly, blushing. She didn't know where the nickname came from, it just popped out of her mouth like it was the most natural thing she'd ever said. What she wouldn't know was that that was one of the nicknames she had given him when they were together and he was still her gaurdian.
Dean wasn't quite sure what tk make of all this. "Cassie?" He asked, looking more at the angel then the blue haired woman in front of him. She didn't look as though she knew why she'd said it either, so he looked over to his friend for an answer instead. He rubbed a hand over his face, looking curious. Research probably was the best route in their present situation.
Krystal nodded at Sam. "Yes, that's probably wise. Cassie, I have some books back at my hotel room, and I could use some fresh eyes. Maybe you could come with me?" She asked, once again the nickname popping out of her mouth like it was no big deal, despite her blushing. This time she did have an ulterior motive. She knew he knew something she didn't, and she would get it out of him, even if she had to kiss it out of him.
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Castiel felt blood rise in his face when she called him "Cassie." Of course she'd called him that for years, before they'd been separated, but it was a thing done in private. Angels were typically very reserved by human--and fae--standards, even when as deeply in love as he had been. He rolled his lip over his teeth and ignored Dean's question, pushing down the quiet embarrassment.
"That seems like the best course of action," Cas agreed, avoiding Sam and Dean's curious gaze. "I'll go with you. Sam, Dean, I'm sure you've got books of your own?" He looked at the brothers and Sam was torn. Usually he didn't enjoy being nosy, but there was so much going on in one day. Still...it would probably be easier to get secrets out of his brother than out of a wave of celestial intent.
"Sure Cas," he finally agreed, glancing at the blue chick again. He still didn't trust her, but Cas was an angel; he could take care of himself. "Be safe, alright? See you later." With that he waved goodbye and went back to the Impala with his brother. "Well...that was weird," he commented before looking over to Dean. "So...we gonna go find Jude now?"
Castiel shifted uncomfortably, looking at Krystal. Where to start? And what would be the consequences once she remembered? "You...don't know me at all, do you?" There. Confirming that she didn't remember a thing would be a decent way to start, perhaps open a conversation.
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Krystal's face turned up into just the slightest slightest smirk as she noticed the blue eyed man blushing. She didn't know why, but it gave her an intense sense of joy to know that she had that power over him, however small. Dean raised an eyebrow again at the angel, but didn't push further. Somehow he knew it would all be explained sooner rather than later.
Krystal's slight smirk turned into a full out grin as Cas announced that he would go with her. She was delighted to have alone time with him, despite not knowing why she wanted it. Dean nodded at Cas. "Yeah, we got some books. We'll research the courts more. You two try and figure out who might be doing this" he replied, takinv on the aithoratative role he was so known for when hunting.
Krystal and Dean both knew that Sam didn't trust her, even if he did. Even he didn't really know why he trusted her, even though Cas trusted her inexplicably, and he trusted Cas. He nodded at his brother" Yeah, it was. There's definitely more there between thise two than Cas is saying. I mean, did you see the way he blushed?" Dean remarked, trying to keep the spotlight off himself and Jude, even if he was heading back to her now. He nodded as he started the car. "Yeah. Lets go find Jude."
Krystal blushed as she got in her car, motioning him into the passenger's side. "Yes and no. I know some things. I know your name is Castiel and I call you Cassie. I know that you're not mortal, and I know that I want to fuck you senseless, but I don't know why." She explained flatly, but he would be able to tell by her expression that she knew that knew what was going on, and that she would get it out of him. She wantedbto just pop them to her penthouse, but decided not to. Atbleast in the hotel, they had equal ground.
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Castiel slid into the passenger's seat before asking Krystal what she remembered. At her frankness he raised his eyebrows in mild surprise and shifted again, clearing his throat and adjusting his trench coat to play for time. "I ah...well, that's more than I expected," he admitted. "And...well, rather accurate. But I'm not sure how good for you it would be to remember everything all at once." He looked down and found a thread on his sleeve and began winding and unwinding it around his finger, fiddling nervously.
"What do you remember of your childhood?" Castiel asked cautiously as she drove, glancing sideways at her.
Jude was locking up just as the Winchesters came back into the lobby. A bright smile greeted them before she hurried back into her office to grab her purse and her keys. "Let me just lock up..."
Out in the parking lot she spotted the Impala, the only car left apart from her own. "They let you drive your own car when you're on official business?" she asked, looking it up and down. "She's nice." And Jude was stalling. With a deep breath she looked over to Sam and Dean. "You guys can follow me back to my place. I'm out near Manadonock, on the outskirts of Jaffrey."
Jude lived in an old, converted stonebarn, but once the boys had parked around the side and stepped in, everything spoke of home. From the slightly clutteredkitchento the sunny though somewhat crampedliving room(with no TV, Sam noticed), everything was designed for comfort and warmth. Once they had shed their coats there was the unmistakable New England feel of a warm, home-cooked meal combined with the slight, damp chill of windows left cracked on a spring day to let the air circulate. Jude kicked her shoes off at the door before going around to close windows.
"I've had a stew in the crockpot all day, so that should be ready if you're hungry now," she called from the kitchen before emerging in an apron and bare feet. "But if you want that pie I'm gonna have to charge you in some crazy FBI stories, Agents." Her smile turned sly before she slipped back into the kitchen to begin work on dessert. "So Dean...you want me to tell Mom and Dad? They were pretty heartbroken when you left, y'know..."
Sam glanced curiously at his brother as they went through to the kitchen. "Shouldshe tell Mom and Dad?" he echoed with a raised eyebrow. If she was going to charge them "FBI" stories, maybe he could finagle a few stories out ofheras well.
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Krystal kept her eyes on the road as she drove back to her country club like hotel, watching him fidget from the corner of her eye. She smiled a little, her tense shoulders relaxing a bit as she drove. She let out a breath. "Well, its good to know I wasn't completely bonkers. The Dejavu at seeing you cassie is strange, to say the least." She explained, taking in another breath.
Krystal's hand on the steering wheel tightened slightly as she kept driving, taking in another breath. "I remember having a protector. He was an angel with big black wings, and I loved it when he'd wrap me up in them, hold me tight. I remember I loved him. I loved him so deeply, but he was ripped from me. There was a war going on inbetween the fae courts, and it took the lives of both my parents, leaving me as new queen. I remember praying, Cassie. Praying so hard for my angel to come back and comfort me, but he never did." She muttered, her story finishing just as she pulled into the parking lot of the hotel. She smiled a little at him,, but there was a sadness to it she only ever showed someone close to her, getting out of the car, grabbing her laptop.
Krystal smiled at him again, starting to walk into the hotel. Her room was on the top floor, and they would need to take the elevator to get there. "A few years ago, something snapped in my head and I started writing a novel. Its the story of a brave soldier angel who falls in love with his charge. Whenever I picture the angel in my mind though? I see you. Its almost like my character came to life." She explained, watching him.
Dean smiled at Jude, just discreetly watching her. "Of course." He replied, waiting patiently for her. Even with Sam around, he couldn't get his mind off kissing her. He had missed her, even if he didn't want to admit to himself.
Dean grinned at her at the compliment to the car. "I have to ask permission most of the time, but yeah. She's my baby. Wouldn't have it any other way on the road." He replied, unlocking the door. He grinned again, adding "is it anywhere near that Ice cream place we used to drive out to when we were young?" He remembered several dates where the two of them would take her dad's car and drive to the parlor, share a milkshake or two then see a movie. It may seem pretty chick flicky for the gruff hunter, but nights like those with her were some of his most treasured memories.
When they got to the house, it was just the kind of place he would expect her to have. A cozy stone house that reminded him of a cottage he had to burn down once on a hunt. It definately screamed new england, and the inside of the house screamed Jude. It wasn't just because it was the kind of homey place she'd always dreamed of living in when they were young either. No, it was also the slight messiness of the kitchen, the living room stacked to the ceiling with books. It was just all very her.
Dean could smell the stew the second he came in the house, and he was caught in a memeory for only a moment. He remembered her mother had made something similar the night he had come to live with them. He was shaken from his reverie as he heard her yell, and he came into the kitchen. "Mm, smells amazing Jude. I could definately eat. What about you, Sam?" He asked, smiling just a little.
You could see the hurt in Dean's eyes at her question. He frowned at his brother, knowing he was thinking of asking Jude about her and him. He cleared his throat, looking a little guilty. He really hadn't meant to hurt them, but his dad and brother had needed him back. "Yeah. You should. I wouldn't want them to worry about me any longer" he replied, sitting at the nearby table, just watching her cook in fascination, much like he did as a teen.
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Jude smiled at the memory when Dean asked whether she lived out by Kimball's. It was among some of the best dates she'd had; a lot of people wanted to complicate things with expensive dinners and indie art shows, but Dean had always known just how to spend time with her whether it was ice cream and a movie, hiking, or just laying in the back of her dad's pickup and stargazing while the peepers and crickets sang them to sleep. Of course, after a certain timethosedates had rarely ended with sleep. She shook from her reverie when Dean said he could eat; she had been remembering the taste of his skin.
"Yeah, I'm starved," Sam agreed eagerly. "Um, is there anything I can do to help?" Jude waved him off.
"Just sit, I'll get it," she insisted, pulling mismatched stoneware from a cupboard and ladling stew out of a crockpot on the counter. After setting the bowls on thetablenear the fireplace she washed her hands and set to work making the dough for the crust. She didn't have to see the hurt on his face to hear the guilt in his voice. "Okay, I just wanted to make sure. We looked for you for a long time; they always wondered what had happened, hoped you were safe."
Sam saw his opening and took it. "So ah, how did you two meet?" he asked casually, ignoring any looks from Dean. "My partner's never told me he grew up in Keene."
"Oh he didn't," she said with a casual shrug, measuring out flour and dumping it into the mixing bowl. "He was only here about six months. Showed up lost in the woods and my dad took him in while we tried to find his family. The Rev's always had a soft spot for lost sheep." Jude threw a smile over her shoulder at Dean.
"Uh...the Rev?" Sam raised an eyebrow and glanced dubiously at Dean.
"Yeah. My dad's the Presbyterian minister in town. There's really only that and the Catholics or you have to go somewhere else for your services. I'm Unitarian, I only make it every other week. Tell him that and I'll murder you dead," she added, brandishing the dough hook of her stand mixer at Dean for a moment. "Disappeared one night though, haven't heard from him since." There was no venom or accusation in her voice, only sadness. Sam fixed his brother with a look behind Jude's back. He remembered Dean disappearing for about six months after a huge blow-up with their father, and when he'd come back for a particularly nasty hunt he refused to talk about where he'd been. This was almost certainly the missing gap in Dean's life, and he'd spent it with a preacher of all things.
Castiel listened quietly as Krystal recounted what she could remember. So her memory had been slowly trickling back for a while, it seemed. When they parked he slid out of the car, still silent, and followed her into the building. The angel chewed his lip for a few moments, staring at the back of her head as he walked behind her.
"You remember almost everything, then," he finally said. Once they got into the elevator he hung his head. "I did look for you, you know," he insisted quietly. "I've been searching for you for centuries, even through the apocalypse and civil war in Heaven. Raphael, the angel who did this to you...he's dead now. He can't hurt you again." He lifted his chin to watch her. The elevator dinged and he stepped out, waiting for her to lead the way to her room.
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Dean smiled. Of course she would have a place over in that area. The woman had always loved the shop, and they went there often. It was some of his happiest memories being with her, and he missed those days. Now that he was with her again, he just wanted to kiss her senseless, love her deeply, and pick right up where they left off, even if he knew that being with him could be a death sentence. Every person he'd loved that wasn't family, and even some that were, had died on him, and he didn't want the same thing to happen to her. He loved her to much to have to watch her die, even if he was fairly sure Cas could bring her back.
Dean watched as she served them, his eyes showing a mixture of emotions. He rubbed a hand over his face, silently glaring at his brother for asking, even if he knew it was gonna happen. He still didn't want to talk about it. Those months away from all the death and violence of his childhood had been the best he'd ever had.
When the impala came rolling up in the middle of the night, he almost didn't go. He had wanted so badly to just stay, and truth be told, if he had, he'd probably be married to Jude right now. It was a thought that made him internally smile. The prospect of marrying her was very appealing, even if he worried about her saftey in and because of his line of work. He nodded, though she might not have seen. "Of course Jude." he replied softly, voice still guilt ridden. He felt terrible about worrying them for so long. The McKinnon's had been like a second family to him, and he'd just left. It had weighed on his heart for 15 long years.
Dean stuck his hands up in mock dramatasism, looking scared, even of he wasn't really. "And risk him killing the messenger? Are you kidding? I'm to pretty to die!" He stated, though his tone and expression said he was just joking a little. When she turned, he froened at his brother, and youncould just see how much he didn't want to talk about it. Her sighed, pouting slightly, though his expression showed that once Jude went to bed, he might be inclined to explain. Still, his relation ship with her was very personal, and he was still feeling pretty reluctant about telling Sam.
When they got into the elevator, Krystal looked so pained. "I'm sorry you had to look for me. After we were ripped apart, I started building an empire in the himan realms. Kobayashi inc. I found it fitting since the dark court lies in a small forest. I think subconciously i was hoping if I built an empire, I might run into you. I'm glad that he is, even if i'm sure it mist be hardnon you, Cassie. He was still your brother. A civil war in heaven? Damn. That must've been hard." She talked in a jumble, comfortable with him even though she was nervous. Now she knew she wasn't crazy. She had finally found him again, her heart, her soilmate.
Krystal looked at him, leading him to her room, which was just across the hall from the elevators. Once inside, she looked at him, going to make some tea. She remembered how even if he only tasted molecules as he put it, he still liked tea. "I really want to kiss you." She admitted softly, almost as an invitation. She wanted him to make the first move, because she wasn't sure he'd want her to. She knew he could be old fashioned sometimes.
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Cas listened. He'd heard of Kobayashi Inc. and had thought it was just a coincidence. He felt suddenly ashamed for not having looked for her there; the fae didn't usually meddle in the human realms and he hadn't dared to hope she would have built a corporation so large for risk of exposing her race. He nodded when Krystal commented that a civil war must have been hard.
"It was quite difficult," he confirmed. "Raphael, however, has been dead for a long time and I've done my mourning. In the end, it came down to him or me...and I still had to get back to you." He looked at her meaningfully, watching her as she made tea. She wanted him to kiss her. He wanted to kiss her. Castiel took a hesitant step forward. "I'm not sure what that would do to you," he admitted. "I want to, more than anything. But I worry that Raphael may have put safeguards in his spell, and kissing you...it may just undo everything." The corners of his eyes turned down as he gazed at her longingly. "I'm sorry."
Jude chuckled when Dean joked with her about being too pretty to die. It was true though. "They'll be glad to see you, Dean. They really will." Her heart cried out for him, but she had no way of knowing how he felt about her still. She wasn't sure if she could handle that heartbreak twice. Instead she stifled her emotions and put the pie dough in to chill while she started on the cherry filling.
"So Agent Hendricks, how long have you been working with Dean?" she asked casually.
"Oh, quite a number of years now," Sam answered just as studiedly casually. "And you can call me Sam, if you want."
"Okay, Sam then." As she crossed the kitchen and passed him Jude ran her hand lightly through Dean's hair and across the back of his head, the way she often had while sitting in the passenger's seat or cuddling on the couch with him. Too late she realized what she had done as she drew her hand back and blushed fetchingly, but didn't say anything about it. "So Dean, Sam...what's the craziest case you've ever had?"
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Krystal smiled sadly as she listened to him, pouring the tea and setting it on the nearby table before walking over to him. She nodded softly. "I can understand how that would be trying. I'm so sorry you had to go through all that, angelbaby." She muttered softly, the more private of the two nicknames coming from her mouth. She was remembering even quicker now that she was so close to him, and with each moment she wabted more and more to be close to him.
Krystal stroked his cheek softly, stepping in closer to him. She gave him another soft smile, pressing her body against his. "I understand, Cassie. Don't worry. But just... cuddle me awhile? I've been alone so long." Her voice was meek and and soft as she spoke, not wanting to overstep any boundaries he may have. She craved his touch though. Every fiber of her being was screaming out for him as she wrapped her arms tight around him, head resting on his chest. She needed him.
Dean looked contemplative. "I hope so, Jude. I feel so aweful for just leaving, but.. when John winchester calls.. you run. I'm glad you never had to know him." You could hear the slight bitterness in his tone, but it wasn't directed at sam. He never blamed sam fo making him come home. He blamed John, who only seemed to love him when it was convenient for him.
Dean blushed lightly as she ran a hand through his hair. He had always loved it when she did that, and it always encited moee pleasure than he let on. If they were all alone and she did it, he would pop up like a jack in the box. It took him back to the last night he spentwith her, and tried hard to keep his cheeks from turning crimson as he felt his pants tightening. "Sammy, you tell her. I need to.. take care of something." And with that he ran away into the bathroom.
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Jude watched Dean go into the bathroom and raised an eyebrow, a knowing smile playing at the corner of her lip though she simply grabbed the cherries and said nothing. Of course she remembered what that did to him sometimes, in their more intimate moments. Often, though, it had been a simple gesture of affection he had over time associated with her and how it was when they were together. Quickly Jude pitted the cherries and began to simmer them with some other ingredients. As Sam told his story she took the chilled pie dough from the fridge and began rolling it out, pressing it into a pan and weighting it down with beans before sticking it into the oven to bake.
Sam wound up telling her about the apocalypse...sort of. Instead of actual angels he told a story of two serial killers who believed it was their destiny to meet and face off, which really wasn't quite off the mark for Lucifer and Michael. When she dusted her hands off and sat at the table while the cherries simmered and the dough baked, Sam studied her. What was it aboutthiswoman who threw Dean off his game so much? "So Jude, how was it when my br-- er, partner stayed here with you?"
Jude smiled knowingly. "Oh I think he'd rather he tell you himself. Dean's always been a pretty private sort of guy."
"Fair enough." Sam nodded. "What about you then? What've you been doing since?"
She shrugged. "Eh. Went to college, got a job at the station. Drank a lot, wrote a lot of bad poetry, had some boyfriends, some girlfriends. Joined a band, impersonated David Bowie semi-professionally for a while. Life stuff. Pretty boring compared to the life of an FBI agent."
Castiel leaned into her hand as she stroked his cheek. It had been so long since she felt that soft touch. When Krystal pressed herself against him one hand drifted to her waist, the other taking her hand gently as he turned his face to press a gentle kiss to her palm. "Alright," he acquiesced. "Come on then. We'll cuddle."
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Dean closed and locked the door behind him, quickly pulling down his pants and boxers. "Ugh.. Fuck.. now i'm really gonna have to explain myself." He grumbled, stroking himself slowly, head lolling back as he remembered Jude doing this back when they were kids. It made him shiver to know that he was in her house, and he was doing this in her bathroom. It felt naughty, but totally right at the same time. He started out with slow strokes, getting his player to full attention. It didn't take long at all. Not when he knew jude was only a few rooms over.
Dean grunted as he worked at his erection, pumping it, remembering the last night Jude and he had. It was just the two of them, and the had just finished their ice cream cones. They laid under the stars in the back of her dad's pick up, and he kissed her freely, pulling her close. He could never forget that last night. It was the night he uttered 3 words he'd never whisper to any other girl again. "I love you"
As Dean remembered, he sped up his pumping, wanting to get this over with so he could get back to her and his brother. Even as lost in the moment as he was, he knew if he left them alone to long Sam would ask questions he wouldn't answer. At his quickest thrust, the sticky white liqyid dripped out and into the toilet, and he let out a relieved sigh. That had been a doozy. He hadn't masturbated that hard in years. It was different with Jude around. It always had been.
Dean let out a breath as he returned to the kitchen, well aware that Sam was likely really gonna start asking him questions now. He couldn't help it. The way she touched him, while not sexual, it brought back a flood gate's wort of memories. He sat back down, averting his gaze from both of them, though he spoke. "So, what story did Sam end up telling? I can probably elaborate."
Krystal snuggled into him, squeezing his hand as he took hers. "I see your vessel hasn't changed much. Whats his name this time?" She was half joking as she popped them to the bed, not wanting to leave his side long enough to walk over to it. She finally felt complete again with him next to her. She planted a soft kiss to his cheek. "My Cassie. My heart." She muttered, snuggling as close as she could.
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She wanted to kiss him so badly, to talk freely with his partner of their shared past, to pick up where they had left off. But they weren't kids anymore, and they'd both led very separate lives in the past fifteen years. She thanked the Higher Powers that the wind had blown him back to her, of course, but it was so much more complicated than "hey I still love you." Jude moved hair out of her face as Dean came to sit between them and she smiled a little. Under the table she briefly put a hand on Dean's knee and squeezed gently, another old sign of affection, before withdrawing it respectfully and leaning on the table.
"Oh, I told her about those two serial killers a couple years back," Sam said with a look, trying to communicate with Dean with his eyes. "You know, those two brothers in Detroit who called themselves the Angel and the Devil?"
"You never told me they were brothers!" Jude exclaimed, though just then her cherries needed stirring.
The rest of the evening passed in pie and pleasant conversation. Around ten or eleven Jude showed them to theguest roomand provided them with plenty of pillows and patchwork quilts for the other to sleep on the couch. Dean would recognize the quilts from her bedroom fifteen years ago, ones that had been made by her grandmother, along with a few new ones which were also clearly handmade. Sam held out his hand for rock, paper, scissors and as always he won. Naturally, he picked the bed and claimed he would give Dean "time to talk" with Jude.
Jude had shut up the house and retired to her ownbedroomwhere she had left the door open not only out of habit but also because she frankly didn't care. A woman's body wasn't an object to be owned or shamed and she saw no reason to hide it, despite her open bedroom being in easy view of the living room couch. Once she had changed she crawled into bed, grabbing a book off of her nightstand. She was trying not to dwell on the fact that Dean Winchester was under her roof but wouldn't be sharing her bed. They weren't kids still, as she kept repeating to herself, they couldn't just pick up where they'd left off.
Castiel was slightly surprised to find himself suddenly in the bed, but it wasn't too disorienting. Instead he snuggled down with Krystal, holding her gratefully against his body and stroking her hair gently. "Jimmy Novak," he informed her with a small smile. "He's dead now, actually. In Heaven. But I admit I've grown rather sentimental about his form. It's had to be rebuilt several times, but I'm rather attached to it.
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Dean smiled at her affectionate squeeze to the knee under the table and squeezed hers back. He would not pass up any opprotunity to show her that he still cared. While he knew they weren't kids anymore, he really just wanted it to work out this time. He wanted to be with her, he realized this the moment she stepped though the door to hug him back at the station. His life was beyond complicated and he might die more than once on her, but being her with her, in her house and so close, made him feel human again.
At Sam's reply, Dean made a knowing face at his his brother. "Yeah, those guys were humongous dicks, and they were obsessed with us. The older one wanted to be inside me, and the younger one wanted Sam. Honestly, I don't swing that way. The younger one did manage to kidnap Sam for awhile, but my other partner, Cas and I saved him. They have another brother too, who's rich and eccentric. He took us on a wild goose chsse in a tv studio. We ended up in all kinds of shows, including a japanese one called nut cracker, and yes, its how it sounds. We're lucky nobody was taping. The guy just paid the actors to keep us busy. He didn't want us to find out he was their brother." He explained kind of in a jumble, eyes showing his annoyance. Sam would know that the elder winchesterstill hadn't forgivrn Gabriel for the mystery spot.
Dean smiled and took the quilts from Jude, noting that some of them were ones he and she had often slept under. He quickly made the couch up so he could sleep on it, then went out to the impala to get something more casual to sleep in. He changed quickly in the bathroom, folding his suit back into his duffel. He didn't waste time when it came to thingd like changing.
Dean sat on the couch, blushing a little bit. While he had seen her body many a time when they were kids, it was different now. She had grown into an even more beautiful woman than he had ever imagined. He tried not to oggle her as she changed, but from his position, even lieing down he'd be able to see her. He let out a soft sigh, reminding himself again that they weren't kids and that if he let himself love her again she could get killed, but it didn't work. Once she had settled with her book, he darkened her doorway, preparing to confess. "Jude, can we talk?"
Krystal smiled as he stroked her hair, drawing absent-minded hearts on his chest. She was so happy to have him back, even if she didn't quite remember everything. She knew though that being in his arms quieted her soul and made her feel more complete than any other person ever had since him. She smiled again, scooying closer to him. "This "Jimmy" fits you well. I am glad that he has peace, though I never met him." She replied, sighinging happily. Nope, they probably wouldn't get to the research for at least a few hours.
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Castiel nodded, his skin tingling with the little invisible hearts. "He was a good man, a good father," he confirmed. "I hope to one day be as good as him." Research could wait; Krystal was back in his arms as though hundreds of years hadn't passed, as though nothing had ever separated them nor ever would again. Life was good. He would have fallen asleep with her in his arms, if he were capable of sleep.
Jude looked up from her book and gave Dean a soft, sad smile. Marking her place, she closed the book and set it on the night stand before scooting over and patting the spot next to her own. "Is this where you say it was all for the best?" she asked, no trace of venom in her voice. "You've changed and it'd never work out? We were kids? We can't just pick up where we left off?"
In the guest room Sam listened hard through the open door, curious about what sort of conversation they would be having after he was supposed to have gone to bed. It was entirely likely Dean would be much more open when he thought Sam wasn't listening.
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Krystal snuggled closely, continuing to doodle little hearts and tings with her fingers on his chest. She let out a soft, contented sound. "You are a good man, and you will be a good father too, Cassie. We'll have a family someday. Maybe not right now, but someday." She mused softly, imagining boy and girl twins. Somehow she knew it would all work out for them.
Dean's expession showed an array of emotions as he sat next to her. Yes, he could do this. He could, and he would. He'd made his decision. "No, we're not kids anymore, but I didn't want to talk to recount the reasons why we couldn't work again." He replied as he took a breath, fidgeting with his t-shirt a little. He was nervous. She made him nervous for so many reasons, yet being with her made him feel alive like nothing else had. He didn't think anything ever would. She awakened a wonderment in him he didn't even remember he had.
Dean took another breath. "I know its not as simple as just saying that I still love you and want to be with you, but its the truth. I know we've lived vastly different lives, and I know i probably don't deserve a second chance after the hell I probably put you through when I left, but I do. I want to try again." He blushed the whole time he talked, and she would be able to see the sincerity in his expression. Seeing her again had reminded him of how much he missed her, and he wanted to put in his bid for another try no matter how much his head screamed it was a bad idea. He was following his heart for a change.
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"Dean..." Jude looked conflicted as Dean poured his heart out to her. "Oh Dean..." She took his hand in both of hers and brought his fingers to her lips, gently kissing each knuckle just as she used to do. The first time he was here she had found the crisscrossing scars on his knuckles from his many hunts, and at the time she had been convinced that he had come from an abusive home. That conviction only deepened when she saw how many more scars had made their home there in the meantime. She sighed. "Dean you've never left my heart," she admitted, "and I never stopped loving you. And youdodeserve a second chance. Even if you didn't, I'd give you all the chances you need."
And here it came. "But I was shattered when you left." Jude couldn't look at him. She turned his hand over to kiss a line down his finger where, had he stayed, there could have been a wedding band by now. She continued that line of kisses down his palm to the inside of his wrist. "The life of an FBI agent...you're gone most of the time and I'd be left sitting and wondering whether I was gonna get the call telling me you'd died on the job. I'm not sure I'd be able to handle you leaving again, and it would break me toknowyou were dead. When you left, there was always the hope you were still alive." Jude pressed another gentle kiss to the inside of his wrist before pressing his palm against her cheek. Finally she met his eyes. "Iwantto try again, Dean. I've never loved anyone the way I loved you, and I doubt I ever will. But at the same time...I want a family. I want a husband, children, grandchildren. I want to have that sort of a life withyou, but I know that it isn't fair of me to ask you to leave your job just for me."
She was quiet for a long time. Finally Jude sighed and swept hair back from her face. She hadn't let go of Dean's hand, almost as though she feared that if she did she would lose him forever. "Let's try it while you're in town," she said finally, looking up at Dean. "And until you've solved this case you can think about what you want. If you don't like it here I can move, I'll follow you anywhere; you've always known that. But I can't come on cases with you, and we both know that that's where your time will be. But until you've solved this case, we can try again. We can start over." She pressed another kiss to his palm.
Castiel shook his head. "You haven't known me in the centuries that have passed," he protested quietly. "The things I've done because I was following orders, or for the greater good. I killed thousands of angels. I'm not a good man or a good angel, I'm not a good brother...I'm not a good being." And it was true, to him at least. Everything he'd done with the best of intentions had turned to mud in his hands. Krystal had known a man different from how he was now.
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Dean closed his eyes as Jude kissed his knuckles, head lolling slightly. His body language said volumes to what he was feeling. The closed eyes indicated pleasure at her show of affection, his shoulders rigid. There was still alot of guilt held in his heart for hurting her so, but he had hurt too. He almost got himself killed a few times on hunts because he couldn't take the pain any longer. He let out a soft breath, his free hand resting at her hip, begging to pull her closer.
"There were so many times I wanted to run back to you, Jude, but my life is the very definition of complicated. When my father died, I had to take care of sammy and make sure he got along okay. If I had ever thought that yoj wouldn't hate me like the trash Ibam, I would've come back. I was scared." He explained softly, and in his words you could definitely hear his father. John Winchester had said that getting close to someone meant weakness, yet his son couldn't imagine living his life with out Jude now that he'd ran into her again. He was breaking his dad's first rule of hunting. But he realized now that he'd broken that rule long ago when he'd muttered that first i love you at 16.
Dean stroked her cheek softly as she leaned into his hand, eyes closing again. It seemed like the more contact he had with her, the happier he became. She lit him up in a way that no woman ever had done before nor he thought any other woman ever would. He smiled softly as he enjoyed the moment, caught up in her soft feel despite listening intentlh to hear what she said. "I want that too, Jude, more than anything, but i'm scared. Anyone I even try to love dies, and I don't want the same to happen to you." His words were soft as he looked at her, intertwining their fingers and resting his forehead on hers. "Yeah. Lets start over. Can.. i.. stay here?" He added softly, eyes sgowing his quiet embarrassment, but needing to be close to her.
Krystal snorted a little, snuggling close to Castiel. "I don't believe that for a second, cassie. Well, at least the you not being good part. Even angels are entitled yto making mistakes. Nobody's perfect, my love." She tried y o sooth, kissing his cheek. While it was true she knew that people change change, she knew her angel. She knew that whatever wrong he may have done was for the right reasons, and that made him good too. Hopefully she could get him to see that.
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Castiel shook his head. "You wouldn't say that if you'd been there," he insisted flatly. "If you'd seen what I've done, who I've worked with...who I've killed. It wasn't right and it wasn't good. Nobody's perfect, but that isn't an excuse." He sighed and shook his head again. "You don't understand."
The corners of Jude's eyes turned down as he talked about his father's death, about thinking she would hate him. When he called himself trash she smacked him gently, tapping his cheek with her fingertips. "Hey," she said seriously, looking into his eyes. "Nobodycalls you trash, Dean. Not even you. You're not trash and I won't allow that sort of talk about you." A smile played at her lips but never quite made it. If Jude were capable of hate, she would have hated his father for making Dean feel this way about himself. At first part of her draw to him had been, like her father, to fix what was broken, but then she had seen the gentle soul beneath the gruff exterior; an exterior encouraged by John Winchester. The man was lucky he was dead or Jude would have found him and given him a piece of her mind.
"I'm not going to die, love," she assured him gently, leaning her forehead against his and running her fingers through his hair. "Not until we're old and gray and have lived long, happy lives, and if I go first then when I get to Heaven I'll stand at those Pearly Gates and I'll wait for you. I'll always wait for you, Dean." When he acquiesced to starting over, Jude's expression blossomed into a wide, bright smile before she leaned forward and placed the softest, gentlest of kisses on Dean's lips. "Yeah Dean, you can stay here," she murmured softly.
human
Krystal frowned softly, shifting herself so that she was now on top of him in the bed. She looked him straight in the eye, electric blue meeting glacial grey blue. "Cassie, stop. Its not the actions that make the man, its the intensions. As long as they were pure, you're still pure as well. I love you, okay? Just the way you are. Always have, always will." She promised, pecking both his cheeks, before snuggling back down into him. She hated seeing him so depressed. She knew that he was still her angel knight in shining armor.
Dean looked up at her with wide pained eyes. "Okay Jude." Was his hos only soft reply, and in his expression you could just see how much his father's words had hurt him over all these years. He maybe a brilliant, caring athletic man, but because of his father he thought he was no better than the dirt on his boots. Sammy had always been the smart one, sammy had always been the one who got everything. He was the one that was always giving. Don't get him wrong, he never faulted his brother for all this, no. He blamed the father that was so bent on revenge that he left his sons to the wayside.
Dean winced softly at her words. She didn't know what she was talking about. She didn't know just how dangerous her life would really become if she chose to follow him home. "I'm not even sure the angel would even let me into heaven." He muttered, and you could see in his eyes there was something that he wasn't saying. He'd seen it all. Heaven, hell, purgatory, and he honestly was so broken down by all the violence and death in his life that he almost didn't believe he was worthy of going to heaven. At Jude's kiss, his eyes widened in surprise, but he kissed her back, his free hand pulling her flesh against him.
Dean let out a soft breath, pulling her to his chest like he'd stayed with her so many nights before as kids. "Thank you, Jude. Love you."
gpt
Jude freely let Dean guide her down to lay down against his chest. Reaching over she clicked off the lamp, plunging them into darkness. "I love you too, Dean Winchester," she murmured back.
It was raining when she woke up. There were several reasons Jude would never forget that day, and later looking back on it the rain had for some reason stuck particularly in her mind. It wasn't the drizzle of earlier in the weak but a slow, steady downpour creating a curtain of grey just outside her open window. The smell of rain and the warmth of Dean's arms, the steady rise and fall of his chest, all combined to make her take several minutes to make sure she wasn't dreaming. No, she wasn't; dream Dean was usually younger, the way she had remembered him as a teenager, or slightly varied from this Dean who held her, the way she had imagined him growing up to look. Jude stretched luxuriously and quietly slipped out of his arms. It was Saturday and she didn't have to go to work, though she imagined he would have to be on his case today just as any weekday. Still, that was no reason not to start things off with a good breakfast. Quietly she slipped off her night shirt--actually it was a sports jersey he'd left behind years before but she just hadn't had the heart to part with it--and pulled on a comfortableoutfitbefitting the weather before padding out of the room on bare feet.
"Morning, Sam," Jude greeted him quietly with a smile when she found him on his laptop at the kitchen. "Sleep well?"
"Oh, very well thank you." Sam smiled though he didn't fully understand why they were communicating in hushed tones. "Looks like Dean got an early start on me." He certainly wasn't going to indicate that he'd been eavesdropping last night. Jude shook her head.
"Nah, he's still sleeping. Pancakes alright?"
"Sounds great, thanks." He smiled again and returned to his research while Jude got started on pancakes, warming up some of the leftover cherry pie filling to put on top of them.
Castiel could only shake his head at her assertions. She didn't know him, hadn't seen the things he'd done...and maybe they were better off for it. Still, he just couldn't forgive himself. Instead of arguing he merely contented himself to lay there with Krystal in his arms, watching over her as she slept the way he used to so many centuries ago.
human
Dean's face grew into the widest grin he'd had since he was 16 and he snuggled her close, falling into a the deepest, most peaceful sleep he'd had in years.
Dean frowned as he awoke to an empty bed. He had hoped to awake as she did so that he could kiss her good morning. Even though he wasn't usually this private around his brother, things were different with Jude. He shared something really special with her, and it embarrassed him to be overly affectionate with her. It wasn't that he was ashamed, no, that had nothing to do with it. It was just that for him to show his true feelings to someone like that, was rare and special.
Dean stretched and got out of bed, looking at the clock near the door. It was 9 am, and the hunter would need to get in touch with Castiel. It was to see if he'd come up with anything from the books that queen Krystal had said she had back at her hotel. He let out a soft yawn as he stretched again, padding into the the kitchen. He rubbed a habd over his face. "Morning Jude, morning Sammy" he muttered as he sat at the table, still in to much of a sleepy daze to keep his mouth in check at calling his "partner" by his own private nickname.
Krystal snuggled back down into Castiel, giving his cheek one more kiss before closing her eyes. Her head laid on his chest, and she was listening to the soft beat of his heart, simply relaxing. Before the pretty fae had realized it, she'd falling asleep, and dreams of him plauged her mind. Some were happy, recounting things like his proposal and dates they had, but others were more trying, like the night he'd left to help in a conflict that had arisen with the angels. "My Cassie. My angelbaby. My heart" she muttered softly with a snore, contented to be with him, even if they would need to get lots of research done in the morning.
gpt
Castiel held her through the night, content to watch her and listen to her mumble in her sleep. Whenever her face scrunched in anxiety he gently stroked Krystal's hair and murmured softly to her. Morning came all too soon. He watched the rain outside with his arm contentedly around the fae, knowing that they needed to do research but unwilling to get up and do it. Across the room his phone buzzed in his coat pocket, but he ignored it. He wasn't willing to disturb Krystal's sleep.
"Cas isn't answering," Sam said in frustration, setting down his phone and looking over at Dean. "Morning," he returned. "Think I may head over to that hotel, make sure he's alright." He still didn't trust Krystal, and Cas not answering his phone after going to her hotel was unsettling. Without waiting for an answer he stood and pulled his shoes on before grabbing a jacket, leaving the suit for plain clothes. "I'll text you when I know he's okay."
"Good morning, Dean," Jude greeted him with a warm smile and a warmer stack of cherry pie pancakes. "Sleep well?" She moved over to an ancient-looking record player-tape deck combo and put on arecordthat seemed to trickle along with the rain. Sam swept by her and she looked over her shoulder. "Drive safe, Sam," she called, answered by a raised hand just before the door closed behind him. She slid into a chair next to Dean, grabbing up her own fork and digging into breakfast. Jude was content to just sit and eat in the quiet with soft music filling the kitchen; she and Dean had never had to be constantly talking to be happy around each other.
"C'mere," Jude said once they were done. Thesonghad changed to something a bit bouncier. With a grin Jude tugged at Dean's hand, attempting to get him to leave his seat. "Come on Dean. I've gotten you to dance a time or two," she insisted. When eventually he relented Jude pulled him into a bouncy sort of dance across the kitchen floor with the steps being made up as they went. "So...does your brother have a different dad, or did he just change his name so you could work together?" She smiled knowingly as she twirled slowly under his arm in time with the music.
human
The faint sound of the rain made Krystal stretch a little, opening her eyes. They were sleepy, but she was awake enough to remember that she wasn't alone. "Morning Cassie." She muttered groggily, giving him a kiss to the lips. It was what she had always woken up when he was with her before, and now that she was with him again, old habits died hard. But she wasn't feeling any adverse effects, nor did she remember anything more in a burst, so that was a good sign, she supposed. Maybe it had to be castiel who kissed her in order to truly break the spell?She stretched, yawning. "You know, I think i'd like some icecream." It sounded lIke Krystal's giddy randomness from him being near was coming through again.
Dean ran a hand over his face as he came and sat down, grinning at the stack of pancakes goven to him. He looked at shaking his head. Even it was a little worrying, Dean somehow knew the angel was okay. "Did you call him on both phones?" Dean asked with an expression that meant had he prayed to him, but when sam announced that he was gonna drive over there, he only nodded. He knew his brother needed solid proof, because he didn't trust the pretty fae yet. He smiled as Jude flipped some music on, giving her a kiss to the cheek before starting to eat his pancakes in silence. It was true that they didn't need to talk much to be happy in each other's company.
Dean groaned a little as she pulled at him, knowing what she wanted. He was stubborn for only a moment or two before yeilding to her. He could never say no yo her, no matter what she asked, he loved her to much to ever see her disappaointed. As they danced, he was startled by her question. "He changed his name. How lone have you known?" He asked back at her, looking curious and a little embarrassed. He hated lying to her, but as of right now, he was an FBI agent, not a hunter.
gpt
He asked how she knew and Jude smiled mischievously. "Wanna know a secret, Dean?" she asked in a stage whisper. "I knew it all along. I'm psychic; I can read minds! I just didn't want to tell you because I thought you'd freak out." At the look on Dean's face she laughed. "Ooor," she offered, "I used my very own reasoning skills. You said last night your brother's name was Sammy, and ifIhad a sibling and a partner with the same name, I wouldn't call them both by the same nickname."
She twirled under Dean's arm again and stepped closer to him, wrapping one arm around his neck and setting her other hand on his waist. "So is that what you guys do? Crossing the country, saving people, solving crimes? Quite a family business you've got there ducks." Jude smiled and pushed herself onto tiptoes to peck at his lips lightly. "Not a settled way to live, that's for sure, and knowing you you probably live off of bacon cheeseburgers and pie. Nothing homecooked, I'll bet." She shook her head in disapproval; Jude had always been about home and hearth, about being "one with nature" and all the hippie crap Dean usually ignored and she couldn't imagine a lifestyle worse than that of fastfood and asphalt. "This could be your home again, y'know," she offered meekly. "Between cases, I mean. A decent bed, a few good meals, familiar faces. Sheriff Parker would be tickled to have a big-shot FBI agent around all the time."
Castiel felt a spark when Krystal kissed him. Well, that had been...different. Perhaps there was hope after all. Still, he didn't want to rush it; maybe it would be a series of small little gestures like that rather than one grand fairytale (heh) true-love-conquers-all kiss. After all, what made a relationship in the long run was the little things. She stretched beside him and he smiled; he'd missed the little things, like the way she yawned or her sleep mumbling.
"Ice cream for breakfast?" he asked, half-teasing. "If you're going to pass as human you'll have to eat normal human things you know. Thought you'd have picked up on that the past few hundred years." Castiel nudged her gently, a small smile playing at his lips. Yes, the little things were always what had made everything so worth it.
human
Dean's eyes almost bugged out of his head. While he'd met mind readers before, the prospect of her being one was scary. It would mean she would've known everything, and he wasn't ready to tell her. At her admittance she used her deduction skills, he relaxed. His secret was safe. He hated keeping anything from her, but he really was worried about her safety.
Dean set a hand on Jude's waist, pulling her closer. "Yeah, more or less. We take pride in keeping people safe. Its what dad would've wanted." He replied softly, pecking her lips. He had really missed her, and being close to her like this made him feel happy. He gently swayed her, landing soft kisses all over her face, wanting to be affectionate because they were alone, and he had missed her, so so much. "Being with you would be amazing, no matter where we are." He replied softly, giving her another sift kiss. Anyone who knew him would think all this chick flicky moment lovey dovey stuff was out of character, but the truth was, with someone as close to him as Jude, he could let out all the softness he had. He didn't have to act all gruff.
Krystal grinned excitedly, taking her clothes of slowly. She was teasing him slightly, despite the fact that it had been centuries since they were last together. In her giddy mood, anything went really. When she was finished, she wore a simple pair of skinny jeans and fuzzy socks, with boots and a black veil brides t shirt. She was all for the casual comfort. She gave him another kiss.
Krystal chuckled at his teasing. "Its not that wierd, Cassie. Just.. pretend i'm your pregnant fiancee and I need pickles and icecream for breakfast!" She half joked, leaving a small hint. While she knew that they would have to build their relationship back up, she loved him. Loved him so much and wanted to be his forever this time.
gpt
Castiel's eyebrows rose mildly as he watched her change. God it had been so long! He'd missed the way his hands fit so perfectly on her waist, the sound of cloth sliding smoothly over her skin. All of the old feelings were rekindled as aroused as she shimmied into clean clothes. When Krystal insisted he pretend she was his pregnant fiance he couldn't help but grin. If only. Slowly he sat up and swung his legs over the edge of the bed.
"Well, I suppose we'll just have to find a grocery store then," he finally acquiesced. Cas watched her pull her boots on, wondering how much she remembered. The spell seemed to have broken just by their being together, but there was no way to tell which memories she might be missing as a side-effect.
As Dean peppered her face with soft kisses Jude closed her eyes and smiled contentedly. She loved public displays of affection, but was aware that Dean had always been a very private person whose public affection usually only went so far as holding hands. With a father like John Winchester she could only imagine such "womanly" things would've been discouraged and so she was understanding, though she hoped that in time he would come to realize that there was nothing wrong with publicly having feelings. Jude looked up at him hopefully as they swayed on the spot and he declared the idea of being with her to be amazing.
"So you'll stay?" she asked cautiously. "I mean, not quit your job obviously. I'd never ask you to give up your career for me. But I mean...you'd get transferred to Boston or something and move here?" She almost didn't dare to hope.
human
Krystal smirked a little as she changed. She knew he was watching. It took all her willpower not to just walk over in just her bra and panties and ravish him. It really had been to long. She let out a breath, zippering up her tall black boots. She would try to control her fae libido at least for a few more days. It would all be very worth it later.
Krystal let out a small chickle, walking over to where he stood and giving him another square kiss on the lips. "Yes, we will. But after Sam comes to check on you. Even if worrying about what he thinks probably makes me suspicious, I worry anyway. Those brothers seem to really love you. I just want to be liked too." She replied softly, snuggling into him a bit as she fingered his trench coat. She was definately getting him a new one and charming it so it could never get dirty. Somehow it just suited him.
Dean pulled her close, peppering still more kisses all over her face and neck, smiling at her. He loved that she didn't force him to do anything he wasn't comfortable with. Though Jude's reasoning wasn't quite on the mark of why he wouldn't show to much PDA. It stemmed from his father, yes, but it was more about attachment then about not being mushy. His father had always told him that attachments could either get himself or Sammy killed, so he usually tried not to express anything to much more than the masculine feelings. The truth was though, that Dean would sell his soul again for Jude if he needed to. He loved her that much.
Dean smiled, giving her a kiss, full on the lips. "I'd like that. But i'll have to take it up with sammy. Sombody's gotta stay in kansas at the family home." He explained, holding her close. He didn't think he'd ever tire of being close to her.
gpt
Jude's face blossomed into a grin when Dean confirmed that he would stay. He'd have to take it up with his brother, of course, and she wouldn't have expected anything less. He kissed her fully and she slid one hand into his hair, deepening the kiss. It took several smaller kisses for her to finally tear herself away from him. Everything from that summer came flooding back and God but she wanted to have all of that again. All of it and more. Dean held her more closely and she leaned against him, still swaying a little though the needle had lifted off of the record several minutes ago.
"I don't want to scare you, Dean..." Jude said slowly, "but I still want everything we talked about."
She meant everything they had talked about that night just before they'd made love for the first time. She and Dean had almost from the beginning had the tendency to get into long, deep discussions about life. That night in Setters Field under the stars they'd talked about everything they might do together: about marriage, about their dream house, about pets, the way they wanted their lives to go. They had sealed that pact with what Jude considered the ultimate act of love. Of course, their lives hadn't gone exactly as planned, but there was still time for marriage and a house and a few dogs. They had never discussed children and Jude was afraid to bring up the subject now. She lifted her head off of his chest and looked at him.
"I want you to be in my life, Dean Winchester," she said softly, "for however much of it is left." Gently she pulled him down into a deep, gentle kiss. Jude couldn't get enough of Dean Winchester.
"After Sam comes to check on me?" Castiel asked with concern. "Why would he come to check on me? I'm an angel of the Lord." He wrapped his arms around her waist distractedly as she sat on his lap, puzzling out her meaning. He was much more powerful than Sam was; even if Krystal hadn't been trustworthy, what couldSamdo that he himself couldn't? It made no sense; Sam would have only been putting himself in danger. Then again, neither of the Winchesters were exactly known for their self-preservation instincts. There was a reason they had died so many times.
human
Dean grinned back at her. It was hard not to. Jude's smile and laugh had always been so contagous that he couldn't ever be unhappy when she was around. He was her ray of sunshine in his clouded and bloody world. He was amused as it took a few more kisses to make her stop, but he grinned at her.
At her next words, Dean's eyes showed slight fear, but the he grinned again at her, pulling her closer. "I still want that too, Jude. So very much."
It was the truth too. Dean winchester wanted nothing more than to put his gun away for good and really become what she thought he was. He wanted so badly to love her, have a family with her, spend the the rest of their days together. She made him feel again, and while he loved it, it also terrified him. He loved her so much, he knew watching her die like sammy had watched jessica would break him. But he was tired of running. He wanted tk be happh for a change.
Dean smiled down at her, cuddling her close. "I feel the same way jude. I love you. I really do." He admitted, kissing her back deeply as he blushed.
Krystal chuckled, snuggling into her confused more or less boyfriend, smiling at the way he just instinctively held her. Even if he said he changed, it was moments like this that convinced her that he was still her Cassie deep down. "He's worried about you, Cas. He thinks that I might've killed you or something. He doesn't trust me." She tried to explain, trying to help her confused lover, even if the look on his face was to adorable for words.
gpt
"What makes you say that?" Castiel asked, still scowling in confusion. "You've only spoken to him for five minutes." He still didn't understand how Sam Winchester, former abomination, would have single-handedly rescued him had he been in any actual danger.
Jude had seen the fear in Dean's eyes. She'd seen it before, when they'd first talked about "forever" those many years ago, but she'd never sensed any falsehood from him and was convinced that Dean would never lie to her about anything, not even by omission. Of course, Jude had always been terribly trusting and naive when it came to him. Though she believed the best of people and often took things at face value shedidharbor a healthy skepticism for certain types of people; those certain types of people had never included Dean and she was reluctant to admit her blind spot for him, even when her own instinct told her to question him. There was something he'd always hidden from her and she'd convinced herself that it would be prying and pushing to pursue that hidden part of his life. Speaking of hidden parts of life, however...
"Dean I do need to confess something," Jude admitted when their kiss finally broke. She cast her eyes down, ashamed to have to admit this. But a lie by omission was still a lie, and if they were to rekindle their relationship and actuallygo throughwith all of their plans this time she couldn't start things off with a lie. "Over the years I haven't exactly kept...pure," she admitted. She still couldn't meet his eyes. "I've had boyfriends, Dean...girlfriends...both..." She shook her head and shrugged. "You were gone. I was in pain and lonely and trying to get over you even though I never did. If um...if that's not acceptable to you then I understand." Finally Jude forced herself to meet his gaze. "I just couldn't keep that from you. It would have torn me up. I was just...I was trying to fill the hole you'd left. If you'll still have me though, I'll bet things will be better and less awkward than last time." She attempted a sly smile though it only came off as awkward and uncomfortable. "Since getting better comes with, y'know, practice."
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Krystal rested her head on his shoulder. "You can tell alot about a person by body language. He was really stiff when we were talking yesterday." She admitted, drawing little hearts on his chest again. In all honesty, the woman hadn't really changed, aside from maybe the fact she had a daughter. She loved her daugter more than anything in the world, and had at one point believed that her father was her soul mate. She had absolutely no clue about Castiel at the time, even if subconsciously her heart called out for him.
Krystal had met Castiel when she was just 5 in human years, and was ripped away from him when she was just 400. She would be celebreating her 2,000thc birthday in a few weeks. Even though she'd mostly stayed the same, it had still been awhile since they were together. She'd learned much from observing humans through the ages, and had even came out and played in a few of them. She gave him a light kiss."Also, I heard your whole conversation. I usually don't like to eavesdrop, but you were close enough for me to hear even unitentionally. He doesn't trust me." She explained, looking curious.
For Dean Winchester, the thought of forever with Jude was both amazing and terrifiying. Not only was he keeping so much from her, he also knew that if evil found her, she could die. Even uf he desparately needed someone to talk to about his fucked up life, he preferred not to bring her into it if he could avoid it. If he did, it would be more blood on his hands that he couldn't face. The worst part of it would be though that the whole reason her blood would be on his hands would be because he wasn't good enough. He'd promise to protect her, and then he'd fall short just he always did. Even if Dean knew that being with him was a horrible idea, with Jude, he still craved everything.
After they had broken the kiss, dean gave her a puzzled look. What might she have to get off her chest? It couldn't be any worse than the trail of bodies of loved ones he had left over the years, including his brother... and himself.. a few times. As he listened though, a chuckle was starting to bubble up from his stomach. He gave her a reassuring kiss. "Baby, you could be into voodoo and it wouldn't bother me. But.. as long as we're being honest, the thought of you with another girl is.. sexy." He replied, grinning at her easily. In a way he might be teasing a little, but the bottom line was that he would love her no matter what, and did.
gpt
Jude chuckled with him, relieved he hadn't thought worse of her for it. He thought that her sexuality wassexy.How very Dean. "Oh yeah?" she teased back, returning his grin and bumping him with her hip. "And what about another girl and anotherguy?" she challenged. "Things've been a little spicy since you left, Dean, I dunno if I could go back to just regular ol' vanilla..." She looked around innocently as she teased him. Dean could have wanted nothing but missionary for procreation purposes for the rest of their lives and she would have contented herself with it. Of course she knew he was likely moreadventurousthan that, but wasn't certain he'd be okay with ethical non-monogamy after finding each other after all these years. And that was okay too.
"You'll have to convince the Rev it's hot though," Jude added after a thought. "He caught me kissing Rachel Steinburgen once. Took him five years to realize it wasn't a phase and now he's convinced I'm going to Hell." She rolled her eyes. "He's just worried for me, but the sermons get old after a bit. I'm just glad you don't mind." She pulled him down for another kiss. "Shewaspretty good at a few things though...maybe we should show you so you can take lessons..." Jude winked and grinned conspiratorially. "Or maybe you can just show me what you've already learned. You can't tell me that in fifteen years Dean Winchester couldn't find a couple of women who couldn't keep their hands off of him." In her heart she knew that Dean had probably slept with other women, but it didn't make her any less jealous about it. Still, Jude knew that to be jealous over such a thing was hypocritical and a little crazy and wouldn't hold it against him. Perhaps he, like she, had learned a few interesting things in the intervening years.
"Well yes, I know he doesn't trust you," Castiel confirmed with a nod. "But why would he be on his way to check on me? I'm a far more powerful being than he is; whether he trusts you or not is irrelevant. Even if you weren't trustworthy there would be nothing he could do about it that I couldn't."
human
Dean raised an eyebrow at the fact she'd dated a guy and a girl at the same time, though he smirked. "Jealous about the man. But curious about the woman. Still pretty hot" he admitted with a chuckle, pulling her back to him. He could be all kinds of kinky for her if that's what she wanted. He chuckled, pulling her to him and giving her a lewd kiss. "How kinky do you want it? I can dominate pretty well, i'm told." He half teased her, an amused sparkle in his green eyes that showed he was mostly joking.
At the mention of her father, Dean's nose scrunched up. "Ooh, yeah, I can see where that would be tough. But trust me, there's no way I'd let you go to hell." There was an unreadable twinge of something in his eyes as he said that, remembering when he had willingly gone to hell. He could never forgive himself if she ended up there, especially not if it was his fault. He nodded his head at how she said her father's sermons were getting tired, kissing her back happily. He couldn't get enough of her kisses. He loved them -loved her- to much. Here he smirked wickedly, green eyes twinkling b with desire and mischeif. "Is that an invitation jude? Because i'd be happy to show you what i've learned... in bed." He replied, kissing her again lewdly.
Krystsl nodded. "Its a human trait, I suppose. Checking up on one's loved ones. Hopefully he'll see i'm not a terrible person" she admitted, sighing. It did kind of hurt that someone fidn't trust her, even if she knew it was warrented in this sitchuation. She tried not to take it personally, but after close to 2 milleniums of being treated like a villan not worth anything, it left scars on her heart that were being cut anew.
gpt
"The Winchesters have trust issues," Castiel told her quietly, rubbing her back sympathetically, "and for good reason, too. They've been betrayed many times by people they cared for, people they thought cared for them...including me." He hung his head. He still felt extraordinary amounts of guilt for working with Crowley, betraying the Winchesters' trust, and letting the Leviathans into the world. In a sense it was his fault their adoptive father was dead, and though they had never blamed him for it--at least not directly--it was still a guilt which would forever weigh heavily on his heart. "Give Sam some time. He'll come around." Cas kissed her tenderly, wishing he could just kiss everything all better and take her worries away again.
Jude laughed and shook her head. "Threesomes can get complicated sometimes, especially with switch dynamics," she said. "But yeah, it was all pretty hot."
Dean pulled her against him and she moaned gently into his kiss before asking how kinky she wanted it. Just at the very suggestion her warm center went up in flames and she was suddenly seized with the uncharacteristic desire to just rip his clothes off right there in the kitchen. The glitter in his eyes indicated a joke, but she had ropes and collars hidden in a box in her closet which were certainly no joke at all. Things turned suddenly very serious when she mentioned Hell and Dean quietly insisted that he would never let her go there. Concern briefly darkened her lustful gaze and she put a hand to his cheek.
"Hey..." Jude made him look down at her. "I believe in a loving God who lets you in so long as you're a good person. I'm not going to Hell just for being half-gay, I'm pretty sure." She leaned up to give him a reassuring kiss. "So don't worry, okay? She tried to turn the conversation around again by suggesting that Rachel Steinburgen could possibly show Dean a thing or two about making love to women. Dean asked if that was an invitation and when she opened her mouth to answer kissed her again. Jude moaned against his lips, sliding her tongue along his and gripping his shirt in both hands before releasing it and beginning to pull open the buttons on his flannel. "You never were too good at that whole subtlety thing, were you?" she teased, biting his lip gently and pulling off his shirt. "Make me have to call in sick Monday because I can't walk right," she invited before crushing a kiss to his lips then tracing lines down his neck, shoulders, and chest. Every now and then she left little love bites, red marks and tiny bruises betraying where she'd been as she slowly made her way to the waist of his jeans.
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Krystal snuggled into him, feeling and tasting his deep anguish on her tongue. As a dark court fae, one of her many talents was the ability to survive only onbthe emotions of others. She rested her head on his shoulder, giving his hand a quick squeeze. She let out a doft sigh. "I can relate. I've been betreyed by people all through my long life. You were the only one who never had." She replied softly, drawing more hearts on his chest, tryingbtk make him feel better. She hated that he felt this way about himself, and she wanted to just kiss away the pain she felt radiating from him. "Okay. I will do that." She added softly, stroking his cheek as she kissed him back, surprised at the kiss, but not complaining in the least. She'd take any kiss he'd give.
Dean chuckled and nodded. "I can imagine how that could be tough. No less hot though. Guess you'd just have to have two switches and a sub to make it work best." He admitted, guessing. While the man had had plenty of one night stands in his time, he'd never had done it with multiple womenvat once. It was something he was defiantly up for, but for right now he just wanted her.
Dean caught the look in her eyes as he instinctively replied to the mension of hell, and decided to detract from it by kissing her. She didn't need to know about his time in hell. She didn't need to know how many times he'd died. He didn't want to scare her. That was the past, and she was his future. Despite being on a hunt now, ge would refrain from explsining how he knew about hell.
Dean relaxed at the mere sight of her. She had slways been enough to keep him sane, even when the memories of hell began to creep back. Whenever he was feeling down, he would think about her and their time together, and it was enough to keep him fighting. "You're right, Jude. It was silly of mebto worry." He replied, kissing her back feverishly, his eyes closing softly as he pulled her closer.
Dean smirked as she broke the kiss. "Oh.. i can definately do that." He replied, running his hands down her back. He could feel himself getting stiffer by the minute. He little kisses and bits made the gruff hunter moan out in a way thag he hadn't in years. It was always so much different with Jude. He fingered his hands through her hair, pulling her up roughly for a moment, tone strict. "I want you to suck me off"
gpt
As Jude made her way down his chest, sliding her body down his, she could feel him through his jeans growing harder against her body. The way he moaned sent shivers down her spine and raised goosebumps on her arms. She couldn't wait to make him crazy the way she used to. She could only imagine that now, with years of practice and multiple partners each, they could love each other in ways they had only dreamed of at sixteen. Dean's hand formed a fist near her scalp and he pulled her back up, a strict expression in his face though his eyes always betrayed him. He demanded that she suck him off and she smirked uncharacteristically.
"Yes sir," Jude purred. "What did you think I was doing?" Leaning in she kissed his neck before tracing her way back down his body. Jude knelt there on the kitchen floor and quickly unfastened his pants, pulling out his shaft and slowly running her tongue up his length from base to tip. She kissed his head lovingly, looking up at him from the floor. "I've waited so long to do this again, Dean," she murmured, keeping eye contact as she slowly took his length into her mouth. Jude closed her eyes briefly, moaning around his cock, before looking up at him again and sliding her mouth down his shaft then back up, running her tongue in a serpentine pattern on the underside of his cock.
Sam made it to the hotel--the only proper hotel, rather than motel, in town--and quickly ascertained which room Krystal was in. He kept his gun in his jacket pocket but the safety was on. For now. Striding quickly down the hall he rapped firmly on Krystal's door. "Cas? You in there?"
Castiel looked up at the knock. Quietly he kissed Krystal's forehead and stood, crossing the floor and opening the door. "Hello, Sam," he said plainly. "I understand you were worried about me?"
Sam raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Uh, yeah. You didn't answer your phone."
Cas nodded. "I was otherwise occupied. I apologize."
human
Dean moaned out as Jude called him sir. In all the years he'd been having sex, nobody had ever done that. He coukd feel his cock twitch in his pants because of it. Before she could slink back down to start on sucking him off, he pulled her up just a bit more by the hair and kissed her passionately. The need to feel dominant was ingrained in his DNA from being the submissive to his father his whole life, and he craved taking control. It made him feel powerful, and power was something the elder Winchester secreyly craved, though not in a monetary or magical way. He wantedbit in the bedroom, to make up for all the times he couldn't be. For all the times John had gotten stone cold drunk and beaten and abused him. He took the abuse like a man though. He had to, to keep his little brother safe.
Once Dean released Judes lips from his, he let out strangled moans as she kissed her way back down his body. Everything had always been heightened with her, and this was no exception for him. Each kiss and touch was making the man star to come undone, eyes gojng black. Even if he was no longer a demin, sometimes when he was wrapped in complete pleasure he could still feel his eyes change. Like that one thing had atayed with him.
Dean let out a breath he didn't know he wasbholding. "Oh god Jude, so have I. You have no idea how many times I jerked off thinking of you." He told her truthfully, moanjng out as she teased his cock. A low growl ofnpleasure escaped him as she took his large cock into her mouth, eyes rolling back as he thrust his hips toward her, jand gripping her hair.
Krystal grinned at the kiss, following behind him as he went to open the door. She wrapped her arms around castiel's waist, peeking her head over his shoulder from behind. "Come on in, Sam. I apolize, but we didn't get any research done last night. Are you hungry? I know he doesn't eat but.. I was gonna make some tea and call room service. I'm starving. And cassie.. I need more cuddles!!" She half whined, sounding a little like a chiled as she complained. She was hyper and happy, but also tired and hungry, and she really wanted sam to like her. She knew it probably seemed suspicious, and she was sad at that, but really, she was just happy to be close to someone again. She hadn't been close to someone like that since before her daughter was born, and she was feeling like a touch starved cat with thenpersonality of a 6 year old.
gpt
Castiel put one hand over the hands that had appeared around his waist. Sam raised a quizzical eyebrow, but the only response he got was a shrug and an "explain later" look. The eyebrow crept higher to his hairline when Krystal demanded "more cuddles" and Cas sighed wearily. He loved her, but her faults hadn't changed much; she could act like a child sometimes, when she was inparticularneed of attention. If she wanted Sam to like her, whining wasn't the way to do it.
"No thanks, I had breakfast at Jude's," Sam declined, not stepping into the room. He still wasn't convinced Cas wasn't held in thrall or something.
"I thought you wanted ice cream?" Cas prompted, glancing over his shoulder at Krystal.
"Ice cr--? Nevermind." Sam shook his head. "We got a little research done, but admittedly not much. Are you up for a little leg work today or...?" He glanced at Krystal, but Cas nodded.
"Once we find food I should be able to join you and Dean," he confirmed before looking to Krystal. "So do you want ice cream, or tea and room service? I don't think they serve ice cream this early."
One hand wrapped around the base of his cock, Jude's other hand slid up Dean's torso. Gently she pressed her nails to his skin and dragged them down, all the way down to his hips as she sucked him off, moaning around his thick length. The feeling of his hand fisted in her hair sent shivers down her spine as he thrust into her mouth. Still...while she would have loved nothing better than to swallow his cum, it wasn't exactly the magical reunion Jude had always envisioned. Slowly she slid her lips up his length one more time, kissing the tip before getting to her feet.
"What? You thought I'd give it up like some common slut?" she teased with a smirk.
She knew that Dean was about control and power. Although she had her suspicions they'd never had the time to discuss why that was. But in the end, Dean saw himself as the predator, the hunter, and a hunt was never any fun without a good struggle. With a cheeky smile, Jude turned on her heel and sashayed away toward the bedroom. Slowly, piece by piece, she removed and dropped her clothing in a breadcrumb trail leading to the door. On the threshold of her room she stopped with her fingers hooked in the elastic of her panties. Looking coyly over her shoulder Jude slid them over her hips, then appeared to change her mind and pulled them up again.
"Work for it, Winchester," she challenged playfully, disappearing into her bedroom. There she pulled out her "toybox"--full of restraints, gags, blindfolds, and other fun toys--and left it open for him to peruse. By the time Dean had followed her into the room Jude was on her knees on the bed, sitting back on her heels in nothing but her panties. She would absolutely let him overpower her, control her, dominate her...but she had every intention of getting uppity with him before allowing it. After disappearing in the middle of the night, Dean Winchester was going toworkfor it and he was going to love every second of it.
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Krystal grinned, pleased at the contact, however small. She hated to think she was annoying Castiel by being so hyper, but she couldn't help her hyper mood. It was freeing to finallh have the other piece of her heart back. At Sam's eyebrow, she looked at him. "Ask him. You don't trust me enough to listen to me. I can taste it. You've suffered alot." She stated matter of factly, her giddy mood gone for a moment as she examined thw tall man in front of her. If she didn't love Cas so much she'd climb that boy like a tree.
Krystal gave him a soft smile. "Fair enough." She replied simply, squeezing Castiel's waist just a little tighter. She doubted she would ever tire of being close to him. He was hers, and she was gonna make sure that never changed again.
Krystal looked up at Castiel, grinning. "I do want Ice cream!" She replied, still hanging onto him. At his next question, she grinned and kissed him. "I want Tea and ice cream!!! Ooh, how about gree tea ice cream!! That's not all wither! I want to help!!" She was excited, running away a moment to grab a large book, and she grinned as she handed it to Sam. She just wanted to be of use, and to be close to her angel.
Dean let out low growls in pleasure as Jude sucked him off. He was getting closer and closer to his limit with each time he bucked his hips into her, moaning. He groaned out on both frustration and lust as she came off him with a pop and a kiss. His eyes were lust blown, and he smirked. "Of course not Jude my love." He replied, moanjng softly as he watched her walk away. She was driving him absolutely mad!
Each drop of a piece of her clothing elicited a strangled groan from Dean. He followed her trail, not bothering to picknthem up. He was to wrapped in pleasure to care about sam seeing his dropped lounge pants, tshirt and underwear next to hers. His breath hitched as he saw her fidget with her panties, eyes darkening even more with lust his pupils so dialated he looked demonic. She did this to him. "I'm gonna, my pretty"
Dean watched her curiously as she pulled out a box, and his expression darkened with want as he realized just what the contents ofbthat box were. "Ooh, someone's been a naughty girl" he purred seductively, starting out with some handcuffs, and a blind fold biting at her neck as he secured her arms to the bedpost. He smirked at her, putting the blindfold on her . He kisses her hard, the all the way downbto her breasts. He would get to her folds later. He wanted her begging to cum.
gpt
"My love." Jude couldn't help but grin quietly at that. Still she continued into the room, setting out her box and sitting on the bed, ready for whatever he would do to her but also preparing to put up a fight. Only a token fight, of course. Dean examined the contents of her box and her smirk matched his. His eyes looked black in this light, clouded with lust.
"Verynaughty, sir," she agreed in mock seriousness. "Naughty and undisciplined. I'm not sure how we'll be able to manage, really." Dean nipped at her neck and tried to secure her to the bedpost, but she slipped her hands out of his loose grasp. "Told you sir, very undisciplined." It was hard not to smile at the game. He managed to catch one arm but she squirmed away in an effort to evade capture, laughing in delight until he pinned her other wrist as well and cuffed them both to the post. Jude grinned mischievously and nipped at Dean's lip before the blindfold was slid down over her eyes.
"Mmm Dean..." she groaned quietly, squirming a little in anticipation. Jude sat with her knees tightly pressed together, in case he decided suddenly to slip from her breasts downward. Her nipples hardened and she groaned, pressing her breast against his lip...before squirming again. "Tolja you'd have to work for it," she taunted, squirming in a direction which was hopefully out of his immediate reach though she doubted it.
Sam took the book with a dubious look at Krystal. As she zipped about, he exchanged a look with Cas, who appeared a bit exasperated. "I think green tea ice cream will be hard to find," the angel pointed out, "and sugar never suited you. Sam, please come in. Room service may take half an hour or so."
Reluctantly the younger Winchester finally passed over the threshold and took a seat at a table. "So ah, you two have a bit of a history, then?"
Castiel was finally beginning to pick up on the subtleties of human conversation. He nodded. "She's my soulmate," he finally divulged. It sounded nice to say aloud to someone other than Krystal, but after so long the word sounded foreign on his tongue. "She's also a little over-stimulated right now. I'm sorry."
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Dean growled with lust and frustration as she slipped away, but quickly gathered his bearings and pinned her down to the bed with his body, handcuffing her to the bedpost. "Hmm, I see. I guess i'll just have to show my disobedient pretty little love some punishment." He replied, smirk wide and eyes black with lust. She was his and he was gonna show her just what that meant.
Dean kept her pinned under himself, smirking as she nipped at his lips. He kissed all down her jawline, leaving a dark hickie at the the base of her neck where it connected to her shoulder. "Mine. No one else's" he muttered posessively, continuing his bites and kisses until he reached her breasts. One hand squeesed abd needed her left breat, whil his mouth sucked and licked her cute pink little nipple. He left a tiny bite on it before his posistion changed slightly and he switced breasts, pressing little kisses there. He was having fun taking control like this. It had been ao long since he'd really enjoyed foreplay. Lately the women he'd been fucking were a wham bam thank you Dean. He was taking his time with her.
Krystsl grinned at Sam a bit. "This is my own personal spell book. The tree of pain reversal spell is in here, as wellother things you might find useful. The thing I like best about fae magic is because we are so elementsl, anyone can use our magic. Feel free to look throgh it. I find the best way to get to know someone is to read something they've weote." She explained softly, hyper, but not as much that she was whining. Her mood was relaxed.
Krystal made a face at Castiel's comment. "Boo, you're right." This made her frown s bit, nose scrunching slightly as she spoke. She would just have to deal then. She knew sugar made her impossibly hyper, but so did Cas. In her eyes it wouldn't matter wether it was him or sugar that made her that way. She smiled dreamily as Castiel mensioned to Sam that he was her soul mate. It was calming to hear from his mouth after centuries of thinking she was alone.
Krystal looked between the two men as she sat between them. She let out a sigh. "I'm sorry too Sam. I'm usually much calmer. Its just.. being with Cassie... being close... it makes my heart complete again.. and I get hyper. It will pas in a day or so, so please, bear with me." She added softly, her lip quivering slightly. She was nervous.
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Sam looked from Cas to Krystal, then back to Cas. "Angels don't have souls," was the only thing he could think to say. Although Castiel's revelation had changed things a bit, he still couldn't file away his mistrust; she seemed completely unsuited to him. Then again, Jude seemed completely unsuited to Dean and there was clearly something going onthere.
Castiel's response was a very human rolling of the eyes. "Well a grace-mate doesn't have quite the same ring to it, and isn't entirely accurate," he said snippily.
"'Soulmate' isn't accurate at all," Sam pointed out with a bit of a smirk. Cas squinted at him.
"You're being deliberately obtuse." The angel finally seemed to be catching on to the human way of things. Sam paged through the spell book while Cas ordered room service for Krystal, ensuring there was nothing sufficiently sugary to send her pinging off of the walls again.
Jude giggled as he called her disobedient and wiggled her hips. "But you think I'm pretty," she pointed out with a grin.
The weight of Dean's body on top of hers made her heart beat faster. Being pinned under him like this...well, they'd onlyjustbegun to experiment when he'd left, and this little game had been approximately where they'd left off. It was like no time at all had passed. Behind the blindfold she nipped at his lip, and she was only aware that he was heading downward when she felt his lips on her jaw and neck. He murmured possessively and she wigged her hips again. She loved the sound of it.
"Only yours, Dean," she promised. "Even if Idomake you work for it."
Jude groaned and occasionally inhaled sharply as Dean took his time at her breasts. She leaned up to approximately where she thought his forehead would be and placed a gentle kiss on it; there was a fine line she liked to walk between dirty and sweet. But Dean had been in uncontested control for too long now. Slowly Jude ran her leg down his side, against his ribs, over his hip, until she had wrapped both legs around his hips and twined their legs together. She could feel his stiff length against her wet panties and the temptation to grind against him was almost overwhelming...almost. Instead she gripped the bedpost, tightened her thighs around Dean's hips, and flipped them. The handcuffs clanked against the bedpost and groaned in protest as their links were twisted around each other.
"What now, sir?" she challenged in a low voice, a smirk residing just under the edge of the blindfold. Jude grinded against Dean's thick shaft, biting her lip and moaning as she did so, thoroughly expecting Dean to slip out from under her and turn the tables again.
human
Krystal looked between the two men again. She wondered what the shaggy haired man thought of her spells. What she was showing him was deeply personal, as if she was showing her diary. Castiel would know just what it meant. She had already claimed the two mortal boys as her own, because he too had. He would know this was an attempt to make the winchester man like her.
Krystal let out a soft sound. "Cassie is my heart. In the fae realm we have something akin to a soulmate, called a heart. Its that because for fae, when they are born, their heart is spit in two. When they meet their destined lover, their hear9t. He protected me from all the bullies who wanted me dead." She explained softly, most of her memories had come to her in dreams the night before, though there were still a few missing.
Krystal took in another breath, leaning slightly into the angel as she continued her tale. "When I was 400, Castiel was ripped away from me. An angel, Raphael, fearing the strong bond Cassie and I shared, and the power it gave him, erased all my memories of him and reassigned him far away. He didn't want us meeting by accident and causing the spell on me to break." She explained, getting up to get herself some water before returning. Despite not having the whole story, she remembered enough to remember the pain she felt all over again.
Dean let out a soft groan as she wiggled her hips. "Of course Jude. You're more than pretty. You're beautiful." He breathed out, kissing her hard.
As Dean trailed kisses down her neck and to her chest, he could feel her wiggle her hips again and he let out another groan. He smiled a little at the kiss to the head, even if she'd missed slightly and it was more like a kiss to the eyebrow. He let out a soft moan. Even from under him, she was finding a way to drive him crazy. He bucked into her lightly, his erect cock feeling her soaked panties. He was getting closer to his limit, and they hadn't even really been having sex yet! She was real good at foreplay. He groaned. "Oh yeah baby, that what I like though. Make me work for it. Let me chace you beautiful" he murmured into her ear, leaving a small bite there.
Dean let out a surprised gasp as he was flipped, smirking up at her, not that she could see. He pulled her down for a kiss, stroking her side with his free hand, while the other hand guided her lips to his. She was still blind folded after all. He playfully snapped the waistband of her panties kissing her all over before he smirked.
Dean flipped them back over, practically ripping her panties off before forcefully thrusting himself in to the hilt. "What now? Baby, i'm gonna make you screamnin pleasure" he murmured, pulling out slowly and the thrusting back in roughly, fucking her into the mattress.
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Even in the midst of foreplay to what would most assuredly be some fairly dirty sex, Dean knew exactly what to say to make her heart melt. Jude breathed in sharply as he kissed her hard before trailing kisses down her neck. He told her to make him chase her and she did, flipping their positions and grinding against him, squeezing his sides with her thighs and grinning down at roughly him. When he pulled her down for a kiss and snapped the waistband of her panties she couldn't help but laugh, followed by a moan as she shifted her hips forward to grind against his cock.
"Mmmm God Dean..." she murmured against his lips. "The things you could do to me..."
Then it all seemed to happen at once. Jude found herself on her back again, entirely naked now with the cool morning air against her shaved lips. She cried out and arched her back as Dean plunged into her all at once. "Dean...!" she gasped, sounding breathless. She had an even harder time catching her breath when he promised to make her scream. Jude's fingers curled around the bedpost as he thrust into her again, her back bouncing against the mattress with the force of it. "Oh God fuck me Dean," Jude breathed. "Please baby, I need you so badly!" Her entire body ached for Dean, wanting to finally be consumed once again in that fire she had only ever felt with him.
Sam continued leafing through the pages of the spell book as Krystal explained what had happened. He felt uncomfortable with the amount of Cas's personal life being divulged to him. To Sam of course Castiel had feelings, but he had always seemed an asexual being to him. Of course, this would explainwhyhe had always seemed that way. He glanced up from the book at Krystal.
"I'm sorry," he murmured, unsure what else to say. He glanced to Cas, who also looked deeply uncomfortable with the situation at hand. Regardless of sexuality, history, or even species it was apparent that both men adhered to the traditional perception of masculinity: discussing feelings with or in front of one another just wasn't done.
"Well you're here now," Cas said at last, putting an arm around Krystal and kissing the top of her head softly. "And Raphael is dead, so he can't hurt you anymore."
To spare them from further awkward silence, Sam's phone rang mercifully. Desperate to escape the tension in the room, he answered it before it had finished its first ring. "Agent Hendricks." A long silence. "Yeah, okay. Yeah we'll be there." After hanging up he looked to Cas and Krystal. "There's been another murder."
At Jude's home Dean's phone vibrated uselessly on the kitchen table, drowned out completely by Jude's shrieks of pleasure.
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Dean chuckled darkly, smirking as he kissed her harder. "No darling, the things I will do with you" he whispered againster her lips, griding against her. He could feel the heat coming from his body. He was gonna climax soon.
At Jude's shouts in pleasure, Dean sped up his pace and his pushed her further into the matress as he increased the hardness, the only sounds in the room were the slapping of his balls and their moans. "Fuck, Jude, i'm so close!!" He panted, hos thrusts only queckening as he hit her gspot forcefully. He was so close, he could almost taste his own cum as he grunted, kissing her roughly. This was so much better than it wasbwhen they were kids, even if he could still feel the raging inferno of love he had for her in his heart.
Krystal smiled a little bit softly at sam. " thank you. But itsnover now. No need to apoligize." She replied in a small voice, letting out a breath. Even if she felt bad for making both men uncomforable, it felt good to get all that off her chest.
Krystal smiled as castiel put his arm around her, and she leaned into him, giving his cheek a light chaste kiss."You're right, Cassie. Hopefully we can have our happiness this time." She replied softly, humming a song she'd heard on the radio.
Krystal watched Sam curiously as he answered the phone, frowning. Even if she was secretly glad it gave her an alibi, she still was sad. She hated that people were dying because of magic she'd created. She looked to Sam. "Damn. What do we do now?"
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"We go to the scene," Sam answered with a shrug. "You'll have to stay in the car. Unless you've got some more professional clothes and can do something about ah..." He motioned to his own hair, indicating the color of hers. "Wouldn't be buy-able that you'd be an FBI agent. Hell,Ibarely pass." He shrugged on his coat and handed her back her spell book. "Dean isn't answering his phone. I'm sure he's just preoccupied or left it off or something, but I'll keep calling him and we'll meet him there."
Jude arched her lower back off of the mattress, mouth falling open as Dean pounded her. Her nails drew a little blood as they pressed into her palms and she pulled against her restraints, wishing she could hold him close to her. She drew closer to that precipice with each thrust,
"Cum for me, baby," she panted, meeting Dean thrust for thrust. "Please God I'm so close..."
Jude's brain was wiped blank for a few seconds. In the distance she heard a scream of orgasmic pleasure and only later realized that it had been her, cumming harder than she had in years, milking his cock for all she could. As they came down her chest heaved as she disengaged the safety locks on the cuffs with her middle fingers and pulled off the blindfold. She couldn't lift her head or legs off of the mattress. Holding Dean close she gasped for breath.
"Holy fuck..." She half-giggled as she managed to catch her breath. "That was incredible. I...we...pancakes then more?" Jude offered. "We can take it slow next time, make it sweet." She smiled sweetly.
Dean's phone rang from the kitchen table. After it went to voicemail it began ringing again. Jude sighed as Dean went to answer it and put the phone on speaker. She lifted her head as she listened to their conversation.
"Hey Dean, we've got another lead." Sam's voice echoed from the kitchen into the bedroom. "7210 Pineview Lane. We'll meet you there."
Jude sat up in alarm and began grabbing her clothes, stopping only for a moment to grab a towel for Dean's seed sliding down her leg. "I'm coming with you, period," she informed Dean firmly, and he wouldn't need to know why. 7210 Pineview Lane Jude had grown up in.
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Krystal nodded at Sam's deduction. She let out a soft breath. "I can go invisible, but i'd rather watch." She said simply, snapping her fingers and her long blue hair turned jet black, accentuating her pale cheeks, and her ponytail became a tasteful braid. She snapped her fingers again and a form fitting black dress and heels appeared on her and she pulled a badge from her pocket. "Does this look better, agent hendricks?" She asked, eyebrow raised.
Dean moaned out, thrusting quicker than he ever had. He hit her G spot several times, the only sounds her screams in pleasure and the slapping of his balls onto her slit as he pounded into her. He kissed her hard, eyes rolling back and head lolling back as he came harder and longer than he ever had before, and that was including when they were kids.
Dean collaped next to her, panting as he pulled her close after her handcuffs were off. "God, I love you, Jude, and yes, a second round after food sounds divine." He muttered softly, kissing her head lovingly. He was so glad to have her back and basked in the after glow a little before going into the kitchen to get his rabidly ringing phone.
Dean answered his phone finally. "A new lead? That's great sam!" You could hear the excitement and relief in his voice thag they were getting that much closer to solving the case. His good mood from sex and Jude was short lived as a string of strong expletives and the sound of major guilt came through the phone. "Sam, that's Jude's parents house." and you could just hear the anguish in his voice. There went two more people he cared about but couldn't save. Why the hell was he such a fuck up!?
Dean went to shake his head no. To tell her she couldn't come. That being around him would get her killed, but his voice stopped the moment he saw her face. There was no way she was gonna budge, and sam had the impala, so he was stuck. She had to come, wether he liked it or not.
gpt
Jude ignored Dean's protests. Her face was set in a queer mixture of determination and anxiety as she pulled her clothes on, ran her fingers only briefly through her hair before throwing it up into a disheveled ponytail, and grabbed the keys. The car ride was quiet, with only the radio at half-volume to break the heavy silence between them. Jude chewed on her lip enough to start tasting blood as she drove the twenty long minutes which seemed to stretch into forever between her parents' house and her own. She turned onto Stone Street, a block away from her childhood home.
"What sort of a lead is it, Dean?" Her voice was hollow as she stared at the road. On their left was an ancient oak tree with "DW+JM" carved into it. Three houses up on the right was where they'd gotten caught trying to sneak into her back yard through a neighbor's to avoid getting caught out past curfew. "Are they okay?"
But Dean didn't have to answer. The Impala was already parked out front with three cruisers and an ambulance. The ambulance's light's weren't on, and yellow tape was around the front yard. Jude slammed the shift into park, not bothering to parallel park properly on the narrow street, and jumped out of the car barefoot, having forgotten her shoes in her haste to leave her own home. She didn't feel the stones in her feet as she jogged over the rocky pavement to the line where Sheriff Parker, who had been in conversation with Sam, stopped her. Sam looked surprised and turned his gaze to Dean.
"Dean you said this was her parents' place," he said in a low voice, stepping aside with his brother. "What's she doing here?"
"Sheriff are they--?"
"Jude, why don't you get back in your car sweetheart? Meet us at the station?"
"No...they're...they're okay. Nathan, they're okay aren't they?" She turned a wide, pleading blue gaze up to the lanky sheriff. "It's fine, right Nathan?"
Sheriff Parker couldn't think of anything to say, but there was pity in his eyes. "Judy..."
But Jude's gaze was distracted by the medical team coming out with gurneys. The occupants' faces were covered. "Mom...Dad..." She choked on the words. Sheriff Parker barely had time to grab her as she tried to launch herself past him and through the yellow tape. Shrill shrieking followed, incomprehensible except for the occasionalMomorDaddyas she fought like a feral animal to escape Sheriff Parker's grasp and get over the tape. Castiel helped the distraught Sheriff in restraining her until the shrieking gave way to soul-wracking sobs as she seemed to lose all strength in her muscles and slowly sank to the ground.
"She shouldn't have come," Castiel said quietly to Dean at a safe distance from the broken-down Jude. "They have the Tree of Pain, just like the others. Teeth and nails ripped out, she had a heart attack but he bled to death...it was slow, would have taken all night. She doesn't need to know any of that, but she'll start asking questions."
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Dean quickly put his clothes on, a frown on his face. He knew the second that Sam gave him the adress that the love of his life's parents were dead. He'd failed so many people in this world, but failing her and failing them felt like failing Sammy. He almost wished he'd never met Jude. If he hadn't maybe her parents would still be alive.
The drive in the car was silent, and Dean just looked off into the distance unable to say anything. He didn't know if he even knew how to say anything right now. He sucked in a breath. "Sam didn't say" he answered softly, voice dripping with guilt and something else unidentifiable. This was gonna be so hard on her. He shouldn't have let her come.
Dean's frown was apparent as he looked at his brother. He looked ready to cry himself. He had loved the McKinnon's too. "I couldn't stop her Sammy. When Jude makes up her mind, there's no arguing with her." He lamented, watching as the love of his life broke down in tears. He wanted to go and comfort her, he really did. But at the same time, you could see in his eyes just how much he blamed himself.
Dean looked at the angel blankly. He was trying to hide his pain, despite knowing that Castiel would see right through him, just as he always had. He wanted to shake and sob himself and comfort his lover, but there was a case to solve and revenge to get. "Right, tree of pain. So where does that leave us? Either of you find any leads?" He asked, voice on edge. He hurt from this, and he didn't think he'd ever stop blaming himself for it. The best he could do would be to find who did this.
Krystal sat back and watched sadly. How could someone of another court do such terrible things? "They're trying to frame my court again.." she muttered, frowning. It was obvious what was happening to her now. One of then order the order court royals was pulling on the strings to make it justifyable to kill her entire court.... again.
Krystal maybe the gentlest fae anyone had ever seen, but she had a horrible nickname. "The murder queen" was what the other courts called her, simply because she was the dark fae's queen. Her court had long since been hated by the other courts, simply for its function. The dark court was who you called when you needed someone dead, and they were widely known for being assassins and mercinaries. Their economy solely built on killing others, no matter if theybare innocent or notm Life was a valuable thing to a fae, so the act of killing one or for killing other species was thought treacherous. So, here they were again, order vs chaos. This time though, it seemed that order was causing chaos to blame its opposite.
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"Trying to frame your court?" Sam frowned. "For what?"
"The short answer is racism," Castiel said plainly, glancing over at the house then back to his companions. "It makes sense now. Krystal's court is widely known for providing mercenaries, assassins, and other such soldiers of fortune. This provides an invaluable service to the other three fae courts, but at the same time they're generally reviled because other fae hold life sacred. Plots to frame Krystal and her court aren't uncommon; happens every five hundred years or so. I think this may be the first time it's been so violent and so spread across this side of the veil though."
Sam nodded. "So we're looking for another fae then. Does anyone specific come in mind? Do they always use the same people to do the wet work?"
Sheriff Parker approached the "agents." In his arms Jude was curled as small as she could get, still sobbing though more quietly than before, face hidden in her arms. He shifted uncomfortably. She'd seemed comfortable with Agent Winchester, like they'd known each other before, but he wasn't sure how appropriate his request was.
"Agent Winchester," he said as he drew level with them, "she's not in any shape to be driving. If you and agent Hendricks and your ah, associates," he glanced at Castiel and Krystal, "want to take her and meet us at the station, I'll take care of her car and meet you there. There's still a few things to finish up here." The sheriff held Jude out slightly, offering her to Dean. She was family just as anyone else at the station and to see her in such a state hurt him. The Rev had been a pillar of the community and to see what had been done to him...it was brutal.
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Krystal nodded at Sam. "Yes. Trying to frame my court." She replied, pushing her bangs out of her face with her hand. Her eyes showed her sadness and utter worry about what was to come. She didn't know what to think.
Krystal nodded her head. "The last time it happened was about 200 years after Cas was ripped from me. The culprit had used my spell wrong and had accidentally killed a fae noble. He was so distraught over it, he confessed. I theorize that the spell has gotten out of the wielder's hands. Only I can truly control it, but its what the other fae always use because it is the only destrucive spell i've ever written. Sam, you know this from looking through my book" she added into the conversation, looking worried. The last time the spell had gotten out of hand, it had killed half a continent. The black plauge had been the tree of pain.
Krystal shook her head. "No, i'm not sure who it could be. I do know though that whoever did this is someone who hates mortals. Most fae tolerate and even love mortals, so whoever soured this guys juice must've been pretty." She explained softly, watching as the sherrif brought over Jude.
Dean took Jude from the sheriff, snuggling her up into his tight embrace, trying to be strong even if he to wanted to break down in tears. It broke his heart to see his soulmate in such utter distress, and he wished he could just go back in time and prevent this from happening. He hadn't wanted this. No matter how much he wanted her in his life, the fear that she would end up like herbparents was knawing at his mind. This was one of the things he hated most about hunting, the distraught faces of the victims. Now that it was Jude... he wanted to break down himself. He had failed her. Made her cry again. All this was his fault.
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Sam shrugged when Krystal mentioned her book. "I only browsed," he admitted. "I didn't have time to look through it more thoroughly. But that's not important: we know which spell is being used we just don't knowwho."
"Could you ask around the other courts?" Castiel suggested. "Perhaps there were rumors, gossip. Something like an affair with a mortal would have gone around the court, if itwasan affair. It could be this fae has grown envious of mortals, or dislikes them on prejudiced grounds." His eyes followed the sheriff as he handed Jude over. He hadn't yet met the woman, but it was clear she had some prior tie to Dean and the name Jude sounded vaguely familiar, though he couldn't quite place why.
Jude only vaguely registered that she was being handed off. When she recognized Dean's smell, his embrace, she threw her arms around his neck and buried her face in her chest, still unable to control her sobbing though she did manage to whimper his name every now and then. Sam watched with a growing sense of pity, though he wasn't entirely sure what he could do to alleviate any of this pain. He had no idea that Dean blamed himself for something so out of his control. He opened one of the back doors of the Impala and gestured to the seat.
"Here," he offered. "She can lay down or do whatever she needs until we're ready to go back to the station." It was also important, to Sam at least, to keep the truth of the matter hidden from her. A serial killer was easy to explain; asupernaturalserial killer wasn't. It was obvious she was an old girlfriend of Dean's, but he had no idea how deep that connection went and that his brother might tell her the truth anyway.
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Krystal nodded at Sam. "Fair enough. After this is over, you're welcome to look through it again and you'll always be welcome in the dark court's library, as well as my personal one." She offered softly, guessing by the way he had paged through her spell book that he would enjoy the libraries she had at home.
Krystal closed her eyes a moment, nodding again, butbthis time at Castiel. "Its a good idea. I will text Roreck and ask him to talk to some of his friends throughout the courts." She replied, pulling her state of the art Samsung Galaxy s7 out of her pocket, the sound of a clicking noise happening as she texted her right hand man. She would have a reply soon enough, the sound of a "moon princess elimination!" Yelling from her phone. She blushed a little. Krystal may be a fae, but she was a total pop culture junkie. The things mortals could make always amazed her. She let out a soft sound of relief. "He's going to check into it."
Dean held onto a sobbing Jude, kissingbher head chastely and rocking her to try and ease the pain a little. He knew how much this hurt. In his whole life, he'd lost 3 parents. First, his mother, then his father, and finally, Bobby. Each had a profound damage on his psyche. None more than his mother, who died when he was just 4. He blamed himself each time, thinking if he was older, stronger, or faster, he could have saved them. Now he had to more he felt guilty over. Two people who had shown him nothing but love, and the second he rolled back into town they were killed.
Dean looked up at his brother as he spoke. "Thanks Sammy. But.. Can you handle this? k need to stay with her." His voice was soft and pleading in a way that his brother would have only heard it when there was a death in the family. Dean was taking this really hard, though no one could take it as hard as Jude was. Loosing your parents is a terrible thing to face.
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Sam looked from Jude, whose face was still hidden, to Dean, back to Jude. "Sure man. Take all the time you need."
He was really going to appreciate it when people stopped acting strangely and keeping secrets. In the back seat of the car Jude huddled in Dean's lap, crying shamelessly until she had at last cried herself into an exhausted snooze against his chest. Hair stuck to her splotchy face with dried tears and she had to breathe through her moth due to the stuffy nose, but she was at least able to get some respite from the pain of suddenly and violently losing both parents. When the car doors opened and closed again, since they had to meet the Sheriff at the station after taking a look around the crime scene, Jude's bloodshot eyes opened but she didn't say a word. Normally a stickler for vehicular safety, she remained in Dean's lap in the back of the car on their way across town, not saying a word nor looking at anybody but staring blankly out the window. She was able to walk into the station of her own accord, but soon had to sit down after claiming to feel faint.
"I know you may not be up for many questions Judy," Sheriff Parker said kindly once he'd arrived, "but I do have an important one for you. Jude, did the Rev or your mom have tattoos?"
She frowned. "Of course they don't...didn't...you know that."
"Are you sure?"
"Leviticus, 19:28."
"I'm sorry sweetheart, I'm not quite as up on the Bible as you are."
Uncharacteristically Jude sighed and rolled her eyes. "'Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD.' Mom thinks it's saying Jesus's sacrifice wasn't good enough to adhere to Leviticus, but the Rev's pretty adamant on it. He still thinks only carnies and convicts get tattoos anyway. Damn near had a stroke when I got mine." She couldn't talk about them in the past tense. Not yet. They had only died a few hours ago at most and it felt like they would get up any time now and tell her everything was alright. "So it was him then? The Tree Killer? He puts tattoos on his victims after he kills them?" It felt like they were talking about someone else, not her parents.
"I can't tell you anything about the case, Judy. You know that."
"Andyouknow I know this case just as well as any of your detectives, Nathan," she argued. "I know I'm just the receptionist but I might be able to help. And don't call me Judy."
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Dean nodded at his brother. "Thanks man. She really needs me. And Sam? I promise I'll explain later. Given recent events, its for the best." He told him softly, still holding in the pain he was feeling. He had to be strong for Jude. She needed him, just like Sammy had needed him after any other death they'd seen.
Dean held her as she cried, soothingly rubbing her back, kissing her head, doing anything he could to reassure her that everything was going to be okay. "You just cry it out my love. I'm so sorry this happened. I'm so sorry" he muttered softly, and you could hear the guilt in his voice. He really did blame himself for their death, even if they might've died anyway the way the killer was going. Usually there was at least a little rhyme or reason to the killings, but this time, there was just... nothing. It was if the fae was just picking people at random and using the tree to kill them in the most brutal way possible.
Krystal looked at Castiel. "I feel so aweful about this, Cassie. I want that fae dead for what he's doing to this world... a world I love." She muttered softly, crystalline blue tears falling from her pretty eyes. As usual, she was taking this on herself, much in the way Dean had. She could feel abd taste each and every emotion from around the crimescene and it was breaking her heart. She didn't know what to dobto help, but she viwedbthen and there, that the fae who did this, she would make them suffer in just the way he'd made his victims.
The drive back to the station was quiet. No one said anything as Dean just held Jude, trying so hard not to break down. He was the strong one, he always had been. He needed to be strong, for her, no matter how much he felt like dying because of it.
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Castiel wrapped his arm around Krystal's shoulder and kissed the top of her head. She reminded him of Dean in the way she often took on things which weren't her fault. He sighed and shook his head as he watched Dean and Jude through the car window. "It isn't your fault, love," he assured her quietly. "We'll find him and we'll make him pay, I promise."
The ride was silent. Cas quietly brooded, separated by necessity from Krystal since there was only one available seat in the back and one in the front. Occasionally he glanced at Dean and Jude. The name was frustrating him until suddenly it came as though whispered in his ear:Judith Winchester.The angels of Heaven knew the names of each pair of soulmates, the better to prepare their personal joint Heavens, and that was where he'd heard her name before. He decided against saying anything just now; limited though his "people skills" may be, he recognized it as an inappropriate moment to bring it up.
In the station under the line of Sheriff Parker's gentle questioning Jude was quickly moving into the anger stage of grief. Tears of rage quivered in her eyes, face so red it was almost purple as he refused to let her help with the case. She didn'tcarethat she wasn't a cop, this monster had killed her goddamn parents and she was going to help and--
"Oughta let her scream herself out." Sheriff Parker locked the door to the interrogation room they'd put her in, where she continued to rant and scream aimlessly at the two-way mirrors where she knew they would be able to see her if they went into the room behind it. The room itself was soundproof; the only way they would be able to hear her would be to turn the speakers on in the rooms behind the mirrors. He turned to the FBI agents. "Whether this sonofabitch knew it or not, he just made it personal. Please tell me you've got some leads."
"We've got somewhat of a general idea," Sam assured him. "Our associates here, Agents Brown and Steele," he gestured to Krystal and Cas in turn, "have dealt with this guy before. It's hard to predict where he'll strike next, but he usually stays within the same town until he decides he's done. They've got feelers out, keeping an ear to the ground."
Castiel scowled in his confusion. "I don't have feelers and am upright..."
"It's an expression, Agent Steele. He takes a lot of stuff literally," he added to the sheriff in a stage whisper. "We can escort Miss McKinnon home. I'm sure she'll want to have arrangements made by the time the bodies are released."
At home, her rage blown out for now but temper on a hair trigger, Jude took her grief out on vegetables that needed chopping for tonight's dinner. Nearly everything she ate and fed other people were either from her own garden or from the local butcher. As she dumped chopped onions into a skillet she demanded a headcount for dinner rather more sharply than was characteristic.
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Krystal snuggled a little bit closer to Castiel as he kissed her head, just needing a little bit comfort from her soulmate. "I know we will, Cassie. But in the meantime, I feel beyond guilty. This fae is only doing this to hurt me. I want to know why." She admitted with an exsasperated sigh, closing her eyes. She was trying to shut off the part of her that could feel and taste all these emotions before it drove her insane.
Krystal was silent the whole way back to the station, breathing in and out softly. She was trying to keep herself calm. She was on very thin shred of sanity herself. The fae had done his job perfectly in how he went about this. Making each murder worse than the last. It seemed like he was trying to make her crazy in order to justify killing her before she could find her heart and procure her true heir. Only a child concieved in pure love is allowed to become a monarch.
Dean winced a little as he watched Jude. While he was relieved that she was onto the next stage of grief, he couldn't help but feel badly. He knew he could've saved them if he'dnonly have been quicker. Everytime someone gets close to him, they died. He couldn't bear that thought of watching her die, but at the same time, he knew he couldn't live without her. He loved her to much to ever be able to leave her again. He ran a hand through his hair as he watched her and listened to the banter of Sam and the sheriff.
Dean raised an eyebrow and a loud "moon princess elimination!" Could be heard. Krystal quickly apoligized and pulled her phone out. She let out a sigh of relief. "My associate has a lead. Agent Steele and I will go check it out." She told them simply, heels clicking slightly in her eagerness to go to Roreck and see what he might've foundnout in the last couple of hours. Her right hand man had always been very good at finding what she needed.
Dean looked to Sam after the sherriff had left and let out a soft breath. "Jude means alot to me, Sammy. I want to tell her the truth. So, you ready to hear the whole story?" He asked softly, and you tell that even in his grief, this was still embarrassing to him to talk about. But in light of recent events, it was necessary to tell his brother the full truth.
Later that day, back at Jude's house, Dean sat in the kitchen, just watching her cut the vegetables silently. "I could eat, but Krystal and Cas will probably go back to her hotel and order foos. I don't know if Sammy is gonna eat." He replied softly, not wanting to upset her. He would have to tell her soon, but not yet.
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Castiel jumped slightly at the loud notification from Krystal's phone. He looked between her and the sheriff. "Yes, we'll let you know in the morning what we've found," he agreed, nodding to the sheriff before leaving with Krystal.
Sam raised his eyebrows when Dean offered to tell him the whole story with Jude, taking a seat and leaning against the armrest. "Yeah. What's going on with you and her, Dean? Does ah, does this have anything to do with that time you and Dad had that big blowout?"
Later, once Dean had told him the entire story, Sam sat going through old archives online. Of course it was plausible and Dean had no reason to lie, but it was difficult to believe.In love?And although old newspaper stories wouldn't confirm to him how his brother felt about Jude itwouldconfirm how events played out after John had driven off without his eldest son. He was startled from his studies when Jude barged into the guest room, wielding a knife.
"Sam!" She looked quite testy. "Eating?"
"Uh...yeah I could eat. Thanks." She was a little frightening when grieving; he wanted weird, hippy Jude back.
When she returned to the kitchen she finished chopping vegetables before turning her wrath on the meat. "When I say head count I meanhead count," she mumbled mostly to herself, shaking her head. She knew it wasn't healthy to cling to her anger, but if she didn't then she'd start crying again. Even when the food was done, it tasted like ash in her mouth and was difficult to swallow through the pain. After a few bites, though it probably tasted perfectly fine to everyone else, she pushed her plate aside and rose to start putting things in tupperware with a mumbled explanation that she wasn't hungry.
With Sam in his room, Jude curled up in bed and waited for Dean. This would be her first night ever without her parents and she felt so small. The lovemaking in this very bed this morning seemed so long ago, but it was still the same rain as when she had woken up.
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Krystal smiled at the sheriff, nodding. "Yes, we'll be in touch." She promised, walking out with Castiel. When they were safely hidden in a dark corner of the station, a small popping sound could be heard, and they were now in the living room of her castle. Aside the flat screen tv, blueray player and bookcase full to the brim with movies, not much had changed since the angel had last been here. The shelves were still covered in books an pantings, the couches still the same hand made velvet furniture, ones he had loved. She had never been able throw them out, though she'd not known why at the time.
Roreck walked into the living room of the castle. "My queen, I see that you got my message. I have news." He told her, bowing respectfully to the higher ranking woman. He had not seen Castiel yet, despite the way Krystal was hanging onto him. The fae noble of the dark court had always harbored feelings for the pretty queen, so he always paid the most attention to her. She had never known, because she'd only ever seen Roreck as a big brother.
Krystal cleared her throat. "Yes, that is good news. I no longer wish to have deal with what this fae is doing. It weighs on my heart, Roreck." She explained, winpering sligtly, snuggling closer into Castiel. It was then that the fae noble finally noticed his presence. He bowed respectfully atbthe seraph, but he did not grin like he did when he looked at his queen. Instead Roreck's face was nuetral, though a small smile crept its way onto it.
"Pleased to see you again, Lord Castiel. I was not sure if the queen would ever find you again." He told the angel, slight edge to his voice. Roreck wasn't aware of the truth behind what had happened between Krystal and the angel, but he did know what had become of it. The Fae queen had cried for hours like her heart had died, despite not knowing why she was feeling such pain. He had been the one to pickup those pieces, so naturally, he wasn't fond of the angel being back. In his eyes, it could only spell more pain for his beautiful queen.
Dean watched Jude prepare their dinner with pain and worry in his eyes. It hurt him to see her hurting so. He wantedbto just snuggle her and kiss it all away, hut he knew he couldn't. If there was any way he knew to bring them back, he would, but he knew that Jude wouldn't want that. Her parents died devout, and bo matter how much he wabted to bring them back, save her this pain, he knew she'd never stand for it, nor would her parents. Later, at dinner, Dean gave her a concered and sympathetic look as she muttered she wasn't hungry, but he knew better. She was grieving to much to eat.
After Sam had gone to bed, Dean got into some lounge pants and a tank top, getting into bed with Jude. He kissed her head chastely, pulling her to his chest. He didn't know how eactly he was gonna do this, but asking seemed a good start. "Jude, do you believe in magic?"
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Jude curled up against Dean. She never wore pants to bed, but over her panties she wore a shirt Dean had left behind fifteen years prior which was still too big for her. She'd never had the heart to give it away or throw it out, and she was glad she hadn't. Wordlessly she played with the strings of his pants, words jumbling in her brain but unwilling to put themselves into any sort of order.
"They're gone," she finally said quietly. "It still feels like I can just pick up the phone and call them, ask what we're doing for Sunday dinner...but I can't. And they didn't even know you were safe. They're gone, and the last thing they knew in this world was torture and pain." Tears seeped down her face, dampening Dean's shirt. "God I wish I knew who this bastard was..."
But Dean didn't seem to be on the same page. He asked instead whether she believed in magic. "What sort of stupid question is that?" she demanded thickly, sniffing and wiping in futility at her tears. "Of course I do. You know I do."
Castiel squeezed the fae slightly, allowing her her own grief without intruding on the conversation. When Roreck finally noticed him he bowed back politely. "Roreck," he greeted. "I searched for her for a very long time, but it seemed time was all we needed. And there'sstillno reason to call me 'lord.' I am anangelof the Lord."
He knew that Roreck had always fancied Krystal. He tried to be respectful of that by not getting too physical or sentimental in front of him, but there was only so much he could do; shewashis soulmate, after all. The fae clearly wasn't happy to see him, and to be perfectly honest he wasn't terribly happy to see Roreck, but the least they could do was a tacit respectfulness for propriety and Krystal's sake.
"What was this news you said you had?" he prompted after a few moments.
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Dean snuggled his lover, rubbing her shoulder comftingly. The fact that she had kept his shirt all these years warmed his heart, and if he were bring really honest, he could admit it was really sexy seeing her in it. Now wasn't the time though. Now was the time to let her grieve, and to hold her to help her remember how important he is to her. He kissed her head, laying them down, ticking her into his much larger form.
Dean let out a soft sound as she talked. "I know how you feel. For the first couple of months after Bobby, my adoptive father died, It took everything in me not to call his phone when I needed help. I promise, the pain gets easier." He replied, kissing her head softly, trying to off comfort, even if he thought he was doing a shit job of it. Be hated seeing her like this, and he felt the same way. He was agonizing over this, blaming himself, thinking they'd still be alive if he hadn't come here. He let out a sigh. "You and me both"
Dean abruptly wanted to change the subject. He knew ahe believed in magic, but what he was about to tell her was far fetched even for him. "You know how my family business is about saving people, right? Well, its not just seriel killers we hunt... we hunt... creatures too.. the world isn't as black and white as it appears" he explained softly, not really sure where to start to explain. He hated to bring her into this part of his life, but, if she was gonna be with him, she needed to know. "The thing that killed your parents wasn't human. It was a faerie"
Roreck let out a soft chuckle, though he didn't smike ear yo ear like he usually would. He was to burdened by the reappearance of the angel to truly smile. "I simply call you that because I know you will one day be king. Ihave no doubts that you will marry the queen, my lord" he explained respectfully, biting his lip slightly. He was being nice for Krystal's sake, even though he secretly wantedbto deckbthe angel.
Krystal snuggled in closer to Castiel as she spoke to Roreck, the nearness of his presence soothing. Being here, in this room with him was making the memories come back like a flood. She couldn't help but smirk a little at the memory of what they'd done on the couch ove in the corner. It seemed like every inch of this roomnheld a salacious memory. She took in a breath, focusing. "Yes, Roreck. What is your news?"
Roreck let out an breath. "Roght, well, as it turns out, you were right. There was a torrid affair going on between the order court general Cole and a nortal named maria. She dumped him when she found out he wasn't human, so he vowed to make humans pay. Seems he thought thenopprotunity would also serve well to frame out court, my queen." He explained, looking thoughtful and wondering what they might say.
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"Of course," Castiel agreed, eventual marriage to Krystal being a matter-of-fact to him as it always had been. "But even then I would not wish to be called 'lord.' I'maskingyou not to." He stressed that he was asking; he could have ordered Roreck not to call him 'lord' if he wanted, but he wanted to attempt at least congeniality.
When Roreck imparted his information Cas nodded. "Makes enough sense," he mused. "Now all we need is a way to find and catch this General Cole."
Dean was doing right by her, just letting her ramble and weep. When he told her that they didn'tjusthunt serial killers but also monsters, she crinkled her nose. "What, like X-Files?" Jude's nose was still stuffy but it was just weird enough to stop the tears for now. "Dean I know I can be a bit flighty but evenIdon't believe in that sort of stuff." She blinked hard when he announced that a faerie had murdered her parents.
"Of course it wasn't," she said plainly. "The Unseely court play tricks and sometimes people get hurt, but they're notserial killers,Dean." Jude watched his face when it didn't crack into a grin and raised her eyebrows. "Wait you're serious? You think a faerie mu-- Did that? Dean...sometimes peoplearethe monsters." The corners of her eyes lowered, but she used this line of thinking to distract her from the vibrantly painful truth. "I'm pretty sure we've got a hollowghast comes every few years, I would think it'sthatbefore one of the Good Neighbors."
Jude had been convinced she'd seen a faerie when she was twelve, out in the woods near her house, and had never stopped believing. Instead she'd delved deeper, researching the creatures and monsters of folklore and gradually learning that most people didnotcontinue to believe in magic well into their teens. Funny enough, therewasa hollowghast that liked to prowl the streets of Keene every five or ten years, though only two of the five cases she had linked to the hollow were murders and maulings it was actually responsible for.
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Krystal leaned into Castiel as he spoke to Roreck, smiling softly. To her, the two of them got along, but in reality it was the opposite. The information that they had just been given was false, for the most part. There was a General Cole in the court of order, but what they didn't know is that it was actually Roreck. He had created the persona to gain information in order to help Krystalnover take the other courts. In his mind, she needed to be queen over all of their race, not just their own court. Roreck bowed respectfully at Castiel. "If you you so wish."
Krystal nodded at her lover's suggestion. "Yes, we need to think of a plan, and I need you to stay as close to me as possible. Judging how little the courts like me, they may just try and kill you again. Usually the heart bond isn't tempered with no matter what the fae's crimes, but I can't take any chances. I'm the only one who can fully negate that spell." She explained, looking worried. She remembered the last time it had happened. The fae court of winter had gotten their hands on an angel blade, and had captured her lover. When she found him, he was badly bloodied and clise to death. It was lucky that she healed him, or she might not be here today. When a fae finds their true heart and they die, the love connection that bonded then slowly withers away, and so to do they fae themselves. Krystal couldn't risk that happening.
That's when Roreck knew. In order to kill her lover, he would have to send her away. He would need to send her far enough away that she wouldn't be in time to save him this time. He was to blinded by jealosy and rage to think about the affect it might have on his beloved. All he wanted was her.
Dean let out a soft sound. He almost thought that she didn't believe him. "Yeah, something like that. You know the supernatural books by carver edlund?" He asked with a sort of nervous tone, thinking he might have seen a couple of them on her shelf in the living room. He hoped she didn't have the one where he went to hell if he was correct that he had seen them.
Dean let out a soft sigh as he realized she wasn't calling him crazy. Instead she was disagreeing with him on fairy lore. He tried not to smile at the fact that at least someone believed him. "Thats true in most cases, but not this one. We know it was Fae because we've dealth with them before. The tree tattoo isn't a tattoo. Its a ruin called the tree of pain. Oh, don't let Krys hear you call her court unseelie. As queen, it offends her. She says the court of order is actually more like the unseelie." He explains, hoping that krys wouldn't mind being outed. She had just randomly appeared and told them who she was, so it was likely she wouldn't mind.
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Jude shook her head when he asked about the Carver Edlund books. "I've heard of them and they've got a pretty rabid underground following on Tumblr, but I've never read them. Why? Are they about actual monsters?"
Then he started babbling, not bothering to link what was in his head with the words coming out of his mouth. Dean had a habit of doing that sometimes. "Who's Krys? I've never heard of the "court of order," only the Seelie and Unseelie." Then something horrifying registered in her brain. "Tree of pain?" Jude yelped, starting back and staring up at him. "So...they did suffer, then..." Tears welled in her eyes and she looked away, not entirely certain whether she wanted confirmation of the truth.
Castiel shook his head. "I don't think they'll be coming after me any time soon. They don't know we've found each other yet, so as long as we lay low and keep that quiet I should be fine." He raised an eyebrow as he looked down at her and the corners of his mouth turned up. "Iamcapable of rescuing myself, you know." He nudged her gently with his hip. "So where would a murderous fae hide, anyway?"
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Dean let out a soft sigh in relief at the fact that she hadn't read them, even if it might've been easier if they had. "Yes, they're about real monsters. But.. they're also about Sammy and I. Our life story to be precise." He explained softly, and you could see both the annoyance toward god for publishing them, and the embarrassment. Those books told everything. Even about her, if he recalled correctly. It was pretty muchbthe story of his life from birth to 2010.
Dean made a face. "Oh, right, sorry. When you met her she was glamoured and called agent brown. Evidentally some of the lore of fae is wrong. There are 4 courts, not 2. Winter, summer, order and dark." he admitted, his thoughts still going a mile a minute. He was trying to keep himself from just telling her the whole gruesome story. He didn't want her to know, even if he knew she kind of had to know. He let out a wince at hearing her, frowning. He really shouldn't have said that. He pulled her close, kissing her shoulder softly. He regretted saying that the moment it came out of his mouth. He'd had to find a way to convince her.
Krystal nodded at him, snuggling close."You're right Cassie. I don't know why I was worrying." She admitted, even if she still couldn't shake the feeling she should be. If only Castiel knew hiw wrongbhe is. By showing up at her castle and by helping her, he'd told the culprit that he was in her arms again. Roreck had his next target, and he would find a way to get Krystal out of the way so he could hurt him. He just had to look through the magic books again.
Krystal let out a soft chuckle. "Of course I do, Cassie. I just don't like seeing you hurt. You know that." She admitted softly, shrugging at his next question, thinking back to what she'd learned from reading books on profiling after she started watching criminal minds. She was amazed at how mortals always came out with such interesting things. "Probably in plain sight. This unsub seems pretty cocky. He'd want yo be invilved in the investigation somehow." She deduced, brow furrowing. Yeah, the fae queen had been watching way to much mortal tv.
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Castiel frowned. "What's an unsub?" He shook his head, realizing where she was going. "The mark is getting out of control, Krystal. This isn't the work of a serial killer, but a fae who can't control the magic. Other than his hatred of mortals we don't know anything about him; we've never interacted with him." He sat on the arm of a chair, frowning in thought. "I think we ought to scour the courts first."
Jude made a note to read these Carver Edlund books, but Dean had already moved on. She scowled in confusion, then when she asked about the Tree of Pain all he did was pull her close. With a noise somewhere between a grunt and a whimper Jude pushed away. She didn't want to be held right now, not when he was saying things like this. With a scowl she examined Dean's face.
"Did they suffer,Dean?" she repeated. "This fae, this...thingthat murdered my family...it made them suffer. And you'reworkingwith one of them?"
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Krystal let out a soft sound. "Unspecified subject" she told him flatly to his first question, looking contemplative. While she agreed with her heart that the mark had gotten out of control, she wasn't so convinced it was accidental. She had smelt the magic on the last murders, and it was the strongest she'd ever felt it. The strange thing was, now that it was stronger, it didn't quite feel like winter court anymore. She took in a breath. "Yes, we should. But it will require some glamour. Can never be to careful, Cassie." She added, relaxing on the couch a moment. She needed to keep her head clear.
Dean sighed softly. He didn't want to tell her. He knew just how her parents died and it was heartwrenching. Even after being a hunter hus whole life, he had never seen anything so brutal. Whoever was doing this, had no mercy whatsoever. He let out a wimper as she left his arms, having needed some comfort himself. Well, he might as well get it over with..
"I'm not supposed to tell you this Jude, but.. yes, they did, at least a little your mother had a heart attack.. but your father? The rev.. bled to death..." his voice was quiet and strained, and he winced. He knew she wouldn't like him working with another fae, but she was only one who truly reverse the spell. He frowned softly, his expression unreadable before he spoke very quietly. "Krys had nothing to do with it.. but.. she's the only one who can truly stop it."
gpt
Jude's throat tightened. A heart attack could have been recovered from. The bleeding could have been staunched. Bleeding out, she knew, was slow and painful and dear God he must have been so scared. She sniffed but her tears had stopped; she had been wrung dry from the day and couldn't force more even if she wanted to.
"So it was her magic then." Her tone was accusatory. "If she's 'the only one who can truly stop it,' then it'shermagic, Dean. Which means shedoeshave something to do with it." Jude clung to her anger and nurtured it. The white heat of righteous rage blotted out the pain of loss, though she knew she couldn't sustain it for long. "And you're working with her. How do you knowsheisn't the one doing this? How do you knowsheisn't just insinuating herself into the investigation just to watch the stupid, hairless apes scrabble to solve the big murder mystery? Ifshe'sthe only one who can stop it, and it's her magic, then I don't give a damnwhatshe calls her fucking court, Dean, I'll have none of her." She couldn't do it anymore. She couldn't talk about this fae Dean "Trust Issues" Winchester for some reason trusted not to have murdered her parents in cold blood. It made her queasy just to think about it. Instead Jude shook her head and slid farther under the covers, turning her back to her lover and switching off the light. "G'night, Dean."
"Well then, glamour us and let's go," Cas suggested, looking expectantly at the fae. He wanted to help Sam and Dean, and the McKinnons and the other victims deserved justice. "I sense that we're running out of time."
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Dean winced at the look on her face. He knew how badly this could hurt. He'd witnessed his father being ripped apart by hell hounds when he was just 19, and had seen so many other brutal things in his career as a hunter. He wanted to reach out to her, to hug her close and tell her everything was going to be okay, but.. deep down he knew that no manner of comforting would make this easier. He would just have to watch her greive, no matter how much it hurt him. Somehow deep down, Dean knew he was right to trust her.
Dean winced again at her tone when he spoke of Krystal. Even he didn't truly understand why he trusted her. He just did. In reality, the answer was a little more complicated than it sounded. When Castiel pulled Dean from hell, a mark and a profound bond were forged. Dean trusted her because Castiel did, and he could feel the bond between Krystal and the angel vibrating between them. He spoke softly again. "If there's one thing the folklore gets right, its that fae cannot lie. It maybe her spell that the other fae is using, but she's not the one using it. Cas believes her and he's known her for two milleniums, so I do too." It was a simple statement, but he knew she wouldn't like it. He'd bever beenbtrysting before.
Krystal nodded. With a snap of her fongers, she now became a sunner fae, and in a flash b they looked like a typical summer court couple. She kissed his cheek. "Okay, lets go"
gpt
Jude's jaw jutted out as she tried to bottle up her temper. She wanted to shake him, to shout at him that he was being stupid, but that wasn't her. That she was this furious was itself an anomaly. She closed her eyes in the dark and counted to ten. "I don't know who the fuck Cas is, but it sounds like he has some piss poor judgement." She didn't know that this tended to be a bit of an understatement, considering both recent and more distantly-past events. "Because I supposeshe'sthe one who told you fae can't lie, hm? And folklore makes it pretty clear the Unseelie can lie to achieve their own ends. If she's so good and such a pure fucking snowflake then why did she need tomakesuch a spell in the first place? Ruminate on that a little bit, Dean. Goodnight." Any arguments he might make would go unanswered; Jude had made it clear she was done talking.
She had noticed that she refused to say Krystal's name and she didn't intend to change that. The bitch didn't deserve to be recognized with a name; she was a monster for even creating such a spell, never mind leaving it just lying around where anyone could use it. It had taken Deanmonthsto let Jude in and he was just going to take the glittery cunt on her word that she couldn't lie? No. That didn't hold.
Sleep took the edge off of Jude's anger. Her opinions on fae and on Dean's working with them hadn't changed, but she could never stay that furious for very long. She was up and about early making breakfast, setting freshly made crepes and a variety of fillings down on the table in front of Sam. Jude was quiet and not her usual self, though it was apparent that the tide of her anger had ebbed for now. She was just sitting down to eat herself when Dean awoke.
"Morning." Her tone wasn't full of vitriol but it wasn't its usual chipper tone either. "I'm gonna go for a run after breakfast; either of you are welcome to join me if you'd like. Then I think I'm gonna stop by the church. Sunday services are cancelled but I'm sure people are gonna be there and I'll be expected to make an appearance." She forced a small smile before taking a bite of her crepe. Normally she would have had at least three or four but today one would suffice. Jude had no appetite and ate only because she knew she had to; the crepes felt gluey and tasted bland to her despite being perfectly fine.
Sam nodded. "Thanks. I think I'll join you," he took her up on her offer, concerned but knowing that Dean wasn't likely to want to run just for the hell of it. Turning his attention to his brother he informed him, "Cas finally learned to just text. He said he and Krystal are going to the Summer Court."
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Dean was a little jarred at the amount of anger Jude was expressing, even if he knew it wasn't unwarrented. He would say something, even if he knew she was done talking for the night. "Cas is.. Castiel. An angel. He's a friend." He voice was soft as he spoke, and you could just hear in his tone how badly he felt for both telling her and now for letting Krystal help. She did make some valid points. "It wasn't her that told us that fae cannot lie. It was Cas." He added softly, though he mulled over what Jude had to say in his mind. Why did he trust her? Was it just because of Cas? Cas had been wrong enough times to warrent him not trusting her, yet he couldn't seem to bring himself to not trust her. Was Jude right? Was he under the thrall or something? He didn't know.
Once Jude had stopped talking, Dean was left with his thoughts. He hadn't wanted to tell her, but she'd asked, and it was never good to lie to loved ones. Her anger at the situation was clear, and he didn't blame her one bit. He knew that trusting Krystal this quickly was out of character, but the elder winchester somehow felt he could. Wether it be by a spell, or just plain instinct, something told him she was trustable, even if he made a note to ask her why she created the tree of pain in the first place. He had been wondering about that anyhow.
In the morning, Dean was awoken to the smell of crepes and various fillings, and he walked out into the kitchen, sleepy eyed. "Morning Jude, Sammy" he replied with a yawn, stretching before grabbing a very large cupnof coffee. If he was being honest with himself, he would say he had only gotten a few hours sleep. Jude had raised som interesting questions, and they had plauged his mind along with a little self loathing. Even if he was getting better in that respect because of her, he still had chastised himself a bit. Told himself he deserved to be yelled at because he was stupid. He looked up from his coffee as Jude, and then Sam spoke. He nodded his head. "Sounds good. They're probably going to gather some more information, right?" He replied to them both at once, knowing that Jude probably wore a scowl at the mension of Krystal.
Meanwhile, Krystal gave Castiel a light kiss. "While we're at the summer court, I want you to call me Celeste. I will simply call you Cas. Hopefully we won't draw to much attention, but we'll need to be super affectionate. Summer court fae are very touch feely." She explained, sighing slightly. She hoped they would be able to pull this off, because if she were caught, the other courts would take it as an act of war and she couldn't have that. The investigating had to be sneaky.
When they got to the summer court, the first thing Castiel would probably notice is how in contrast it was to the dark court. Krystal's court laid in a small forest as well, but the forest she lived in conceealed a dark and metallic cityscape. The summer court was nothing like that. It was bright and happy, with houses carved into trees, large bridges made of wood and rope, and a castle carmed from the largest oak Krystal had ever seen. She let out a soft breath. "I've never been to one of the other courts. Its.. beautiful here." She muttered softly to Castiel, just staring in awe.
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"Touchy-feely. I'm sure you won't have a problem with that." Castiel gave her a small smile.Hemight have a problem with it; as much as Krystal crawled all over him, Castiel himself did not tend toward displays of public affection. It wasn't that he didn't love Krystal with all his being, of course he did, but he loved her in his own, quieter way. He would need to keep reminding himself to show more affection while they were at the Summer Court.
The Summer Court was, in fact, beautiful. Castiel had visited a few Heavens which resembled something like this but the human imagination had never reached this level of harmony and beauty. He took a deep breath and the air smelled of an eternal springtime with the trees and flowers fresh in their bloom. The peace and sunshine of the Summer Court actually tugged a small smile from Castiel's usually dour expression.
"C'mon," he said after a few minutes, kissing the top of her head. "We've got work to do."
"Yeah. Something about going under cover or something." Sam shrugged. "I'm sure they'll fill us in when they get back."
"You'll have to meet them, then," Jude informed him calmly. "I'll not have anyone with a mind that vile polluting my home." She didn't say it with anger, but very matter-of-factly. To her thinking, anyone who could create a spell which was that imaginative when it came to torture and murder wasn't someone she wanted anywhere near her or her loved ones. She couldn't stop Dean from working with this fae, but shecouldcontrol the sorts of people who came into her house. Sam exchanged a look with Dean, but said nothing on the subject.
"She didn't kill your parents, you know."
"I know." Jude panted a little harder than Sam did, but otherwise kept pace easily with the giant. "But she put the weapon in his hands. Who the hellthinksof stuff like that anyway? Psychopaths, that's who. If we turn up at that path it'll circle back around." Jude's usual route was seven miles round trip and they turned from pavement to the dirt path through the woods which would lead back to the street on which she lived.
Sam considered this for a moment as he took the inside of the curve. "People change. She could have been a different person when she created that mark."
"If she had that capacity for such evil once, she can have it again."
"Fair point." Sam tried to think of something else to take the edge of of Jude's distaste for the fae, but considering he himself didn't entirely trust her yet it was difficult. "Cas says we can trust her."
"So I hear. Root." She hopped over the root protruding four inches from the path. "Sounds like a nice enough guy. But considering the things I've heard about this Cas though, he doesn't sound like he makes the best judgement calls. I trust actions more than words, and her actions donotimpress."
He couldn't think of anything to say to this. There was nothing Sam could do about Jude's judgement in character or the way she evaluated people, and therefore nothing he could do to change her mind about Krystal. What he knew was that she had helped them, but also that Dean was uncharacteristically trusting of her and that nagged at his mind. The final two miles of their run were mostly silence save Jude's occasional warnings about obstacles on the dirt path.
"Do you want to go to the church with me?" Jude gingerly pulled a comb through her wet hair after her shower as she addressed Dean. It wasn't her way to ask for help; Jude believed in self-sufficiency and had fostered the stubborn pride which came with that. When she asked Dean whether hewantedto go to the church with her, she was really asking if hewould; she wasn't sure she could face the congregation alone. "I'll have to shake hands and kiss babies and stuff, but there are people who still remember you. They ask about you time to time, whether we heard anything from you. I'm sure they'd be glad to see you." She forced a weak smile. This wasn't untrue; in a small town like Keene everybody had heard of the boy the Rev had taken in and some still occasionally asked whether they'd heard from him. Jude didn't want Dean there for them, she wanted him there for her. She had always been aware of and depended upon herself, but knew that Dean might have to lend her some of her strength for this.
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Krystal chuckled a little pecking his cheek. "No, probably not. But I know PDA is hard for you. Don't worry, it won't be so bad." She promised reassuringly, gently squeezing his hand. She hoped she wasn't asking to much of him. She needed the support. The other courts had never liked her because of who she was, so she was expecting them to give her dirty looks, even in glamour. Castiel gave her courage where she usually had none.
Krystal breathed in the air, closing her eyes a moment. It brough back memories of the nights she and Castiel would lay out in the gardens of her mansion. She hoped those nights would happen again. She relaxed into him, looking up at him as he spoke. "Of course Cas." She replied softly, following him further into the summer court.
Suprisingly, they were all very welcoming, and she hathered much information. "You're sure that General Cole of the court of order is dead?" She asked one of the summer king's girls, and she nodded. This was shaping up to be a very interesting visit indeed. It seemed that Roreck had been lying to them. She'd never had that happen to her before, and it was very worrying. Maybe it was someone in her court after all, and thr signs were pointing to the man she'd called friend for mileniums.
Dean retuned his brothers look with a loonbthat basically meant he would explain later, then nodded at Jude. He didn't expect the woman to want Krystal anywhere near her for awhile if she ever did. "That's the best way to get information. I'll text Cas and tell them to meet us atbthe diner in town." He replied matter of factly, eating a few crepes.
Dean knew by the tone in Jude's voice, she was asking for support. While he had never been religious or neen comfortable in churches, he would go with her. He ran a hand through his hair, glad he'd decided to wear at least some of his suit today. He gave her a soft smile, watching as she brushed her hair. "Of course, Jude. Nobody should have to do that alone."
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A breath of relief. She smiled at him before picking the last tangle out of her hair. "Thank you," she said softly, kissing his forehead tenderly before slipping on some clothes. "They'll be glad to see you. I talked to Sheriff Parker to see if everything was done processing. After we're done at the church we can go to the house and start...going through things." Her throat tightened up but she cleared it and swallowed. "I just want to get it over with, y'know?"
No formal gathering to her knowledge had been called, but when Jude and Dean arrived outside the old stonechurchthat had been there nearly as long as Keene itself, most of the congregation was milling about on the lawn. They politely pretended not to see Jude pull up and she took a few minutes to gather herself. Her heart started to pound, she tasted metal, and her vision started to fade; suddenly it was hard to breathe and the hyperventilating made her even dizzier. Although the car was off Jude maintained a white knuckle grip on the steering wheel and she managed to softly whimper Dean's name. The panic attack was over in a minute or two though it had seemed like hours, leaving her feeling exhausted. But the congregation expected her and so she would go.
"Give me strength and mindfulness," she murmured to no one in particular. Although Jude had long ago chosen her own path to spirituality, the superstition and ritual of Christianity had never quite left her. Stretching out the muscles in her neck, she looked over to Dean. "Alright let's go. Prepare for a lot of questions."
Out of the car Jude made a beeline for the door, fumbling with her keychain for a few moments and unlocking it so she could let everyone in. Instead of the surge she expected only few people filtered in to take their usual Sunday seats as though the Rev were just running late. Most were interested in her, offering words of comfort and sympathy, hugs and flowers. She tried to stay next to Dean for the most part, but kept getting pulled away by the parishioners. Even Father Morrin from the St. Mary's across town had taken time to stop by between his early and late morning masses to offer his condolences. He offered to give the service once the bodies were released, considering neither she nor the deacon were ordained, and she accepted with a grateful but sad smile and a half-hearted joke about a Catholic priest giving the service being sacrilege. She squeezed Dean's hand tightly when Father Morrin referred to her parents as "the bodies."
One youngwomanwith tears in her eyes finally found Jude, she as fair as Jude was dark, and hugged her tightly. Jude nearly lost it but regained her composure after a brief shudder of emotion. "Sweetie I'm so, so sorry." The woman kissed Jude's cheek gently.
"Thanks Rach. He loved you too though, y'know." She offered a watery smile before they pulled one another back into a tight hug. With a sniff Jude seemed to remember Dean and turned to him. "I'm sorry. Dean, this is Rachel. Best friend, ex-girlfriend, pretty much all around amazing lady. Rachel this is Dean." They exchanged significant looks with each other and it was clear Jude didn't have to explain who Dean was. She glanced over Rachel's shoulder and patted them both. "I'll be right back guys. Mrs. Howard's a mess and now she wants to talk to me."
"Good luck." Rachel watched Jude go before turning to Dean and folding her arms across her chest. "Dean Winchester.TheDean Winchester." She didn't sound wholly impressed. "If you disappear again I'll hunt you down and gut you myself. I spent two years competing with the ghost of Dean Winchester. You broke her, you know." Her eyes flicked up and down appraisingly and though it wasn't entirely clear whether she liked what she saw, nor was it entirely clear that shedidn't.
Work was done fairly quickly. Castiel stuck mostly to Krystal, holding her hand, occasionally peppering her with kisses though it made him blush thoroughly to do so. The court was welcoming and kind, but when they found that this General Cole Roreck had spoken of was dead it was cause for Cas to raise an eyebrow. It was odd to say the least, and the angel wondered how he had died but didn't think it appropriate to ask.
"It seems Roreck had bad information," Castiel suggested once they were out of earshot of the woman Krystal had been questioning. "He may want to check his sources; it seems one of them isn't entirely truthful."
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Dean held Jude close in a hug a moment, kissing her head softly. He could only imagine how hard this wasbhoingbto be for her. He gave her a reassuring smile. "Of course, Jude. I'll always be here for you." And he meant it. He wasn't going anywhere this time.
When they got to the church, Dean could just sense the unease, and reached out to her as she had a small panic attack. He budded her back soothingly, voice soft. "I'm here, jude. I'm here. Don't worry. I'm here" when he saw that her panic was waning, he gave her a kiss. He wanted her to know how important she is to him, and that he would stay with her.
Dean nodded and followed her, giving her a reassuring smile. "Okay, Jude." He wasn't to worried. While church had never been his scene, he respected and loved Jude so much he had to go with her. He knew she needed support.
Dean offered as much touching and moral support as he could, evennif it made him a little bit uncomfortable in this big a crowd. He knew she needed him, and truth be told, he needed her too. Being in this church again, without the reverend? It took a toll on his heart he wasn't sure he could admit to anyone but her or maybe Sam. He squeezed her hand back, kissing her head. He knew how hard this was on her.
When a new wan hugged his lover, he raised an eyebrow. He watched the exchange quietly, a tiny tinge of jealousy there. Despite the fact that he probably had no right to be, he was.
When Jude turned to Introduce them, Dean smiled, even if he could tell the woman didn't look extremely happy to see him in Jude's arms again. "Its nice to meet you Rachel." He replied softly, holding his hand out for a shake. He gave Jude a kiss before she left, knowing the woman was sizing him up. He winced guiltily, lookingbat the woman. "I know I did. It broke me to leave her, too.. but this time.. If I do leave, I'm taking her with me." Her replied simply, sure of his decision.
Krystal was shocked to say the least that this General Cole was dead. The pieces were starting to make sense, and she didn't like where they were adding up to. If it really was Roreck doing all this, what were his motives? She knew he didn't hate mortals, so she didn't understand why he might be doung this. When they were out of earshot, she talked in hushed tones to her lover. "No, Cas, as much as I don't want to wrongly accuse Roreck, because he's my closest friend, I think it maybe him that's killed all those people."
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Castiel's usual scowl deepened. "Roreck?" he shook his head. "He has no motivation and it's not his personality. The only indication that it might be him is that he gave us a name of a person who's dead. If it were him and not one of his sources, why would he give us a lead which could be so easily debunked?" He shook his head again. "It doesn't add up."
Rachel didn't shake Dean's hand. "Oh so you can drop her where shedoesn'thave a support system then?" she asked accusingly. She looked him up and down again with a look like she'd just tasted something rotten. "What's your game, Winchester? She was completely in love with you, or at least with the idea of you, and you disappeared.You stole her virginity.It took heryearsto get over you, then a decade and a half later you think you can just stroll back into town and pick up where you left off, no questions asked? Think saying you know you did her wrong and giving me empty promises makes everything alright? Huh-uh.Idried those tears,Ihealed those wounds,youdon't get to inflict them all over again. I'll play nice for Judith's sake, but I'd trust a snake in a rat cage before I trusted you with her heart." It wasn't clear whether she were jealous or just protective, but if she were honest with herself it was probably a little of both.
Rachel seemed to make a connection, glancing over at the church then back to Dean. Being a good deal taller than Jude she was nearly eye-to-eye with Dean when she stepped closer to him. "I swear, if you hadanythingto do with the Rev and Shannon there won't be an investigation because there won't be enough of you left for the cops to find," she threatened in a low voice.
Where Jude was dark Rachel was fair; where one believed in the inherent goodness of people the other was suspicious and mistrustful; where one was forgiving and patient the other held grudges; where one was pushed to violence or anger only by the most extreme of circumstances the other would pull a knife in the blink of an eye. The dichotomy of Jude McKinnon and Rachel Warburton was a well-known one which had served them both well over the years and was somewhat of a joke amongst those who knew them. Nobody was surprised when they were caught making out behind the grain silo, nor when they broke up in a very public screaming match which had been talked about for months afterwards, nor when they resumed their friendship the month following said screaming match. Despite their disapproval of the lifestyle the McKinnons had always treated Rachel as one of their own and for past twelve years they had been one another's rock and solace, Rachel and Jude versus the world. Rachel in her grief for her surrogate family and her care for her friend wasn't about to allow that to change, not without a fight.
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Krystal shook her head. "Actually, my heart it does. If there's one thing about Roreck that has never changed, its that he would bend over backwards to make me happy. That being said, I have a reason as to why he might've given us false and easily debunked information. It takes the suspician off of him and onto one of his sources." She explained, her face scrunchimg up to show she was thinking very hard. She hated to think badly ofbher most trusted friend, but she had a feeling. Something had been off with Roreck for awhile now, and she knew it wasn't good because his behavior just started to change when the murders started happening.
Dean kept his face nuetral. He didn't want to get into a screaming match with this woman he had just met. Nit only would that look badlh on him, they were still in a church, and he didn't wish anymore pain on Jude from having to choose between him and this Rachel. "Absolutely not." was all he said, listening to her spew. She had points, of course, but she didn't know the whole story.
Dean let out a soft sound. "I had nothing to do with that. I'm in town to find out who did." He said simply, not elaborating anymore. She didn't need yo know the whole story. The only person who did was Jude, and she, for the most part, knew. He still had ghings to tell her, but he had explained, at least, why he left. it was for his brother. He knew if Dean wasn't there, Sam would be hurt, and he couldn't besr that. Jude knew, and she understood. That was all that mattered to him.
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Rachel folded her arms across her chest and scowled for a long moment. There was something Jude liked about him, but Jude had always been a little naive to the true nature of people--which was the only way Rachel could fathom why she'd care for someone like her--and she didn't trust it at all. She pointed a finger at him threateningly.
"So you justhappenedto be in town, show up for the first time in fifteen years, they day they got murdered? She's got enough scars on her heart, Winchester," she warned. "If you take her away from home and I stop hearing from her then so help me God I will find you no matter where you go, and if anything happens to her you willbegfor death before I'm done."
"Hey..." Jude frowned and grabbed Rachel's hand as she returned, pulling her a few steps to the side. "Play nice, alright?"
Rachel turned her scowl to Jude. "I don't know what--"
She stopped her with a peck on the lips. "We've talked about this Rach. Let me make my own mistakes, okay?"
Rachel glanced over at Dean and squeezed her friend's hand. "I just don't want you getting hurt again. That asshole--"
"Is back and has explained what happened in high school. I understand why he did it and I've forgiven him and that's all you need to be concerned with, okay?"
She sighed and kissed Jude's forehead. "If he breaks your heart again don't come crying to me."
"You know I will hon." She gave her a small smile. "I've made my rounds here. Dean's brother-slash-partner is at the house so the door's open and people are welcome there if they ask. I ah...we're gonna go to the house. Start going through things. It's better to just rip the bandaid off all at once," she added in response to Rachel's concerned frown. "I'll see you later, okay?" With another hug she returned to Dean and took his hand. "C'mon. Let's just go through all the stuff at the house, get things ready."
At her childhood home Jude was unable to handle matters in the livingroom where a large bloodstain had seeped through the carpet and wasn't completely dry. Instead she started with her parents' bedroom upstairs, sorting things into donate, keep, and trash piles. She forced herself to emotionally take a step back from each item, to pretend that it was a couple of parishioners who had died and she was helping the family instead of tossing away her parents' entire lives. For hours Jude and Dean worked mostly in silence, moving room to room, trying to look at the things as just things and not memories. By 8 they were finally done, all that was needed was to call the church charity shop and the dump to get the respective piles of belongings; Jude had chosen to keep very little, mostly photographs and trinkets bought on vacations as well as a couple pieces of furniture. Back at her own home Sam was still doing research.
"Hi. Ah...lots of people came by today, seemed pretty disappointed I wasn't your boyfriend." He gave her a sympathetic smile. "I told them I was one of the agents working on the case, interviewed a couple of them but none of them threw up any red flags. You've probably got more casseroles than you can eat now though."
Jude forced a smile. "Thanks, Sam. Think I may just go to bed early though. Wake's tomorrow."
"Jude you need to eat something." Sam frowned and looked to Dean for backup. He didn't know that she'd skipped lunch, but he could take an educated guess.
Castiel shook his head. "It would only take suspicion off of him if you were suspicious of him in the first place, and you weren't," he pointed out. "And he knows that killing people doesn't make you happy. Quite the opposite. He knows you better than almost anyone and knows that you would be onto him if you had any reason for suspicion. Pointing us to a dead man would be suicide."
human
Dean kept a hand on Jude the whole time she talkedbto Rachel. It wasn't really because of the other woman he did it or because of jealousy. He just needed her near to assure himself she was still real. Even though it had been a few days, the elder winchester still couldn't believe his good luck. He was waiting for the metaphorical other shoe to drop. Anything good that happened in his life had come with a hefty price, so he worried for the love of his life. He stayed quiet the whole time she was talking to the other woman, waiting patiently. He knew now what a history they had, and he wouldn't pull her away until she suggested it.
Dean squeesed her tight, kissing her head. "Yeah, Jude. lets go." he answered simply, landing a hand atbthe small of her back and leading her back to the car. He knew she was struggling with this, so he kept as quiet as he could. giving her a kiss as the reached the house. "its going to be okay." He promised, smiling softly.
Dean helped clear as much as he could, saving pictures and photo albums and things he knew she would keep. He let out a soft breath, rubbing her back. "Things will benokay. the pain stops eventually" he murmurred, hoping to help her in any way he could.
Dean looked at his brother and then Jude. "He's right baby. even if its just a little something, you should eat. Especially since you skipped lunch." He pleaded, giving her worried green eyes. He hated seeing her like this, andnit was killing him. He needed to get her out of dodge as soon as he could. He could see how much it was killing her, and it killed him to see her like that.
Krystal still looked contemplative as she talked. "You're right, I wasn't. Now i'm not sure though. He's been acting very strange, and he treated you different than he normally would. I'm not stupid. something is up with him." she replied, before changing their appearences for the winter court. that was where they needed to be next.
gpt
Castiel smiled gently. "He treated me just as I would have expected him to," he pointed out. "To him I abandoned you in your time of need and now I'm back after centuries of absence. I wouldn't treat me very kindly either, from that perspective."
Jude opened her mouth to argue but closed it again when Dean chimed in and gave her those eyes. Those big, fanfiction green puppy-dog eyes. She swallowed hard and sighed. "Fine," she finally acquiesced. "But just so you know I do it under protest. I'm not hungry, and you know I'm not a fan of eating when I'm not hungry."
That was a lie and only something she said when she was distressed and looking for a reason not to eat. Jude ran every day because she'd always had a healthy, sometimes more-than-healthy, appetite and could often pack away as much as Dean did. Tonight however she only looked in the fridge and warmed up a slice of Mrs. Rizzoni's lasagna. It was a quick lasagna and not the one that had won first place at the county fair for three years in a row; that one took three days to make and Jude had no doubt that another of Mrs. Rizzoni's lasagnas would make an appearance tomorrow or Tuesday. Even though her "quick lasagna" was still delicious, it tasted bland to Jude and she had a hard time swallowing. Once she'd had enough of it to satisfy Dean--which was the entire piece and refusing to have a second--she quietly bid them goodnight. Tears didn't come after she'd turned off the light; it felt like she'd cried so much all of her tears had been wrung out like water from a sponge.
The wake began at two the next afternoon. Jude had tried to go into work at her usual time but the sheriff had sent her directly back home. Rachel showed up at noon to help clean and get everything ready, warming up casseroles that had been dropped off yesterday and setting out drinks, including plenty of alcohol. She was still determined not to give Dean a chance, but didn't seem adverse to flirting pretty openly with Sam. Jude asked her to stop but Rachel refused; it clearly amused Jude and was the closest she'd come to smiling all day.
human
Krystal sighed, hugging him a bit, just to keep herself stable. She couldn't explain it, but she knew something was up with Roreck. She didn't like the idea that Roreck may have something to do with all of this, but at the same time, she couldn't shake the feeling that he did. "You're right Cas. It was silly of me to think otherwise, even if can't shake this feeling I have." She admitted with a sigh, walking with him through the woods to the snowy winter court.
The winter court was explanatory mostly in name. While every part of the court was cover in fluffy white snow, there was a serene beauty to it. The chill in the air nipped at your nose, and the pretty queen, Donia, kept tge lightvin her domain all light pinks and purples, as if it were dusk. Krystal closed her eyes a moment, breathing in the crisp cool air as she rubbeded her shoulders. "Its so lovely here.." she commented, taking in another deep breath.
Dean crossed his arms as he watched her, showing his concern though remaining as stoic as possible. If he were to say anything more, he might break down. This whole situation was killing him, and he hoped it would benover soon. Once he was satisfied she had eaten, he gave her a light kiss and washed her playe quickly before getting ready for bed himself. When the light turned offbin her room, he stiod at herbdoor, letting out a soft sound. "Can I stay with you tonight, Jude?" He asked, somply wanting to snuggle her to quench his own selfishness to be near her.
The nextbday, Dean trued tobhelp Jude in any way he could. He grabbed extra chairs, her made her breakfast, he made her tea, just gennerally being sweet to her. Even if he knew no amount of sweetness would make her feel better. He just needed to take care of her. It was what he had always been good at. Taking care of people. whether it be a distraught victim or his own little brother sammy, taking care was what he did. He rolled his eyes at Rachel flirting with sam, but when he saw how it seemed to amuse Jude, he didn't comment. ifbit made her smile a little, he was all for it.
gpt
Of course Dean could stay with her. Almost every night for fifteen years she had imagined him laying with her, stroking her hair, holding her close. There would never come a day when Dean Winchester wasn't welcome in Jude's bed. It didn't matter the reasons for his wanting to be near her, she wanted to be near him. Sheneededhim and always would.
Sam was an observant type and noticed Dean rolling his eyes at Rachel's open flirting, but when his brother didn't say anything he figured it was for Jude's sake and played along. If he were honest, had the occasion not been so grim he probably would have flirted back anyway. Rachel was vibrant and pretty after all, and reminded him a little of Jess. The three of them conspired to sneakily make Jude eat throughout the wake in place of the proper lunch she hadn't touched: a cocktail weenie here, a small piece of casserole there, she could never say no to cupcakes or a slice of pie even if they were small. Rachel kept trying to feed her whiskey but every time Jude set the drink down Sam would grab it up and dilute it, drink it himself, or pour it out; she needed to be sober for what came next and could drink herself into oblivion later. Rachel pouted prettily whenever she caught him at it but he would have none of it. It was four by the time he realized that she might be slipping Jude drinks so thathewould drink it.
At 5:30 Jude announced that it was time and everyone--everyone including most of the congregation as well as friends and neighbors--trooped out to their cars and drove in a procession to the church. Father Morrin conducted the service and traditional hymns were sung as well as a fewnontraditionalsongs. In the graveyard next to the church, amongst the rest of his family, Reverend James and Shannon McKinnon were lowered into their final resting place. Jude sat silent and dry-eyed through all of it, watching her parents lowered into the ground with a detached feeling, as though it were a dream or those weren't really her parents in there, as though they were going to come over later and ask her how the funeral went. She squeezed Dean's hand tightly as she watched the dirt shoveled over their caskets. Rachel and Sam waited and the four of them were the last to leave, after the last of the dirt had been shoveled back into the grave.
"Want me to stay the night?" Rachel had heated up some of the leftover food for the four of them after the funeral, but Jude only picked at it.
"I'm fine Rach," Jude insisted with a weak smile.
"It wasn't an offer it was a threat. Eat something. Actually put the fork in your mouth Judith." Jude looked at her and put the empty fork into her mouth. "Ha ha ha. Now with actual food, before I force it down mama bird style."
It was a struggle for them both, Rachel looking pained at having to force her friend to eat and Jude looking like she was about to cry at being forced to eat when she wasn't even hungry. Rachel settled for half and ate the rest of Jude's; another way in which they were complete opposites. Jude in her grief starved herself while Rachel would eat anything in arm's reach regardless of whether or not she was hungry. It was late before Rachel left after they spent the evening reminiscing, looking at old pictures and watching home movies. Jude fell asleep watching their high school graduation and Rachel gently disentangled herself, laying an afghan over her before heading for the door.
"You take care of her Winchester, or I'll paint your balls red and green and use them for Christmas ornaments," she threatened Dean before turning a smile to Sam and winking. "See you later, Sam."
Castiel smiled at the way Krystal looked in the snow. The eternal twilight of the Winter Court was just as beautiful as the eternal summer afternoon of the Summer Court. He put an arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple gently. "Almost as beautiful as you," he said with a gentle smile. "Come on, we've got some investigating to do."
human
Dean let out a sound, climbing inyo bed with her and pulling her close. He kissed thevtop of her head gently. "Everything is going to be alright, Jude." He whispered softly, gently stroking down her arm. He hated that this happened, and even though he knew it wasn't really his fault, he took the guilt on anyway. He would avenge their deaths, even if it meant his own.
At the wake, Dean tried to ignore the fact that rachel flirted with his baby brother. Despite the fact that she hated his guts, she seemed like a lovely woman. Not that he didn't blame himself for leaving, but he hadn't wanted his baby brother to get any more mixed up in the hunting life than he had to be. Dean was the grunt, the one whose life meant nothing. Sammy and Jude however? They meant everything.
Dean kept a tight arm around Jude at the funeral, trying to offer some sort of comfort. He held his own pain of watching next to her in, needing to be strong for her. Jude is the love of his life, and he fully intended to make sure she never had to cry like this ever again. He knew he had a major penchant for dying, but he always came back. someone always brought him back, and he would try his damndest to make sure the last time he'd been killed to be the last time.
After the funeral and the 4 of them were back at the house, Dean was at Jude's other side, holding her close. He watched the movies in silence, already in his own world as he kissed her head, remembering when they were young. It was hard to remember now that he knew he would never see her parents again. He had hoped back then that if he left he'd be sparing her this pain, but once again, he was wrong. He hoped life would get better now, but he was skeptical.
Deans eyes widened at Rachel's comment as she leaves. "Message received loud and clear, Rachel."
Krystal smiled and pulled Castiel into a kiss before taking his hand and leading him toward the court entrance. "Yes, lets get down to business. I want this to be over so I can do some devious things to you my heart." she replied with a wide smirk and a wink. She looked ever like a devious winter court fae.
gpt
Castiel raised his eyebrows when she promised to do devious things to him. "Just make sure you can keep such promises and I'm sure everything will be fine," he teased gently.
Rachel grinned. "Good!" she said before turning on her heel and leaving for the night.
The next few days Jude mostly ran and moped then went for another run. Sam usually joined her for her runs, though nothing much was usually said; he'd wait for her to start. Dean wasn't really great with words and they both knew it and Jude would need someone to talk to who wasn't quite so invested. Still they would come in panting and sweaty with nothing having been said between them but a quiet comfort and understanding. After a week Jude began to pack.
"What do you mean you're leaving?" Rachel and Jude were in the middle of a screaming match that ranged all over the house as Jude went around putting things into boxes and Rachel followed behind taking them out again.
"I mean I can't stay here Rachel!" Jude shouted back. "There's too much I...I can't. I just can't." She sat and put her face in her hands.
"You're talking like you don't have anything left here, like your whole life isn't here. You've got friends, you've got the congregation, you've got me--"
"Oh for fuck's sake this isn't aboutyou!" she snapped, raising her head. "Maybe...maybe I'll come back I dunno, but I can't be here right now. I don'twantto be here."
"So you're just gonna go off with Dean fucking Winchester, he of the absolutely fuckingstellartrack record, and do whatever across the country?"
"Pretty much, yeah." Jude shrugged.
"If you call me because he's abandoned you in the middle of the cornfield I'm not coming to get you."
"What, so you're the only one allowed to make poor life choices?" She rubbed her face. "Look Rach...I dunno I just...You know how I feel about him. I don't want to lose him again and I don't have family here anymore. Everywhere I go there's memories and that just hurts too much right now."
There was more fighting but eventually Rachel relented, though she refused to help Jude pack. Some things were put into storage, others into boxes to be loaded into a moving truck. Jude knew that Dean would leave eventually and she intended to leave with him.
human
Krystal smirked at him. "Oh baby, you doubt my power? I'm gonna take you back to our hotel room and I'm gonna ravage you my heart. You'll never know what hit you." she replied, winking as she took his hand and atarted walking through court. The winter fae were more subtle in their showing of affections, so a simple kiss or hold of hand was enough to show here. She was playkng her role perfectly. None were the wiser she was actually the murder queen in disguise
Dean watched the woman leave with a small smile. "You know what sammy? She may hate my guts but I like Rachel. she's got balls" he muttered thoughtfully, picking Jude up and bringing her to bed. He set her down gently, stripping down to his boxers before climbing in next to her and pulling the covers over them. He kissed her head. "May your dreams give you comfort my love." He whispered as a silent prayer to any angel listening, snuggling into her. Yes, it was bordering on a chick flick moment, but the man didn't care. Jude made him want to have this moments
Dean watched the exchange between the two women with interest, though there was slight guilt in his fanfiction green eyes. He didn't want to tear her away from someone he knew she loved and who loved her, but he also knew that being in this town was slowly killing her. He hoped that they could wrap up this case quickly and head back home to the bunker, where he could help her heal from the pain he knew she was experiencing, maybe marry her, maybe have a child. The apple pie kind of life had never been what Dean had though he deserved, but for her, he'd sure as hell try. She meant more to him than his own life, maybe even more than Sammy did.
gpt
Jude didn't want to wait for the case to be finished. God knew how long it would take for it to be finished, and locals didn't know anything that was for certain. She wanted to leavenow,to stop seeing all the places she'd gone with her parents, all the memories they had. Rachel took over her house, convinced she'd return in a few months or so, and the sheriff accepted her resignation with a look of sorrow. Two weeks after the deaths of her parents, Jude left the only home she ever knew for a place where the only known factor was Dean. The moving truck followed the Impala across the country to what seemed to be just a field in the middle of nowhere Kansas. She raised her eyebrows when they opened up the bunker's front door for her, then showed her where she could pull the truck around. Eventually the truck was unpacked and a good portion of her things--furniture and whatnot--was put into storage for now.
"So um...some bunker you've got here," she commented, standing in the atrium and looking around. She rocked back and forth from heel to toe. "It's actually a lot nicer than what I pictured when you said 'bunker.' But assuming that field out there is No Man's Land I think I'm gonna start building. I need the sun." She smiled ruefully.
And for the next six months that was exactly what Jude did. There was no time to grieve, no time to feel pain, when she was hauling bales of hay, stacking them, plastering them, installing plumbing and electrical work with some help from the internet, a few volunteers from the nearest town paid in pizza, and more than a few Three Little Pigs jokes. When all was said and done the straw house was aclusterof circles backed up against a copse of trees in the field with a roof made of living plants where Jude had somehow already started an herb garden. Thehouseitself had two guest rooms and an office upstairs which housed a pull-out in case for some reason two guest rooms weren't enough. Beneath the reclaimed wood floors, however, were painted devil's traps spanning most of the square footage of each room though there was a plank in each room she could lift to scratch out the warding if need be. She couldn't think of a reason there would ever be a need. Wood over each threshold and at each windowsill was infused with salt as well, though whether that would work as well as pouring salt in the same places. All in all it was sunny, purportedly eco-friendly, and very Jude. While the house was being built she'd also somehow found time to start a garden which was now giving up its abundance of summer fruits and vegetables and she only ever needed to go to the store for animal products, frequently bringing the boys food made from her garden. After losing a dangerous amount of weight over the span of two months she'd finally started eating regularly again--if nothing else because she couldn't build her home and not be starving--and was finally starting to look less drawn.
"Finally sleeping in the house for the first time tonight," Jude said cheerfully as she set lunch in front of Sam and Dean while they researched...she didn't know what. She hadn't really kept up with their cases lately. "It's been demon-proofed and everything. You boys are both welcome to stay, though if you're more comfortable in the bunker I get it." She still couldn't believe she was saying things like 'demon-proofed' in all seriousness.
Sam glanced at Dean while reaching for his lunch. "Umm thanks Jude, but I think I'll let you two break it in first." He smiled briefly before tucking in and turning back to the books. Six months and they still were no closer to finding who had murdered the McKinnons. They'd had other cases on the side, of course, but Dean had become obsessed with finding the fae who had killed Jude's parents.
human
Two weeks passed and Dean was no closer to finding the McKinnon's killer. Usually Sam and he could wrap up a Case in a week tops, but this one was still driving at him. He knew he had to get Jude out of there though, so he packed up the impala and brought her back to the bunker. Hopefully now that shevwas no longer in new hampshire she'd feel better.
"It's home for us, Jude. Be your home too as long as you want." He promised, kissing her head softly, not so self concious being in his own space with just jis brother around. He sent a short prayer to Cas, telling the angel that they were back at the bunker and Jude was with them too. He chuckled a little. "Of course Jude. Anything you want." he added, giving her a quick tour.
6 months later had Jude's little house done, and he couldn't be more proud of her. He sometimes couldn't even believe that she chose him to love. He couldn't believe that anyone vould love him as much as she did. He grinned at her. "yeah, first night! I'd love to help christen his house." there was a slight wiggle of his eyebrows, though his smirk gave way to say that he was mostly joking about sex in the new house. Only if she wanted to.
Krystal looked up from her book of wards, improving and strengthening the ones on her most private spell book. She wasn't taking anymore chances on anyone getting a hold of that spell and wreaking more havok. She sighed, wondering what Castiel was doing. She hadn't seen him in awhile. She set herbook down, walking down to the kitchen of her penthouse, hoping for a large raspberry pure leaf and perhaps to run into her love.
The two of them had been checking around the Fae courts for the past 6 months, but she still wasn't any closer to finding out who had been murdering those mortals. She grsbbed a tea from the refrigerator. "Cassie, I'm feeling very discouraged. I want justice!" she exclaimed, knowing that if the angel was anywhere around, he'd hear her.
gpt
"I know you do, Krystal." Castiel appeared behind her, looking disheartened himself. He had been pulling all of the connections he had left, had even managed to interrogate Crowley, but still nothing. He sighed and put his hands on her shoulders. "Have heart," he said softly, trying to sound encouraging. "The truth will come out eventually, we just need to keep working at it and helping the Winchesters where we can."
Jude rolled her eyes but smiled when Dean joked about "christening" the house. She hadwantedto, but for the first few months she'd been here she'd been too depressed to do much apart from throwing herself into her work. Once she'd started doing that, she would most of the time take a shower then collapse into bed next to Dean, exhausted. She was still tired and sore from the past few days of putting the finishing touches on the house and keeping the garden going. Sex would be nice...but would she be up for it?
"Seriously Sam, you're welcome to stay," she said. "Straw bales are very thick and provide great sound insulation."
Sam only smiled and shook his head. "I'm good. I can hold down the fort here; you two go on." He knew his brother would be wanting "alone time" with Jude, with or without sex. The bunker was huge, but with most of their time spent in the common areas his tiny room with his tiny bed had really been their best shot at privacy. It still beat a motel room at least. Jude gave him a small smile before taking Dean's hand.
"C'mon."
The inside of the house fairly reeked of Jude, though she'd held back in places she thought Dean might consider too "girly." Although the curtains were bright and thebedwas clearly of her choosing, instead of painting the walls in bright colors she kept them their natural color in deference to Dean's more subdued sense of taste. Over thefireplaceand in thebedroomwere places where Jude had sculpted with clay and cobb, and in the naturally-coloredbathroomsaturated with natural light was a deep clawfoottub.Theliving room,kitchen, anddining roomall let in an abundance of natural light also, making the large, luxurious bunker seem like an enormous underground cell. Jude could have never done well there, not when it was apparent that all of this sunlight was how she thrived. From the kitchen and dining room there was a view of thegardenwhich had grown seemingly unnaturally quickly and was flourishing under Jude's attention. After giving him the grand tour Jude sat on the couch she'd brought from New Hampshire, one of several articles of furniture which would be familiar to Dean in this unfamiliar setting. It was a comfort, even if it was her first time sitting on it in this new house.
"Well," she said tentatively. "This is it. What do you think?"