Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/4846742.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Major_Character_Death, Underage
  Category:
      F/M
  Fandom:
      Supernatural
  Relationship:
      Dean_Winchester_&_Original_Female_Character(s)
  Character:
      Original_Female_Character(s), Endverse_Dean_Winchester, Endverse_Castiel,
      Endverse_Chuck_Shurley, Endverse_Sam_Winchester
  Additional Tags:
      Alternate_Universe_-_Croatoan/Endverse, Suicide, Suicidal_Thoughts,
      Suicide_Attempt, Depression, Confusion, Scary_Dean_Winchester, Underage
      Sex, Drug_Use, Eventual_Smut, Eventual_Relationships, Slow_Burn, Slow
      Build, Child_Abuse, Implied/Referenced_Child_Abuse, Triggers, Self-
      Hatred, Mild_S&M, Dom/sub, Death, Dean_is_Bad_at_Feelings, Dean_is_a
      Tease, Bad_Jokes, Self-Esteem_Issues, Protective_Dean_Winchester, Hurt
      Sam, Scars, Attempted_Sexual_Assault, Obsessive_Behavior, Fantasizing,
      Mental_Instability, Goddesses, Sirens, Banshee_Powers, Please_Don't_Hate
      Me, Dean_is_a_Softie, Dark_Dean_Winchester, Internal_Conflict, Angel
      Powers, End_of_the_World, Dean_Hates_Himself, Minor_Original_Character
      (s), Loss_of_Virginity
  Series:
      Part 2 of Gods_&_Goddesses_the_Winchester_Way
  Stats:
      Published: 2015-09-21 Updated: 2016-05-25 Chapters: 6/? Words: 13990
****** Out Of Breath ******
by FloodFeSTeR
Summary
     Piper prayed every night that she could escape, that she could -
     somehow - end up in the world of Supernatural. One night, when her
     mother goes too far, she gets her wish. But its not the place she
     wanted to end up. She didn't want to end up with a cold, hard version
     of Dean, a withered version of Castiel and a possessed Sam.
Notes
     This story is posted under the same name by SheChanges, but she isn't
     the co-author on this one yet; she doesn't have an account.
     I hope you all enjoy this story, its very long and violent, dealing
     graphic abuse: Childhood, sexual and other types. So you've been
     warned.
***** Chapter 1 *****
"OPEN THIS FUCKING DOOR RIGHT NOW!!"
"Go away, please, please, please just go away!"
 "YOU UNGRATEFUL LITTLE BITCH!! OPEN THIS GOD DAMN DOOR!"
Piper lets out a shrill scream, gripping her hair tight to her scalp, just
above her ears. The roots send sharp pains through her scalp and several
strands snap but she just tightens her fingers. Her legs are pulled up under
her, torso bent forward until her hair is hanging off the edge of the bed and
her sobbing is muffled into the sheets. The lab sat patiently at her feet, dark
eyes wide on his owner in concern, ears twitching in all kinds of directions.
Between the screaming from her and her mother, he couldn't tell how to comfort
his master.
"I WANT YOU OUT OF MY FUCKING HOUSE!! PACK YOUR SHIT AND GO!"
Piper let out another sob and threw her head back, tears making her vision
blurry as she stared at the popcorn ceiling. She let her hands drop to her lap,
chest trembling with a sob she withheld, only shown by the shuddering breaths
coming between her teeth. She can't breathe, can't think with the pounding at
the door; the stench of pot and cigarettes comes from under the door. The room
is a mild mess from her own fit, trying to work out this anger so she could
just ignore the madness outside the door.
Everything had been fine, she'd been curled up in her bed, talking to a friend
- hoping more than that - over the phone and then the front door had slammed
hard enough to shake the water of her fish tank. Then the screaming started,
about how she had lost a movie she had never even known they owned. One thing
after another, happened at least once a month when her mother would fly off the
handle - and, of course, as a teenager she had to pop off at the mouth and get
more shit started. But damn did it feel good to let it all out, give her mother
a piece of her mind. But tonight was too much, it was just too much.
The night had provided a solution she had dared before - the shotgun. Her
mother had been supposed to stay with her boyfriend but had come home early.
But the gun was still in Piper's room, there behind the door and so tempting;
the gun was supposed to be for protection against intruders.
She convulsed and got a nervous feeling in her gut when the door shuddered -she
was trying to get into the room.
Fear struck Piper's muscles, had her lurch for the gun and then scramble back
to her bed, back against the wall as she held the gun barrel-up between her
legs. There was cursing from her mother, pleas to stop from her handicapped
aunt but Piper was focused on the barrel she was tilting towards her face. Her
hands shook around the heavy stock, her shoulders jerking at the sharp thump of
the door frame.
She'd thought about it, of course, killing herself, but she had always just
told herself the thought was nothing but just a fantasy; she had too much work
to do.
But the trigger felt good in her hand.
Piper trembled and cried, slowly hanging her head as she worked the barrel
between her fingers. Ungrateful, cunt, brat and other obscenities were coming
through the door, the sound of something break and then there's the sound of a
knife working on the locked knob.
Her heart picks up its pace and she rapidly blinks, needing the tears free so
she can focus with the few precious seconds she had.
You have to do it.
You have to.
You know what happens when that door opens.
 
Physical.
It'll get physical and more violent and Piper just can't anymore. She still has
a busted lip from trying to shut the door when she came at her with a belt;
even boasted she had given her daughter a busted lip because Piper should have
just opened the door.
Piper licked her lips and small sobs continued to hiccup between her teeth as
she secured her lips around the end of the barrel. The last thing she saw was
her mother busting into the room, wild eyed and then actually scared.
But Piper had already pulled her trigger.
***** Chapter 2 *****
He didn't like taking Castiel with him on runs, not lately anyway. It was
always one thing after another, whether he just wasn't paying attention to what
was going on or he just didn't give a shit; they'd lost three men this week
because of him. Dean was pretty sure Castiel wanted to die, he had it written
all over his face but Dean didn't really understand why. Usually, when Dean was
still raring to go, Castiel was jumping at the chance to fight beside him but
now. . .
The Earth shook beneath their feet and Dean whipped his head up, seeing a
violent crack of lighting come down and strike a flag pole tittering in the
wind a few blocks ahead of them. The clouds were sudden and rolling, agitated
and far with lightning rumbling around their creases. Murmurs started amongst
the group of four, Dean looking at Castiel through a side glance but he didn't
speak directly to him. The ground shook again, the pole being struck a second
time and intuition bloomed in the back of Dean's mind; angels?
"What the Hell," Dean murmured, clenching his gun tight in his hand.
Wind had begun to pick up and Dean was reminded of a time, not too long ago
actually, that an angel had appeared in front of him with the same display.
Weather changes, cracks of lightning, violent winds and that annoying ringing
in his ear. Dean took a step back, subconsciously moving himself closer to Cas
as his hands raised the rifle in his arms. Dean huffed but jerked his chin at
the others, a silent signal to hold their ground; nothing had reared its head
yet, this was just an odd run was all.
"An angel has fallen," Castiel murmured, ever narrowed eyes moving to slits on
the flagpole in the distance. "I. . .I think. . ."
Dean snorted and shifted his weight. "What the Hell would one of them be doing
crashing here," of course, he wasn't denying the similarities of the
occurrence.
Castiel shook his head and started walking, eyes cautious on his surroundings.
Dean snorted but jerked his chin at the others to follow. They seemed just as
skeptical as him, but if Dean said jump, they asked how high. Even if Castiel
was the one leading in this case. Dean had already proven time and time again
that he was leader and plenty supported him, very few argued. He'd saved the
group plenty of times, even though they all vocalized how protestant they were
to his harsh treatment. But there was more than one reason to fear Dean, he
just didn't make the affliction public.
Dean's eyes swept around the overgrown garden the lightning had led them too,
seeing roses and lilies wilting in growth from mistreatment. The group leeched
out but not far, guns raised and eyes vigilant as Dean trekked deeper with
Castiel, who was breathing harder. Dean arched an eyebrow at his former best
friends back; he never got worked up anymore, this must actually be something.
"Dean," Cas' gruff voice came from somewhere ahead of him.
Dean blinked a few times and realized he had stopped walking. He adjusted his
rifle in his hands and stepped cautiously towards the spot Castiel had stopped
on the cracked sidewalk. He was peering into the bushes to Dean's left and then
Dean's eyes followed, eyes widening when he saw the small girl in the bushes.
She was small, obviously, but he could tell she wasn't much younger than
fifteen at the least; stunted growth. Her hair was dark, maybe brown but he
could mistake it for a deep red. The back of her head was matted with what he
knew was blood on instinct and there was a shotgun clenched in bruised fingers.
Her puffy lips were ringed with blood and she was wearing a short nightdress,
no shoes.
"Shit," Dean murmured as he slipped his rifle onto his back. He stepped over
the short bushes and crouched down beside her, sticking two fingers to her
pulse, sighing in relief when he found one. "She's alive," he looked up at Cas.
"Think she's an angel?"
Cas stared down at the girl, eyes following as Dean hefted her up gently into
his arms; he gave the shotgun to Castiel, who ran his eyes over fresh,
intricate engraving in the stock and metal.
"She is not an angel," Castiel looked up from under his brow. "But she is
different. . .we bring her back to camp immediately."
"Cas, we have a run to make," kind of hard to argue when he had an unconscious,
bloody girl in his arms.
"We take her back, then we finish the run. Chuck can watch over her until we
return."
Dean sighed, wanting to rub the bridge of his nose. "Fine," he gave him the
best bitch face he could manage. "We take her back, but I want you to stay with
her."
Cas furrowed his brow, opening his mouth to speak but Dean was already walking
away, barking orders at the group. Time to protest? Of course Dean wouldn't
give him any, he would just leave the confused angel lingering behind him while
the others crowded, questioned what was going on.
"What's going on," what was his name again? Randy? Phil? Some fucking shit.
"Where the Hell did she come from?"
"Don't worry about it," Dean snapped, adjusting the girl as she groaned. "We're
headed back to camp, but we leave again in twenty once we get there. We need to
restock on ammo anyway."
The man -- Randy felt right -- groaned. "Man, that's what we came out here for
in the first place!"
Dean narrowed his eyes further. "Want a repeat of last time, huh," his voice
was low, deadly. "I could whip your ass with her in my arms, wanna test it?"
There was a deep inhale, eyes flickering up and down Dean, who towered over the
man by at least a foot and a half; sizing him up. Dean snorted and started
walking back to the cars, laying the girl down in the back seat of his Jeep;
she didn't stir. He looked sideways at Cas, who sat in the passenger seat,
stone faced and eyes forward even when Dean slammed the drivers side door.
"I don't know what the fuck your problem is," Dean started, getting only a side
glance from Cas. "But it better be fixed by the time I get back."
===============================================================================

She woke up.
She couldn't think something like she woke up with a massive headache or she
woke up in a great deal of painbecause she was still stuck on the fact that she
had woken up.
Piper blinked slowly from her place on her side, coming face-to-face with an
unused fireplace. Her eyes flickered around, finding mute familiarity with the
wooden walls towering over her. Yes, her body aches and yes she had a massive
headache but she sat up on shaky arms, wet hair (?) falling into her face as
she looked around. There were duffel bags and a pool table-turned-conference-
table in the center of the room, maps laid out and gun parts on top of them.
There were stairs nearby and she wanted to know where they led but the question
still lingered: why was she alive?
There was no doubt in her mind that she was still alive, she just didn't
understand how she knew that but she was trying to suppress a panic attack so
thinking it over and over and over and -what the Hell was that noise?
Piper ducked her head when she heard a fridge open -- the rattle of the shelves
giving it away -- and peered into what was supposed to be the kitchen. There
was a man leaning into the fridge, scars highlighted along a fluid back even
with his silhouette; for some reason, the sight of him soothed her. It was that
sense of familiarity again, like she had seen that back on a regular occasion
but that didn't make sense. The man grunted and plucked up half a bottle of
cold whiskey, shutting the door and tilting his head back to take a heady swig
when he turned around to her.
He had an anti-possession tattoo on his chest.
Piper's breath hitches and he notices on point, piercing green eyes finding her
and she squeaks out his name before she can stop herself.
"Dean."
He takes instant defense, slamming the bottle down on the counter and stalking
towards her. Everything thumps: Her heart, the floorboards. Piper scrambles
back, screaming as she slips off the cot and hits the floor, pain making her
seize. She looks up in fear of Dean -- she knows its him, she just does -- and
he hovers over her, panting before he reaches down for her. A knee slams up
against the apex of her thighs, strong hands gripping her upper arms as he
roughly slammed her back against the floor. Hair ruffled around her and she
couldn't help but inhale his musk, her heart fluttering for more than one
reason. Despite the fear, despite the confusion, Piper was beneath the Dean
Winchester.
A position she had always dreamed of being in.
"How the Hell do you know my name," he growled, spittle dotting the tip of her
nose.
Piper whimpered and squirmed beneath him. "If I tell you," she arched her back
beneath him. "You won't believe me!"
He chuckled darkly in his throat and she could swear his eyes turned black for
a minute. "I've seen far more things than you can imagine, dream of, shit you
wouldn't believe," he peered up from under his brow. "So -- try me."
Piper swallowed, bucking up against him. "I-I'm from a different reality I
guess," she stuttered over the words. "You're just a character! You're name is
Jensen Ackles, Dean is just a character!"
His eyes popped wide but only for a split second, then they narrowed again; he
seemed to believe her a little but it wasn't enough. "What kind of sick fucking
trick is this?!"
Piper shook her head fiercely. "Not the French Mistake! I swear to you Dean,
please I'm nothing! I just - "
"You know my fucking name," Dean snarled. "You appeared after someone on our
team swore an angel fell in lightning -- who are you?!"
"I'm a dead girl," she wailed beneath him. "I blew my fucking brains out last
night! I blew my brains out and my last thought was that maybe my Heaven will
be a part of your life! But I didn't want the pissed off, hard fucking version
of you! Its 2014, right? Sam's gone? Lucifer is in his body?"
Dean was completely frozen above her, his fingers so tight around her arms that
she could feel the blood stopping in some places. She was going numb, she ached
and she was so fucking scared right now. She'd always wanted to be in
Supernatural, begged God every night to just bring her there, even for a day
but she didn't want to be here in the Endverse. She didn't want to be pinned
beneath an empty man with a stick up his ass, a version that actually hurt to
see -
"The angels sent you to fuck with me," Dean breathed. "To submit to Michael at
last," he shook his head fiercely. "Well, you can go ahead and tell them
fucking no for the millionth time."
Piper yelped yet again when he pushed off of her, making her feel so incredibly
small; he really was a big man. And half naked. And totally beautiful. And
completely effing pissed.
"I don't know what else to say," she whispered softly. "I swear to you, I'm not
associated with any angels. Or demons. Or anything else - my name is Piper, I'm
from Wiggins, Mississippi and I shot myself with my grandfathers shotgun when
my mother was trying to attack me for the hundredth time," she wiggled until
she was propped up on her elbows. "Dean, I don't know what I can do to convince
you that I'm anything but a dead girl."
Dean stared down at Piper for a long time, broad chest heaving and fingers
flexing at his sides. She was scared, reasonably so and she stayed where she
was. Piper, like so many people, had wanted to meet Dean Winchester, be in
Supernatural. . .
And here she was, with a pissed off Dean and a twisted version of a world she
thought beautiful.
"You're gonna go to Cas in the morning," he snapped. "But, tonight, you're
gonna be handcuffed to the rail of my bed until then so I can keep an eye on
you."
Piper almost protested, but he snatched her up before she had the chance. She
was nothing in his hands, light as a feather. She winced at the handful of
splinters she knew were plucking at her tender soles, squeaking and grabbing
onto his bare back to keep her balance up the stairs. Dean growled at her but
Piper didn't let him go, he got the hint and grumbled his way with her in tow.
"Sleep," he pulled out the handcuffs from a bedside table. "Don't sleep," he
shrugged as he pushed her down onto a pillow he tossed beneath her. "Doesn't
matter to me," she flinched as the handcuffs bit closed around her wrist. "Just
don't fucking cry."
She had no reason, she was too confused.
"Okay," she murmured meekly.
Dean paused and then snorted, clicking off the soft amber light beside his bed.
The bed squeaked and swayed slightly as he must have just thrown himself down.
Piper curled her legs up beneath her, deciding this was much better than being
home with her mother. Sure she was handcuffed to a bed, and very confused, and
should be dead, but she would take this over listening to her mother scream at
her any day.
===============================================================================
"What did you do?!"
There was so much blood, so much of it, and other things she didn't want to
imagine, acknowledge because oh my God her baby --
She held the limp, cold body close to her chest and wailed, stroking back hair
from a hole that her fingers trembled around. The dog whimpered and shuffled
around the end of the bed, barking when lights began to fill the room,
poundings on the door; the older woman shuffled towards it, crying , begging
for help.
"Wh-What did I do," she whimpered, looking down at Piper's body, holding her
close, afraid to let her go. "What did I do?!?!"
"Oh," the first paramedic stopped, the second did not, moving to pry the woman
from her child. "Ma'am, ma'am we're going to need you to let her go and step
back. We need room."
"What did I do," she screamed, bloody fingers grasping at air as they secured
Piper to the gurney. "What the fuck did I do?!"
***** Chapter 3 *****
Its over there not being enough meatballs in the supper.
Piper was twelve, had spent the past hour and a half cooking because her mom
had been at work all day. Things had been going good, so she figured she could
sweeten it some more and make a good supper for her mother. Its a box meal that
comes with a can of soup and seasoning, a meal she can't really control the
contents of because that's just how it comes.
But her mother is still screaming at her.
Its hard to get friction on the floor, but Piper manages before the plate can
slam into her head. Instead, it swoops further and shatters against the kitchen
cabinet. Piper screams when her mother starts towards her, slinging insults in
that high pitched voice; how big of a pig she was, how she was ungrateful.
Piper slams her bedroom door shut and her mother doesn't follow, just continues
to berate her as she stomps around the living room. Piper grabs her phone and
headphones from the bed, sliding into the space between the foot of her bed and
television before she smiles at the familiar faces that light up on her phones
screen.
Sam. Dean.
They always calmed her when nights like this came along, her attention mostly
focused on Dean. She studied him, smiled like a giggly schoolgirl even though
Dean was just a character. But she felt safe, with just his image to comfort
her. Maybe it was manic, a little crazy, but she didn't care; whatever it took.
She chuckled softly at their childish snipping at each other, but her face
ironed out into a smooth slate, like usual when she watched Supernatural. She
was never one for praying or wishing, but she had to pray to Castiel, Dean, Sam
or even Lucifer to take her away, bring her to their world. Even for a day. .
.anywhere would be better than here.
Better than this place, this home.
 
===============================================================================
Piper is startled awake by the sound of a door slamming closed, her immediate
reaction is to panic when she finds herself cuffed to the bed rail. She jerks
on the cuff, only able to see the shine of the curved steel thanks to the
moonlight coming through the curtains across the room. She whimpers and inhales
a sharp breath when a firm hand wraps around her mouth, pulling her back
against a strong chest.
"Shut up," it was Dean, but Piper still struggled a little. "Fucking sit
still," her eyes widened when she saw the glint of a handgun stretch out in
front of her.
She did as he said then, curling up, wanting to bury herself in him but he slid
out from his place behind her. She bit her lip and then began to breathe
shallowly, watching him stalk through the dark towards the stairs. He kept back
from the opening, keeping against the wall and keeping into the shadows. There
were soft pats downstairs, the sound of the refrigerator opening and Dean
looked over at her. He held a finger over his mouth to be quiet and Piper
lurched forward when he started down the stairs. He was leaving her alone? What
if something -
Piper shook her head and relaxed against the pillow, but her heart was still
thrumming like a hummingbirds wings. He was Dean-Freaking-Winchester, he got
this. He could handle it, whatever it was; if he could fight Lucifer and win,
he could do it. But he didn't know how capable he was, how much shit he would
go through. . .
Her mind was filling silence.
She didn't even hear the sound of a struggle, but light shot up from the stairs
and Piper waited with bated breath. She heard muffled voices and could tell
Dean's rumbling voice from the other; the other was gruff, but not
intimidating, soothing. Piper was getting impatient, her stomach doing flips as
she fidgeted; she held the cuffs firm so they didn't rattle. She jumped when
there were loud, pounding steps on the stairs and then there was light. An oil
lamp by the bed lit and Piper saw Dean, shaking his head with the gun in his
hand. He looked down at Piper, his face a mixture of annoyed, calm and
indecisive.
"I'm gonna uncuff you," he opened the bedside tables drawer, producing the cuff
key. "And you're not suddenly gonna sprout all these new powers, right?"
Piper shook her head fiercely as he crouches beside her. "No," her words were
mumbled.
She rubbed her wrists, blinking slowly as he helped her to her feet. Her rear
hurt from where she had fallen and her head was beginning to ache, but
otherwise she was intact. Dean watched her reach back and rub a gentle circle
on the back of her head, arching an eyebrow when she furrowed her brow in
confusion. She looked up at him and flushed when she saw he was staring at her,
shuffling behind him though he didn't speak.
There was a man facing the table downstairs, back to she and Dean. His fingers
were picking at the maps spread out on the table, his head perking up when Dean
rudely swept off to the side, reaching the fridge for the whiskey he had tried
to get earlier. Piper could see the sky beginning to lighten outside the
windows now, wondering just how early it was. She felt so incredibly awkward,
she didn't know what to do, what to say. . .
"Castiel," she murmured, taking a small, subconscious step towards the angel.
He smiled softly at her, just as much wonder in his eyes as she was sure were
in hers. "Piper," he murmured. "This must seem like quite the shock, hmm?"
Piper let out a hysterical bubble of laughter. "A little bit," she hesitated,
looking over at Dean. "One minute I'm in my bed. . .with my grandfathers
shotgun and. . ." She shrugged, looking at Castiel. "And then I'm here," she
paused. "This isn't supposed to be real. I mean, wherever I come from. .
.you're possibly one of the most insane, hilarious actors I've ever seen
before."
He arched an eyebrow and Dean snorted. "Yeah, my reaction exactly. . ."
"You are definitely something special," Castiel continued to stare at Piper.
"The angels know about you," her breath hitches and Dean pushes off the
counter. "They know what happened to you and they want you home."
"Wait what," she shook her head. "N-No, no, no, no," she waved her hands in
front of herself and backed into the wall. "What do you mean they want me home?
They don't want to send me back to my mother, do they? Please - please," her
voice died at the end, her head spinning.
Castiel gave her a sympathetic look but Dean grumbled, stomping towards Piper
and grabbing her before she fell. She craned her neck to look up at him, her
fingers squeezing his bicep, her head shaking when she squeezed her eyes shut.
They couldn't do that to her, they couldn't send her back to her mother! She
would do it all over again, be sucked back into being afraid every day of her
life, fearing arguments that sprouted from nowhere, fearing every living moment
--
"Your body is dying," Castiel murmured. "Something drug you here, to this plane
from somewhere we are not sure. You are not supposed to be here though, you are
an anomaly and they want to send you back."
"I'm an asshole, but you see her right," Dean shook Piper a little for
emphasis.
"Yes, Dean," Castiel's voice dropped. "I see her and I know the circumstances
but --"
"No!" Piper wailed, causing Castiel to flinch; his eyes seemed to see something
she didn't when she looked up at him, but she didn't register the look of
shock. "No! No you can't do that! You can't send me back to her, you just
can't! She'll kill me! Please, please don't send me back to her!"
"I have no control -"
"Cas," Dean barked, cutting off Piper's wailing and Cas' defense. "Just shut
up, okay? Take her to Chuck, get her set up somewhere and we'll figure this out
in a couple of hours. Come back here when you're done. . .I need to talk to
you."
Castiel's eyes flickered above Piper's head and she sputtered when Dean pushed
her towards the angel, her breath ceasing when she felt the way Castiel
vibrated under her touch. He didn't even look like he was moving, even with her
twitching in his arms; she looked back at Dean, seeing a slightly disturbed,
dark look on his face. Castiel sighed and wrung Piper away from him a little,
but kept an arm around her, leading her towards the door. She squeaked and
craned her neck back to Dean again, fear in her eyes when she saw him watching
her.
===============================================================================
"This will be your hut, enjoy the solitude."
Piper wrung her hands nervously in front of her as she trailed behind Chuck,
eyes darting around the close ceiling and walls. Not as big as Dean's, but
pretty close, with minimal moldy furniture and stairs leading up to what she
assumed was a bed. The place smelt of whiskey, meaning she wasn't getting a
cabin that hadn't had a previous owner. The kitchen was empty, save for a
pathetic little fridge that hummed when she had helped Chuck hook up the
generator; ran on some kind of oil, for which the idea Chuck was the proud
owner of.
He was shocked to hear she wasn't from this world, wasn't some scraggler they
had picked up on a run. She hadn't told him much about what she knew, just told
him that she had never laughed so hard at anything other than the covers to his
books. He had been flustered and blushed, saying he was glad that the
apocalypse had happened in a way; those books needed to die.
"So, that's the tour," he smiled widely at Piper, who jumped; she had been
staring at him. "If you need anything, find me, Cas or Dean. You'll get to know
some of the people around here soon enough that you won't be so dependant on
the three of us."
"And I'm definitely gonna be a little dependant," Piper sighed, licking her
lips. "I feel so. . .unnatural here."
Chuck shook his head, his smile infectious as Piper felt the corners of her
mouth twitching. "Don't we all," he chuckled in time with Piper. "Don't be a
stranger, my cabin is next to Dean's. You know where to find Cas. . ."
Piper nodded and tucked her hands into her pockets. "Thanks, Chuck," she
paused. "You know, for not freaking out and stuff."
He chuckled again and pat her shoulder as he walked towards the door. "I've
experienced stranger things, kid," he winked at her, which made her lips curve
even more. "Get some rest, I'm sure Dean will be over here as soon as possible.
Or he'll send for you."
Piper nodded, waving at Chuck until the door clicked shut. She waited a moment
before she sighed and looked around, licking her lips as she started upstairs.
There was the bed she was expecting, a shower that worked when she tried it,
though the water smelt like sulfur and was cold. She stepped slowly out into
the middle of the bedroom, slapping her hands softly on her thighs; her stomach
was full of butterflies. Her head jerked up at the sound of knocking on the
door, hurrying downstairs to the front door.
There was a twinge of giggle in her throat, a sense of satisfaction, when her
jumpy hand jerked open that front door and she saw she had managed to surprise
Dean Winchester. His eyes were slightly wide and his hand was raised to knock
again, but he lowered it with a quick cough to clear his throat and he held out
his hand. Piper's eyebrows shot into her hair at the clear plastic bundle he
held out to her, taking it slowly.
"What uh. . ." She looked up at him.
He gestured to it, face receding to gruff and annoyed. "Clothes," was all he
said.
"Oh," it came out squeakier than she intended and he actually chuckled. "Thank
you," she bobbed her head. "You didn't have to. . ."
He shrugged. "We didn't get to go on a thorough run yesterday. . .anyone
available is busy," he waved a hand. "It was on my way."
Piper smiled softly at him. "Then thank you again," there's those butterflies
again, her eyes flicker around his face. "You know, Dean," he perked up a
little. "It gets better."
He stared at her blankly for a long time, looking like he wanted to ask her
something. "I'm guessing you can't tell me anything."
Piper shook her head. "Just like in anything else you've seen where you go to
the past or the future. . .same principals apply," she paused, disappointment
rising on his face. "Trust me, I want to tell you everything. . .help you make
better choices. But that really wouldn't change the course of the Endverse."
His brow furrowed. "Endverse?"
Piper peeked out the door. "Judging by the way things look around here," her
mouth went a little dry when she saw the very man Dean would shoot soon; would
it be this run? "Something's coming," she pulled back. "This is the Endverse,
end of the world and all that. But things change. I can't say anything, I don't
want to mess the line up too much. Me being here. . .its already a mess."
He sighed, in both disappointment and annoyance. "I get it," he raised a hand
and lowered it. "I just. . .was thinking maybe there's something you knew that
could. . ."
"I can't get Sam back," his eyes darkened a little. "There's nothing I can do.
I've seen how this ends and you do your thing," he arched an eyebrow. "Kicking
ass, if you wanted me to clarify."
And she stops breathing at the sight of the broad smile he gives her. It
highlights the crinkles in his face and lights up his dim eyes, but only for a
moment, then its just a plain grin. Well, plain to anyone, it means the world
to Piper. She blushes and looks down, hearing him chuckle and it makes her feel
even more queasy. Even through a screen, he made her feel so damn ridiculous
with overly laughing at his everything. Now, in real life - or whatever this
was supposed to be - she felt those emotions and reactions ten fold.
"Damn, I haven't seen a blush in awhile," Piper looked up sideways through her
soft auburn curls. "All the women around here are as soft as a cactus. They
don't get flustered anymore," she sputtered for a minute. "Calm down, kid. Its
cute."
She smiled, it was lopsided and hesitant; unused. "Ya know. . .you're supposed
to be all mean and ruthless here."
He winked. "And whose to say I'm not?"
Her smile faltered but her stomach erupted again, her lips opening to speak but
he was gone, someone calling his name. He looked back at her from a distance,
this strange look to him that had Piper very confused and reeling. One minute
he's violent, then he's charming Dean Winchester, then he's hinting at. . .
"Suddenly a lot of fan theories make sense," she murmured with slight dread in
her stomach, shutting the door with a soft click.
Piper sighed as she walked up the stairs again, setting the wrapped clothes at
the foot of the bed before flopping on top of the sheets herself. She sighed as
several aching muscles in her body uncoiled and stretched, stinging and pulling
a yawn from her lips. She hadn't slept good cuffed to the bed earlier, so a
little nap couldn't hurt. If she kept paranoid about waking up long enough,
she'd wake instead of wasting the whole day.
"Stop over thinking things, Piper," she muttered sleepily into the sheets.
If only it was that easy.
===============================================================================

Dean thought hard on what he was doing, and also on what he would most
definitely try doing when he had gotten back to camp.
"Yo," he arched an eyebrow and looked back over his shoulder. It was Marcus, an
annoying twit of a man three times Dean's size, but they had already figured
out who was the stronger man. "Think we should take in the dud rounds?"
"Can Olivia work with them," Marcus shrugged and Dean sighed, waving a hand
violently at him. "Yeah, fuckin put em in the back of the Jeep."
Marcus nodded and Dean huffed, readjusting his stance as he continued to guard,
right foot braced on the edge of the bench in front of him. He'd been lazily
day dreaming about the girl back at camp: Soft and very touchable Piper. He
didn't really trust her, but Cas had went to a length promising she was just an
innocent girl that was just wrapped up in a game orchestrates by some higher
power -- which had given her their own taste of magic.
Banshee.
"The way she wailed," Cas murmured once he had sent Piper off with Chuck. "It
was so strong, so powerful. I could feel every ounce of it. . ."
"I know," Dean murmured. "But what the Hell can she be? She thinks she's just
human."
Castiel sighed. "She is most likely a Banshee," he leaned over the table.
"Which can only mean one thing."
"Something bad is going to happen soon," Dean sighed. "Or maybe this Goddess or
whatever is just fucking with us. Could have heard the kids crying, decided she
would be a good ploy -- bam! Free ticket to where she wanted to go and we run
around like morons trying to figure out what this means."
Castiel shook his head. "No, no she is symbolic of something, I can feel it,"
Dean snorted. "With the growing tension around camp at the mention of hunting
the Colt again. . .it would only make sense she appear at this moment,
tampering or not."
"Well," Dean started as he set down the bottle of amber he had been working on.
"We have a heads up, even if this turns out to be shit," he scrubbed a hand
over his face. "Fuck, there's not enough alcohol left in this world for me to
deal with this right now."
Dean shook off the memory, eyes scanning the buildings surrounding them,
looking into shattered windows to make sure they weren't being watched. They
had decided to be ballsy today and travel into bandit territory; he could hear
them hollering and praising over their engines as they ran course in the inner
parts of the cities, probably using Croats as target practice. Bandits didn't
scavenge, they raised caravans, other groups, took what they wanted instead of
hunting.
Fucking savages.
So the kid was an unsuspecting victim to a higher powers' plan, a red flag of
warning. And what happened to her when the plan unraveled? She didn't even know
she was anything but human, and Cas forbid Dean from telling her until the time
was right. He didn't want to throw too much on her at once, which was
understandable, but that didn't mean Dean couldn't have a little fun. She
obviously had a thing for him with those looks she gave, the incessant grinning
and the way she tried not to giggle at inappropriate moments. He wondered how
much he could ask of her and not hurt her too much; keywords too much.
"Fuck I can't wait to get home," Dean murmured.
***** Chapter 4 *****
She wakes up in a cold sweat, her eyes popping open as her entire body jerks
and her fingers flex, a small gasp coming from shaking lips.
Piper stares across the itchy sheets to the window on the far side of the room,
seeing the sun setting low and seeing lights flaring up through the pine
needles on the other side of the window. Her tongue runs over her lips, tasting
the distinct annoyance of sleep on her teeth and she pushes herself up slowly.
She doesn't even question where she is when she wakes up this time, her body
aching a little as she stands.
Her head insists this will all end soon, that she'll wake up on the other side,
in her room, listening to her mother scream but so far, she's still here. And
despite her panic, she's more than elated to be here; well, not at the moment
when cold water slaps her in the back but she's still pretty excited.
She wanted to know things, Piper always wanted to know more, and she wanted to
see if some theories were right, if she was close enough to see the normal Dean
come to witness the future he was tormented with. But she would have to settle
with this Dean for a moment, the rough ones the irrational one, the one with
that hot-as-fire thigh holster.
In a few minutes, she'll step out of the bathroom and instantly panic, hearing
the sound of boots thunking around the otherwise quiet house and the clink of
glasses downstairs.
Her heart flutters in her chest and Piper clenched the fabric over where her
heart was, easing towards the opening to the stairs. She peered down from as
close to the edge as she felt comfortable getting and saw a long shadow dancing
in candle light; broad, even if the shadows exaggerated things on a regular
basis.
"Ya gonna come down or not," relief instantly uncoiled inside of her, quickly
replaced by that sick flurry of butterflies. "I can hear the boards squeakin',
kid."
Piper exhaled and released her shirt, leaving deep crinkles as she padded
softly down to the living room. Dean had set down two glasses on the small
table in the center of the room, a bottle of Jack in his hand but he only
filled up one glass.
He gave her a soft side glance, lips twitching into a smile. "Knew it," he
murmured and Piper ducked her head, shuffling towards the couch as he sat down.
"Hurry up, kid, ain't got all night."
There was nowhere else to sit but beside him, right beside him. So hesitance
and worry filled her as she sank down into the cushion, her leg briefly
brushing against his before she jerked away. He chuckled at her, taking a slow
sip of his drink while Piper just turned every shade of red in the book.
"Act like ya never sat next ta a guy before."
Piper looked over at him, eyes still wide in disbelief at the sight of him
sitting beside her. "I. . .I really haven't," she murmured and looked down
again. "I mean. . .I've sat next to guys before but um," she gave him a quick
side glance. "Nevermind."
"Nah," he chuckled. "Ya can't leave it at that, kid and expect me not to get
curious."
Piper's cheeks seemed to deepen in color, if that were possible and she gripped
her knees tightly. "N-No I can't uh," she swallowed thickly. "I'm so
embarrassed right now, to be honest."
He chuckled again and, as if he were out to make it worse, he reached up and
pushed her hair back, exposing her face and making her give him another scared
look. There it was again, that flash of black in his eyes - but that couldn't
be right, it wasn't the right season and - but she had read so many things and
-
"Got somethin on your mind," he questioned, sipping slowly at the amber liquid
in his glass.
Piper licked her bottom lip slowly, very much aware of the look he gave the
subtle movement; fan fiction didn't do the real thing justice, she didn't
expect them to be nearly spot on. But this didn't send arousal through her -
- okay, it did but only a little bit -- it sent mostly fear into her, an
uneasiness that came naturally around men. She'd never felt comfortable around
them, her own mind sending her to crazy places thanks to wandering eyes and
hands.
"Y-You're a good man, Dean," she sputtered out against her will, meaning to
keep it inside her head and cringing for it. "I uh. . .I mean. . .I've seen
what happens here," she looked around the room. "In this time ya know and. .
.anything you do doesn't make you a bad man."
He arched an eyebrow, slowly rotating the glass in his hand; his wrist crackled
and popped. "Well where the Hell did that come from," Piper ducked her head,
eyes squeezed tight. "You're too funny kid, ya know that?"
Piper looked back up at him, already tired. "You're not exactly what I
expected," she whispered and he hummed around a mouthful of alcohol. "I mean. .
.you're Dean, you're just like you are on the show but," she shook her head.
"But. . .this version of you is so much different than you are on an average
day."
He snorted. "Kid, this is how I am on an average day," she shook her head
softly, sighing. "What? What are you hidin' kid?"
Piper pursed her lips, fingers plucking at a scab healing on the side of her
leg. "I can't. . ." She shook her head and gave him a distraught look. "I
already said I can't, and I meant it," she fisted her hand against her knee. "I
don't know what I can and can't do here, what I'm allowed to help you with,
what I'm allowed to say. . ."
Dean huffed and swilled down the last bit of his drink. "I'm sure whatever sent
you here is just laughing their ass off as they watch," he grumbled. "Sick of
all of these supernatural creatures fucking with innocent people."
Piper ran her tongue slowly over her bottom lip. "Well, how do you know I was.
. .am innocent?"
And that gained her a look, a loaded look, a look she had never gotten before
and it made her stomach erupt again. His eyes moved around her face, lips
parting in the way they always did in her fantasies, her dreams; meanwhile, she
waited. Piper knew she wasn't innocent, between the thoughts and the loaded
shotgun she had put between her teeth: Her innocence had been taken a long damn
time ago.
"No," Dean murmured and Piper realizes, with a burst of blood flow to her neck,
that he had leaned closer to her. "No, you're a sweetheart."
"Oh," she chirped low under her breath.
And he chuckled, eyes mischievous as he looked down at Piper. No. . .what was
going on? He had to be messing with her - this couldn't be happening. She knew
the look, but only on a screen because no one had ever given the time of day to
look at her like that.
"Dean," she whispered in a questioning tone, leaning slightly away from him.
He hummed, but something in his eyes changed, something darkened. And then his
eyes widened and he pushes himself to his feet, clenching his face and hissing
in an angry tone to himself. Piper clenched her knees, shoulders hiked up,
heart hammering in her chest; what was going on?
"Dean," she whispered, this time concerned; she pushed herself hesitantly to
her feet, approaching him with an outstretched hand. "D-Dean are you okay?"
Her hand was a hairs breath away from his shoulder when he whipped around,
making her jump.
And then she saw his eyes.
Black, soulless and transfixed on her.
Piper stumbled back, letting out a small yelp as she collapsed back onto the
couch. Her nails raked down the fabric, pushing her up onto her knees before
Dean was in front of her, pushing her back down into the couch by her
shoulders.
He was grinning at her, black eyes reflecting her and her terror. He was a
demon, Dean Winchester was a demon - how was that possible?! Of course it was a
theory, but that was just it, a damn fan theory!
Who knew they were right?
"I tried," he admitted, waving his arms out with a guilty smile on his face. "I
really did, Cas kept saying no and I tried to obey but I just. . .God, you
smell like a fucking virgin - I bet you are, what do ya say baby girl? I bet
it'd be easy to get those panties off of ya if I said the right thing. Because
I'm your crush, huh? Don't lie now, your cheeks turn that brilliant shade of
red when I'm around. The human body really betrays the soul inside of it some
times."
Piper trembled as he took a step back, staring up through golden curls to the
six foot demon. Her arms stung where he had held onto her and she ran her hands
up her skin, feeling where bruises were already going to form.
"I knew it," she whispered. "I-I knew something wasn't right. . ."
"Oh, look who can talk," he snickered. "Now, how about we listen to ya beg?"
"Dean!"
Piper looked over at the door to Castiel, who was glaring from the open door,
his gun in hand. She looked up at Dean but didn't move, waited for him to
speak. He didn't look angry, didn't even look annoyed, just looked plain
disappointed. He looked back down at Piper and his eyes flickered back to
green; the display was more unnerving than the truth.
"I hoped I would get here in time," Castiel sighed and shut the door behind
him. "I said to wait on me before you talked to her."
"And I thought I told you that I would come anyway," Dean snapped, tucking a
hand deep into his pocket. "Besides, she likes alone time with me, don't ya
sweetheart," he winked and, despite herself, Piper blushed again. "Told ya,
your body will betray you at the worst of times."
"Enough," Castiel snapped and Dean sighed; Castiel looked down at Piper, brow
creased in worry. "Are you okay? He didn't hurt you did he?"
Piper looked up, looked to the red fingerprints wrapping her arms. "Just some
bruises," she murmured. "Its fine, Castiel, really. . .I know what worse he
could have done if he wanted to."
"Who says I don't wanna do worse," he purred.
"Because you didn't do it," Piper lifted her chin a little. "You can. . .easily
over power Castiel with how weak he is with minimal powers," the look Castiel
gave her made Piper sigh. "Don't worry, your world will. . .nevermind," she
sighed again.
Castiel pursed his lips softly. "Well, on another note," he cradled his rifle
with one arm, reaching back with the other. "I thought you'd like to have this
back."
Piper's eyes didn't light up when she saw her grandfathers old shotgun with
fresh markings in the grip and barrel. She felt fear, despair, a little bit of
control but most of all sadness. She had ended her life with that thing and
also began a new one - for however long that lasted. It fit into her life like
an old friend and an unwanted guest all at the same time; she'd grown up
practicing with that thing.
"Thank you," she whispered, wrapping it in her lap after Castiel had handed it
to her. "It was. . .all I had to get away from her," she looked up, eyes
slightly misty. "I killed myself the other night, to get away from my mother
and ended up here. . .where I wished and begged to be," she shook her head.
"Could whatever sent me here really be all that bad?"
Castiel frowned, Dean shrugged and grabbed his glass, refilled it. "It could
bring a girl in from a different reality but can't help us fix the world," Dean
snapped. "Fuck whatever it was."
"I believe. . .it was an angel," Castiel hummed.
Piper furrowed her brow, cocking her head. "I. . .why would an angel do this?"
"I do not know," he shook his head. "No creature has the magnitude to
orchestrate something like this. A higher power, demonic or angelic, pulled you
through the veil to this plane. Whether you were in another world or reality
entirely, we cannot say. There are creatures that create elaborate, realistic
fantasies to lull victims and feed from them."
"Either way. . ." Piper shook her head. "I was a nobody. . .why dump me here
with this knowledge?"
Castiel shook his head, gave her a concerning look. "You are not nothing," he
paused. "When you first arrived, the tantrum in Dean's cabin. . .your voice, it
was more than a wail - it was a warning. Too high, too loud. I originally
believed you were a Banshee, even a siren. . .but you lack the markings, the
energy - but you still have the voice," he approached slowly and Piper leaned
away from him, chills over her skin. "I do not know what you are. . .but you
are very important in the fact that you made it through without harm."
Piper looked between Dean and Castiel, hands shaking in her lap as she tried to
wrap her head around what was happening.
She hadn't. . .hadn't thought she was screaming or begging in a different tone,
she thought it was normal. But they had heard, Castiel was an angel, Dean was a
demon, they knew right away that something was off about Piper. What did that
make her though? If not a Banshee or Siren. . .then what?
"I. . ." She shook her head and buried her face into her hands. "I-I don't. .
."
There was a shift in the couch and Piper jerked her head up, tears brimming her
eyes as she looked to Castiel. He had this sympathetic crease to his face, one
that made her. . .want to scream. She didn't want sympathy, she wanted answers
- and he couldn't give them to her, obviously. Or maybe he could, maybe he was
just hiding something from her; Piper wouldn't put it past him.
"Wh-What. . ." She inhaled deeply and shook her head. "What do I do?"
"You don't do anything," Dean snapped and she looked up at him. "You're gonna
stick with me or him until we figure what the Hell is going on, don't need
anyone or anything getting a hold of you. Whatever brought you here wanted us
to find you, not just anyone."
"Dean," Castiel murmured and looked up hesitantly at Dean. "I do not think. .
.her staying with you would be safe, if we're being honest."
Dean grit his jaw, looking over at Piper; she just looked down. She didn't want
to be alone with him, but he was -- he was still Dean Winchester and she would
be dammed if she got drug away from him now.
"No," she muttered and looked back up at Dean, who arched an eyebrow. "No, I'll
be fine with him. . .I trust him."
Castiel cleared his throat softly, looking up at Dean, to Piper, back again.
"Fine," he conceited after a moment and Dean grinned. "But, don't make me or
her regret putting an ounce of trust in you, Dean."
Dean closed his eyes and held up two fingers, free hand splayed over his chest.
"I won't hurt the kid," when be opened his eyes, all she saw was black. "I'm a
demon of my word."
***** Chapter 5 *****
Chapter Notes
     If I've already said this I apologize but the excitement starts in
     the NEXT chapter. It sounds weird but now that I've lost my fo author
     I have the time to work on my own stories.
Piper clenched tight to the corner of her pillow, hearing him downstairs,
thunking around every now and again, humming softly as he set down a beer
bottle.
Every bit of her said come upstairs, but Piper wasn't stupid.
She almost sighed but settled for rolling softly to her other side and staring
at the half open window; very, very faintly she could hear the hiss of what was
possibly Croatoan's. Would she ever have to come face-to-face with one of those
monsters? She hoped not, she could shoot but she would never out run one of
those things.
What Piper wanted most right now was to go to sleep.
After the whole thing with Dean and the question of what she was. . .Piper was
so tired. She wanted to lie down and go to sleep for a couple hundred years,
but it looked like she wasn't even going to get five minutes and it wasn't
because of the giant stomping around downstairs.
Okay, maybe it was.
She wanted to talk to him, wanted to at least sit there with him more but now?
Now, he was just scaring the shit out of her; black eyes, the leering and the
suggestive tones -- she was terrified.
But also, not.
She clenched tight to the pillow and curled her knees up further to her chest.
She was more scared of her reaction to this than actually seeing those black
eyes. She wanted to talk to him more, she wanted him. . .more. It was so much
better and scary in real life, the snark and the way he moved was. . .sexy.
"I'm so doomed," she whispered softly.
What was she going to do? It wasn't like she knew what was on the other side of
that barrel and honestly she wouldn't have cared, so long as she could get away
from her mother. She had thought of what could possibly be there, a blinding
light like the tales went, maybe she would see the people she had lost or ones
she had never known.
But, not once, had she though that this would become her reality.
Several pinches to the arms, legs and even her face had proven half of this was
real. Maybe it was a coma? She was just having such a hard time believing this,
for obvious reasons, but maybe if she accepted it. . .maybe things would go
just a little easier. It was where she had always wanted to be, right? Maybe
she could make the best of what she was given, even if it wasn't the time line
she wanted to be in.
Even if it was the wrong Dean. . .
"Go the fuck to sleep," not snippy, just bored, but she still jumped at the
boom in his voice.
She nodded softly, though he most likely couldn't see her and buried her face
under that crappy blanket.
"Yeah," she murmured. "Completely doomed."
===============================================================================
She doesn't like waking up in this place, even though at first it is quite
lovely.
It has the feel of the area its in, the smell of the trees and the dirt, the
sound of the birds and the distant murmur of the people going about their day.
Peaceful, to some.
Piper is, however, woken by herself screaming because there are big, black eyes
staring right into hers.
She flails and topples over the other side of the bed, much to Dean's amusement
because he's snickering as she clenches the fabric over her chest and ties to
calm her heart. As the bed creaks, her other fist tightens in the sheets and
she peers up through her tangled hair as he swaggers around the foot of the
bed. He's all confidence and humor while she is still hyperventilating on the
floor.
"That was more fun than I thought it would be," he hums.
"Wh-Why," she whined, pushing herself up to her shaky, jello legs. "Y-You
scared the c-crap out of me."
"At least you don't mean literally," he brushed past her. "And be lucky I don't
smack your ass, pull up those damn shorts girl."
Piper flushed darker and adjusted her bottoms, finding them very much lodged in
places that were too tempting for someone so obviously sinful. She pushed her
hair back and looked around for him, but he was already gone downstairs and she
breathed a sigh of relief.
What the Hell was -- no, no questioning, she'd be stuck there all day and just
- no.
When she came downstairs, fresh faced and wet hair but only her shirt had
changed -- back into the dingy one she came into this world in -- Dean was
standing at the counter and fiddling with something but Piper chose to let him
work instead of being curious and wanting to see what it was. It sounded like a
gun, but she couldn't be positive. She sank silently onto the edge of the
couch, tucking her hands between her knees; it was a bit nippy in here, was it
getting closer to fall like in her old world?
"Boring babysittin," he murmured and Piper peered up from beneath her bangs.
"Unless you wanna get a lil frisky," he winked over his shoulder and Piper
visibly stilled. "Nah, nah I'm bein good, I'm not completely heartless," he
paused. "Well, not heartless at all but that whole 'no soul' thing is really
confusing."
"How," she whispered and he looked over at her. "How did. . .did you lose your
soul?"
He hummed as he stared at her, lips lightly pursed as he seemed to weigh out
what he wanted to say. "Just made some bad choices when everything went down,"
he sighed, but it was another bored sound. "Can't say it hasn't been helpful,
or exactly fun. Guess bein human did come with a few points in better decision
making but eh," he shrugged and went back to whatever he was fiddling with. "I
get the job done, and no one fights a demon for control. Well, they don't know
I'm a demon. . ."
"They'd try to kill you," she murmured.
"And I can't lose my small army," he snickered and turned -- he had been
cleaning a gun.
He sat down beside her again and Piper was more relaxed than before, possibly
because she could almost predict what he would do where as last night. . .she
couldn't. He had been trying to keep one stronger side under check and it
caused for those gruff mood swings. This time, she could gauge a change in the
mood better and Piper liked that. She liked at least her little illusion of
control in this situation.
"Where. . .where is Castiel," she murmured, wiggling uncomfortably in her seat.
"Hunting," her eyes flickered over to him. "And exactly what you think, other
demons," he chuckled. "That's gonna be a fun conversation when he brings one
in."
Piper hummed softly and swiped her thumb over the back of her hand. "You're. .
.looking for the Colt."
"I suppose I don't even have to ask how you know," he cocked a leg up on the
edge of the couch, turning to face her a little more. "I bet you know every
dirty little secret from here to the moon."
She swallowed thickly, her eyes flickering over to him and down to her knees.
"I do," she admitted. "And there are more. . .but. . .well, I think I could
tell you but you weren't supposed to be a demon, I don't know how that would
effect anything."
"Not really lookin to chat anyway," he reached out and tucked a strand of hair
behind her ear. "And you know that."
"Can you please stop that," Piper whispered. "Its. . .making me uncomfortable."
His throaty chuckle nearly made her melt, which made Piper hate herself just a
little more. He was a demon, dammit, she shouldn't be melting to him like that
but she remembered the first of season ten.
Yeah, yeah she was gonna lose this battle.
"Kind of the point," his voice was thick. "So, tell me, ever kissed a guy
before?"
Oh fuck.
She nearly cried when the door opened and saw Castiel; when she stood, Dean
looked as disgruntled as she expected him to. Castiel looked disheveled and
tired, blood soaking into his hair line but there was no indication it was his,
so she didn't fret over it vocally. Piper clasped her hands together in front
of her, giving the angel a waiting look.
"We need you," Castiel barked at Dean, who grunted and stood; when those blue
eyes hit Piper, her stomach twisted into knots. "And you. He knows your name."
"N-No," she shook her head fiercely. "I'm not going anywhere near another
demon."
"And you expect us to just leave you here all vulnerable like," Dean arched an
eyebrow. "Leave another demon an opening to snatch ya up?"
"He shouldn't even know my name," Piper furrowed her brow. "Unless he. . .he
knows how I got here."
"How about you stay here with her," Dean suggested. "We keep em for a few days
anyway, first interrogation is on me."
Castiel sighed but didn't fight it at all. "That seems reasonable," he paused.
"I will take her to find some thing to eat."
"Just take her over to your place," Dean stopped at the door, rocking it back
and forth with his grip on the handle. "And open a window, don't need her to be
stoned when I get her back."
Cas nodded, looking slightly sheepish and Piper chuckled, giving him a warm
smile once the door was shut. "He was very nice," she assured Cas. "I mean, as
nice as a demon can be, ya know."
Castiel sighed on minor relief and started towards the door, Piper shuffling
behind him. "That is a relief," he started. "I did not want to have to deal
with the aftermath were he to lose control," he cast a glance back at Piper as
she squinted at the sun. "We will introduce you to everyone slowly, things are
very tense right now and they are already curious. We do not need anyone
finding out where you came from."
Piper nodded softly. "I can understand that, no rush," she didn't really wan to
get to know anyone anyway. "Do you think the demon will be any help?"
Castiel nodded and held back the blanket for her to duck into his cabin. "He
was on the inside. . .we had a very difficult time getting our hands on him.
But he will be worth it, I am sure."
"And if you find the Colt," she looked over at Cas. "What then? Are you going
to let Dean shoot Sam or what?"
He blinked slowly. "I forget you know," he hummed and gave her a quizzical
look. "What else do you know?"
Piper shrugged and almost sat on the couch but that questionable stain. . .
"I know too much," she paused. "The future, the past. . .mostly about Sam and
Dean," she chuckled softly. "I feel for you, having to handle the two stubborn
men."
Castiel smiled. "And I appreciate that, they really were quite the handful," he
hesitated. "But now Sam. . .well, you know."
Piper frowned. "I do. . .it gets better, okay? Just know that."
"I believe you, but you did seem shocked to know Dean was a demon."
Piper blinked slowly, perching on the arm rest. "There are. . .fan theories,
and that was one of them, I was just surprised it was true. . .which makes me
wonder what other ones are real. It would be a strange view."
"Not as strange as living it," he gave her another warm smile. "But this new
world. . .has to be a bit of a shock to you on a different level."
Piper chuckled softly. "Oh yeah," she sighed. "But. . .to be honest, I don't
mind, because I've still never wanted to be anywhere else. And I know I'm gonna
regret that sentence soon."
Castiel chuckled. "In my line of work, I'm positive for you," he paused. "How
about we find you food first, then you can regret your choice of words?"
Piper grinned. "Yeah, that sounds good."
===============================================================================
Castiel has books.
Piper freaking loves books.
Right now she's reading one about Eden, where Eve is too innocent for her own
good and God is a dick, which almost makes her giggle but Castiel is just on
the other side of that curtain apparently making glorious love to a girl named
Clarke so she just shoves those ear plugs in a little deeper and tries not to
blush too hard.
Piper flips the page and marvels at the depiction of the serpent, with feathers
and glittering scales; he must have been so beautiful. She loved the book the
moment she had touched it and the ear plugs made for quite the stifled,
leisurely book reading she was enjoying.
It'd been hours sitting here with Cas, he'd gone through boxes of books with
her gladly and after they had both eaten, they discussed what she knew of his
personal little world and she told him what she could -- what she thought was
acceptable anyway. Nothing from the future, nothing about what would be
happening hopefully soon.
Or would it happen?
Now that she was here. . .would something happen to change the time line? How
many angels knew she was here, how many demons?
Just how screwed was she?
She didn't look up when she felt those heavy thumps, just thinking it was Cas
and his lady friend, but then a few bloody droplets hit the page and Piper
tensed up. Her hands trembled as she peered up from beneath her brow, only
marginally relieved to see Dean because holy cow that was a lot of blood.
"Dean," she whispered and pushed her book to the side, reaching out to touch
his busted lip when she stood but her hand jerked back and clenched at her
side. "Wh-What happened?"
"Fucker jumped me during the interrogation," he looked around, almost like he
were in a daze. "He in there fuckin someone?"
Piper nodded softly. "Yeah. . .yeah," she pried the plugs out of her ears, able
to hear more than just Dean's voice now and she frowned. "Can we leave now? I
don't wanna hear that anymore."
The ecstasy riddled moan made Dean smirk and he grabbed Piper around the waist,
much to the girls embarrassment. "Sure ya don't wanna join em, sounds like a
lot of fun on the other side."
Piper huffed and pushed away from him enough to stumble but he didn't seem
bothered. "Its gross," she murmured. "Sex is. . .gross."
"Wow, virginity intact for sure," he snickered and Piper's cheeks turned bright
red. "Don't worry," he winked. "Your secrets safe with me."
Piper didn't say anything, just looked away before something stupid tumbled out
of her mouth. The air was a light more light than it was earlier, which made
for an easier, slow walk than she and Castiel had, had hours ago. But there was
the violent thrashing of a demon in one of the shacks near the middle of the
camp that made Piper edge closer to Dean; he was safe. It made a little bit of
curiosity bloom inside of her, which she found odd but not entirely.
She grunted when she ran into half hard-half soft wall and then turned sheepish
when she noticed it was Dean. "S-Sorry," she muttered and took a step back.
When he said nothing and also didn't move, Piper looked up again and saw that
amused under one again. "Know how ta shoot," he questioned.
"Um. . ." Okay, complete change. "Yeah, why?"
He hummed softly and started walking again, this time towards that big, ominous
looking gate. "Mine and Cas' shift tonight. . .and he's obviously a little tied
up at the moment. So you're the lucky winner of help shoot Croats tonight."
"But I don't -- why can't you get someone else," why her?
Dean rolled his eye and slapped a hand against the small of her back, tugging
her along with ease. "Cus I don't like working with these dumbasses," he paused
and pushed her up the steps to the wall. "Plus, I wanna see how well ya shoot.
Can't be runnin around protecting your dumbass if something happens."
Piper nodded softly and, despite her instincts screaming no, she grabbed the
rifle he handed her. The look he gave her was approving and Piper almost
smiled, but she focused on the singular path leading past the second wall
ringing the camp. Her grandpa fought in the war, taught her hoe to use a gun
and even a little use of a knife just in case. In case of what, Piper never
understood but she'd also grown into a family of hunters, so she could never
really properly question why she would need to know such things. But she hadn't
been taught to kill people, or Croats, so that. . .made things a little
difficult; her hands were shaking.
"The demon said your name," Piper looked over at Dean. "Said he just knew it. .
.but didn't know jack about you," he gave her a slightly suspicious glance.
"Sure there's nothin you aren't tellin us?"
Piper tensed. "I-I'm not one of them," she promised. "I swear, I'm just a very
confused human, okay?"
"Mhhm," he shifted his weight and stared down the road, the air howling
somewhere through the trees. "How'd ya learn to shoot?"
Piper hesitated. "My grandfather," she muttered, adjusting her grip on the old
hunting rifle. "Before he went crazy. . .always spoutin nonsense and codes,
gibberish. . .before that he was a sharp shooter, a sniper. Taught me
everything."
Dean grunted. "Well, ya better follow exactly in his footsteps because I don't
wanna end up catchin one of your stray bullets, kid."
Piper pursed her lips and nodded. "I won't let you down Dean."
***** Chapter 6 *****
Chapter Notes
     Let me first thank you all for sticking with me and secondly, being
     an adult is hard
"Why don't ya scream for me, sweetheart?"
No, no there's nothing unsettling about that at all.
Piper's fingers curled tight around the shotgun, throat struggling to swallow
around that lump. She hesitated and looked over at him, possibly visibly pale
and shaken but she had every right so she wouldn't try to hide it. Dean wasn't
even looking at her, he was staring down the length of his gun, brow furrowed
and tongue slowly sliding over his bottom lip as if he were contemplating on
doing something.
She didn't want to know.
"Wh-What?"
He didn't look up immediately, slowly and deliberately, trying to drive her
nuts possibly. His eyes were such a light green tonight, it was. . .pleasing to
be able to see the transition.
"Scream, like ya did when you thought Cas wanted to send ya home," he leaned
his rifle against the railing softly, taking a step towards Piper. . .crowding
her. "C'mon sweetheart, I wanna hear it again."
"Why," she murmured, aching to shuffle backwards but something said he wouldn't
let that slide.
"Professional curiosity," he murmured, leaning forward a little. "How bout ya
give me a scream? Just a little one?"
Piper's eyes darted left and right real quick, curving up to his face and
seeing a tad bit of excitement in his irises. What did he want from her? Why
did he want her to scream like that again? She didn't want to, didn't even know
if she could, and she didn't even notice when she did it the first time, what
made him think she could control it just like that?
"I don't. . .I don't know if I can," she murmured with a hint of annoyance in
her tone, but not directed towards him - no, never towards Dean. "I didn't even
mean to last time and I didn't hear it. . .so I don't know if I scream, if
it'll happen."
Dean hummed and she prickled when his fingertips ghosted over her shoulder,
brushing the hair from her skin. "Oh I know ya can scream," he paused and
grinned, almost in a wolfish way. "But that's not the kind of scream I wanna
hear right now. . ."
Piper swallowed thickly and then sighed mutely in relief when she saw the
flashlight bobbing up the steps towards them. She grabbed her shotgun, pointing
it down and watching Dean talk to the man that looked totally bored with what
he was doing. Her thumb stroked the edge of the pattern carved along the
barrel, looking down so she wasn't caught staring.
She'd been out here for a long time with Dean, hours, and the air had been
quite light which surprised her. Piper expected there to be a decent amount of
unease, or some of his teasing's because of the black eyes and all. She hadn't
been particularly comfortable, but she wasn't as put off as she expected to be.
It wasn't helping that manic aide of Piper's brain, the part that was still
completely and totally in love with a fictional person - but he was real, he
was tangible, just in her reach and -
Her fingers closed around a tuft of fabric, twisting it tight in her fingers as
she stared blankly at the ground, eyes brimming with confused tears. Dean
stopped talking and looked over at Piper, annoyed at being cut off, but his
face smoothed out when he saw that despondent look on her face. She wasn't
looking at him, not at his face anyway, but his legs and she didn't look to be
completely there.
And he couldn't even find it in him to tease her.
He sighed softly beneath his breath, thrusting his rifle into the new arrival's
arms, taking a hold of Piper's wrist and causing her to shake out of her
reverie. Her chin arched up towards him, large eyes glassy but there; her
fingers curled into a fist past his.
"Your shift now," Dean demanded of the other man; Piper just stared.
His eyes darted between the two of them and he nodded, cradling the rifle
properly. "Yes sir," he mumbled with an annoyed tone.
Dean nodded once and started walking, shaking Piper into awareness so she had
to keep up with him without her legs catching beneath her. She kept up with him
surprisingly well, very much aware of the pinch and pull his tight grip had on
her skin. But she didn't say anything, she was just still so shocked to see his
skin on hers - he really was there.
"Gotta warn me when you're gonna get clingy in front of others, kid," Dean
murmured, shutting the door to the cabin. "Can't have those assholes seein I
have favorites."
Piper blinked a few times, looking up at him. "Favorites?"
He hesitated and then narrowed his eyes a little. "Don't think on it too hard,"
he snapped and pushed her down onto the couch; how many times was she gonna end
up on this thing. "Hellooo," Dean snapped his fingers in front of her face,
trying to catch her attention that kept floating away. "Down here, baby girl,
nowhere near those clouds."
To her credit, Piper chuckled and then blushed, softly and almost silently, but
she looked more relaxed now that she was sitting down. She looked over at Dean,
smiling a little crookedly, apologetically.
"I didn't mean to space out on ya back there," she murmured, running her
fingers around her wrists in a nervous way. "I just. . ."
Dean raised a hand. "Its fine," he promised, taking a slow sip of his drink.
"Happens to all of us."
Piper furrowed her brow at him, watching as he set his drink down on the table;
his hand was shaking. "You're. . .You're being very non-threatening for a
demon."
Dean chuckled. "I'm trying to be," he sighed. "Its really hard to try and
handle but I have a lot of self control I never knew about."
Piper chuckled. "Dean Winchester? Self control?"
"Yeah, yeah don't be a smart ass," the look in his eyes was playful but he
looked stern.
Piper smiled a little and then tried to reel it in, taking a slow, steadying
breath and raking her hair back from her face. She wanted the hair off, she was
so hot beneath it; was there some way she could cut it around here?
"Would help if ya. . .I don't know, talked?"
Piper jumped, cheeks flushed. "Sorry! Sorry I just -"
"Got lost," he arched an eyebrow. "What're ya thinking so hard about? Hell, its
giving me a headache."
Piper sighed. "I was thinking about you," she started. "You, Sam, Cas. . ." She
hesitated; mostly you. "About how you were all real. . .that it wasn't a dream,
another delusion. . ."
"Delusion," was that honest curiosity in his voice or was he teasing her?
She took the semi-cautious leap. "I'd have delusions and. . .at first I thought
they were just dreams but they were called Maladaptive Daydreaming so at least
I knew how crazy I was."
"Its from trauma," Piper looked up at Dean, saw the anger in his eyes. "That's
what Maladaptive Daydreaming is, it comes from abuse," he paused, brow deeply
furrowed. "That bad?"
Her smile was bitter, her head softly shaking as she looked down. "She
described how big of a piece of shit I was in front of my eight year old cousin
and then started trying to hit me," she shook her head again. "Threatened me
countless times to kick me out, tried to punch me, cuss at me because I didn't
do the smallest thing right. . .she was a fucking psycho," the last few words
were spat out bitterly, her fists clenching on her knees. "Your world was just.
. .so much better than my reality," she looked up at him. "You and Sam,
Castiel, made me so incredibly happy when I watched you. And I always wanted
this, to be able to talk to you, to be here even for a day. And I didn't think
it could happen, not unless I was asleep or maybe if I was dead, if Heaven
really panned out like it did on television and in movies."
She was waiting for him to say something, to be snarky, sarcastic, to pick on
her or something but Dean was silent, staring over her shoulder to the window
or whatever else was back there to entertain him. Piper picked at her nails to
occupy herself while she waited impatiently for him to either say something or
do something.
"Would love to know if this is a parallel universe to yours," he murmured. "Or
something different all together. . .it would make more sense being parallel,"
Piper gave him a curious glance. "What? A guy can't be curious?"
"You mean demon?"
He grinned. "Smart girl," he paused. "I think you could be a lot spunkier if I
forced ya out of that tight ass shell you got going on."
Her cheeks heated a little. "I-I don't know -"
"Don't give me that shit darling, with those smartass little comebacks you keep
giving me every once in awhile, I know you can be a whole lot more fun than
this."
Piper pursed her lips slightly. "I'd rather stay in my shell," she murmured.
"Doesn't really seem to be workin for ya."
"Why are you being so nice?"
"Would ya rather me be mean," he questioned.
Piper hesitated, brow furrowed to the point where her muscles jumped. "I would
just like to know what you're trying to get out of me," she spoke slowly,
trying to word her sentences right. "I don't trust you completely, Dean, you
are a demon after all. I can't just take it as you being a kind person, as
genuinely caring about me because I just don't trust you that much."
Dean chuckled and ran a hand down his face, rubbing the back of his neck and
giving her this weird look. It was warm and disarming, enough to kill her
breath and send her reeling - thankfully not visibly.
"Smart too," he finally murmured. "Maybe you won't be a liability after all."
===============================================================================
Her skin itches.
Piper huffed as she stared into the mirror, examining those bruises at the
corner of her mouth, feeling at the sore spot on the back of her head. It was
from the shot, she knew that, so did she really die or what? What exactly was
going on with her?
Basking in the glow of Dean Winchester.
She sighed as she stared at herself in the mirror, the ragged stained wife
beater she wore hanging off of her shoulders. She was so small, even in her own
eyes, and it was driving her crazy; she had always been a small, frail child
but it was starting to become too much. But her skin was vibrant, glowing,
warm, and yet so fucking itchy.
"What's happening," she murmured, flexing her fingers at her sides and turning
away from the mirror. "Maybe I'm losing my mind," she said in a surprisingly
light tone.
Piper fell into her bed and sighed, inhaling the musk of stale sheets; she
didn't mind it, not at all, considering how tired she was. Looked like her
schedule would be converted to the night time pretty soon. Dean had walked her
to her little cabin thirty minutes ago and her stomach still flipped at the
thought; curse this crush of hers.
"Maybe he'll finally do something that scares me too much to even like the old
Dean," she murmured into the blanket.
She really doubted it, this soothing, kind Dean was a bit shocking if she was
being honest. And it made the butterflies worse, which almost pissed her off.
"I hate him," she sighed.
No she didn't.
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