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galleywinter · 4 years

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Fandom: When the Night Comes Characters, Pairings: August Willenheim, Greer Taggart/Alkar Cassian Words: 5,375 Rating: T, but only because Alkar and Greer both have a bit of a mouth. Notes: I did not intend for this to turn into what it did. Not even a little. It was supposed to be cute, brief fluff. The last 20% of what’s here is all that was ever supposed to be. And then they insisted there needed to be setup, and by the time I was done, I needed a beta for it. I regret nothing.

A huge thank you to @mrreindeerface for letting me yell at them all this last week and a half about this game and about Greer, to @fantasticflynn for also encouraging these shenanigans, and to @eleneripenneth for being my permanent enabler and for the beta. Read it on AO3 ____

Making Lieutenant General Harold Addington III disappear was turning out to require far more paperwork than Greer Taggart could have imagined existed in the whole of Eskria.

Most of it, she felt, probably currently piled on her desk.

Somewhere, she knew, under the mountains of parchments, was her desktop. The cover story had seemed so straightforward - upon the murders being solved, Harry was stepping down to mourn his husband and enjoy the peace now blanketing Eskria that he had fought so hard to create - that it generated so much additional work seemed like some cruel karmic joke.

A sigh built and swelled behind Greer's ribs as she listened to the newest recruit continue to gush about the prestige attached to working at the HQ in Lunaris and how unworthy he felt of it. He'd been going for the last eight minutes and showed no signs of slowing. Somehow, he'd even managed to avoid repeating himself.

He was enthusiastic, at least she could grudgingly give him that.

Before she could find it in herself to dismiss him, the sharp clack of heels approaching from down the hallway pricked at her ears. It had never sounded quite so much like music before.

"Your enthusiasm is a credit to you," Greer finally managed, cutting the junior off midsentence and offering him the warmest smile she could muster under the circumstances. "But if you'll excuse me, I believe I have a meeting."

Greer stood and made her way around the edge of her desk just as August stepped into her doorway.

"General Taggart."

"General Willenheim," she responded with a simple nod of her head, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. August's glance flicked from her to the recruit who had shot out of his chair so quickly it had rocked back onto its legs. He stood at stiff attention as August slowly crossed the floor toward him, one of their dark brows arched, their eyes carefully appraising him.

"Your name, junior?" August's voice was sharp, their enunciation clipped.

"Samuel Robertson, General." Apprehension rolled off him in thick waves, making Greer's own stomach knot.

"Your Enforcer?"

Robertson licked his lips. His hands shook slightly. "Moira Baxter, General."

August's brow climbed impossibly higher on their forehead. "Then I suggest you find her, Robertson. I tolerate neither tardiness nor fools in this office, and she's been expecting you for ten minutes."

"Y-yes, General. Right away."

Greer watched him scamper out the door, practically tripping over his own feet.

"I'm surprised he didn't tear the floorboards up as he went," she snorted, finally sagging back against the edge of her desk. There was a momentary thought for the precarious stacks of parchment, but she didn't care enough to stop herself.

August didn't respond, but they were still oddly tense. They pursed their lips as their gaze slid over her shoulder, taking in the state of her desk.

"I know, I know," Greer groaned, dropping her head back and screwing her eyes shut in resignation of the ass-chewing she was sure she was about to receive. "I'm sorry, August, I'm working as fast as I can on it, b-"

A delicate hand landed on her shoulder, long fingers squeezing warmly. Greer's eyes flew open. August's face was sympathetic, a soft smile lingering in their eyes if not curving their mouth.

"I'm not worried about the speed of your work, Greer. None of us expected this situation, and I certainly don't think any of us expected this-" their hand slid from her shoulder, and they waved it in the direction of her desk "-would be the result." They leaned in closer, their voice dropping low. "We can make this take as long as we need. It isn't as if he's going anywhere."

Greer huffed a laugh. "While you aren't wrong, I'm not cut out for this. I'm a Hunter, August. I wanted to help you, but I'm ready for it to be over. I'm ready to be back in the field."

August hummed their agreement. "I understand. I'll take back as much as I can so we can speed this along. But for today, go home."

All Greer could do was blink at them. "I'm sorry?" She was sure she'd misheard. Or perhaps imagined it.

"Go home."

"But August, it's only just past lunch-"

"I know what time it is, Greer. And I know what I'm telling you." Something odd flickered behind their eyes, and Greer wasn't sure if it made her uneasy or merely agitated. Or both. "Stop arguing. Go home."

Greer knew that tone, and it made her want to bite out a curse: they weren't going to order her, but it might as well have been an order all the same. Fucking Lunaris. Fucking Lunaris and its fucking cagey residents, even if this one was her friend. A sigh from what felt like the depths of her soul rushed out of her, and even she could hear the resignation tinging it.

"Fine," she said on the chasing end of it. "I'll go." August's brow began to arch in acceptance, but Greer squinted at them, folding her arms stubbornly across her chest. "But if I find out you slept here or touched so much as a scrap of parchment on my desk-"

"You'll what?" August scoffed. "Tell my mother?"

"Worse," she hissed. "I'll tell Ezra."

August's only response was a sniff as they turned on their heel and headed for her door again. But Greer hadn't missed the slight tic in the corner of their jaw before they had their back to her. "Take all of tomorrow off, too," they said as they reached the threshold. "I'd best not see you before then."

They carefully closed the door behind themselves, the small click resounding sharply in the complete silence of her office. She curled her fingers around the edge of the desk at either side of her hip, drumming against the desktop in an even, steady rhythm and debated ducking back around the desk to complete the requisition form that awaited only her signature. Hesitation made her rhythm falter as a realization sparked. That was probably why they had come up to her desk, to see what she had completed and to ensure she didn't do even a single moment's work extra.

A frustrated groan rolled from behind her clenched teeth as she tipped her face skyward, seeking guidance, succor, anything. She took a breath, two, centering herself before taking a third breath deep enough to stretch her lungs and letting it out in a rush.

"Fine!" she yelled as she shoved back to her feet. The paperwork from hell would apparently wait.

When she opened her office door, she wasn't surprised to find August standing in the hallway next to the large windows across from her office. Their obviously feigned inspection of the training yard below left Greer fighting a grin, and she licked her tongue across her teeth. "You win," she said simply, propping a hand on her hip and giving a small shrug.

The beginnings of a smile curved August's lips as they turned to her. "As if that would have been in question. I don't want to see so much as the hem of your coat until the day after tomorrow." That strange swirl of something flashed behind their eyes again, but they brushed past her and strode into their own office before she could so much as open her mouth.

Their door closed with a very definite-sounding click.

That closed door had the same effect as seeing a Fae's smile: it made unease blossom in her gut. She was missing something; she knew it. She just had no clue what. All she could do was hope the fresh air and the time off would slot the pieces into place and she'd figure it out before it bit her on the ass.

What were the odds?

As she pushed open the heavy wooden doors at the front of Headquarters, a burst of Lunarian spring air rushed in, kicking tendrils of hair into her face. Tucking them back with one hand, she leaned to shoulder the door the rest of the way open with the other, and nearly ended up sprawled across the steps as it was yanked away from her. She lurched as gravity shifted, the smell of petrichor and fresh earth washing over her as a pair of strong hands latched onto her waist.

Greer's heart leapt into her mouth - part adrenaline, part the simple joy of seeing him, and part the brick wall of his agitation slamming into her with the force of a charging bull.

"Hello, handsome," she managed to say as brightly as she could despite the thundering of her pulse.

Alkar attempted a smile, but it looked more like a snarl due to the deep furrow between his brows and the fact that his wolf ears were practically pinned to his skull.

He bent and pressed a quick kiss to the corner of her mouth before darting back, color high on his cheeks. Greer reached out before he could get too far, catching his hand and lacing their fingers together. This much he had become comfortable with, sure of. This much he sought out from her hungrily and often. So when his fingers stayed uncharacteristically stiff between her own, his grip almost too tight as she raised his hand to her lips to brush a kiss to his fingertips, it made apprehension skitter under her skin.

At least his breath still caught in the back of his throat at the touch. Greer couldn't help the smug smile the sound elicited and hid it with another quick kiss to his fingers.

"You alright?" she asked, then lowered her voice. "This isn't exactly your favorite place."

Alkar cast a dark look past her shoulder at the front door to the Enforcer Headquarters, his free hand twitching toward his shirt as if to yank his collar more firmly over his brand, but his fingers balled into a fist that he let hang by his hip instead.

"Bout to ask you that," he muttered with a brief shake of his head as he turned and tugged gently on her hand, urging her to follow him down the steps. "I'm not the one who almost fell flat on my face."

Greer gave Alkar's hand a grateful squeeze before skating her thumb down his forefinger. It twitched under her touch. "And I have a dashing hero to thank for saving me from such embarrassment."

Alkar snorted and muttered something under his breath, but Greer could see the edge of a grin kicking up the corner of his mouth. Despite it, his ears were still flat to his head and the tension in his face hadn't eased.

"You finally tell Willenheim you quit?" he asked as he led her to the bridge to the center of town. His tail swished behind him more sharply than usual, in a tighter arc, visible proof of the agitation Greer could feel still radiating from him in waves. "Cause I would have wanted to be there for that. The look on their face had to be fucking brilliant."

She meant to laugh, but it came out sounding more like a scoff. "They'd have a heart attack if I did." She caught stride with him, playfully bumping her hip into his thigh. "I did tell them the paperwork is driving me mad."

Red eyes narrowed appraisingly at her. "You threaten to burn it all?"

She managed an amused little noise in the back of her throat despite the worsening stricture in her chest caused by Alkar's agitation. "I think they'd likely help me."

"You're fucking lying." He almost sounded aghast but for the smile just wide enough to show her a flash of fang. "August 'Stick up their arse' Willenheim burning paperwork. You're either completely stupid or you think I am."

An actual honest giggle bubbled up from her belly. The ability to laugh so freely, even with her boyfriend's agitation so heavy to be a near physical presence, felt good. The fact that the squeeze of his fingers in response felt affectionate rather than strained was even better. "It's a lot of fucking paperwork. Do you know the last time I had to do paperwork? Never."

Alkar sniffed, nodding his head. "Ah. Only taught you how to write your name then sent you off to fight their bloody wars. Got it."

Greer tried to nod solemnly, but her cheeks ached with the attempt to tamp down her smile. "Exactly. And how to count to four."

"Sad life, that."

"The worst."

The line of Alkar's shoulders had relaxed some the farther they moved from Headquarters, but his ears were still fairly pinned and his tail, which he normally slung around her waist, still flicked tensely behind him. And all of that was secondary to the rolling waves of upset that were still making her stomach knot.

As a Hunter, strategy and gut instinct were second nature to her. She employed both as they stepped off the far side of the bridge: a quick glance down the back alley showed it empty save Mrs. Potter at its mouth hanging laundry out to dry from her upper windows.

Alkar barked out a noise of frustrated surprise as Greer quickened her pace and practically tugged him down the alley behind her rather than following him down the main road where he'd intended to take her. She ignored him, dragging him further down the alley.

She only stopped when the bustle of the market and the rushing burble of the river were nothing more than gentle impressions of sound. Keeping her fingers firmly laced through his, she leaned back against the brick wall of the house. The furrow between Alkar's brow was still deep, and his mouth was twisted into a scowl.

"The hell was that?" he grumbled, but he made no move to leave her or take his hand back.

Greer made sure to keep his gaze as she carefully, pointedly, laid his broad hand on her waist and reached for his other, taking it in both her own. She traced the back of his hand with her thumbs and trailed her fingertips across his palm, relishing in the feel of the scars and calluses and the unnatural warmth of his skin. He had only recently stopped bandaging his hands at all, and it always made her heart stutter to feel his skin so starkly and openly against her own.

She brought his hand to her lips, fluttering a kiss across his fingertips, his palm, the inside of his wrist as she brought his hand to her cheek. Color bloomed sharply across his face, ruddy from his hair to his neck, and his fangs and teeth dug into his lower lip. His eyes didn't move from her face, but she noticed the barest twitch of his wolf ears - still too close to his head for her liking - as he tried to sense anyone who might be near.

Laying her heart bare in her eyes, letting Alkar see every ounce of the love she felt for him, the concern, Greer reached out to tentatively cup his jaw. A strangled noise erupted from Alkar's throat, but he didn't flinch away from her touch.

"You're worrying me," she said. His lip was nearly white where the points of his fangs dug in, and she was worried he might draw blood. "You never come to HQ, much less in the middle of the day, and the way you feel-" she waved her free hand helplessly in a sweeping gesture encompassing him from head to toe, "-you're making my stomach ache. What's wrong?"

Alkar's lips twitched, almost a snarl if she hadn't known better. "Stay at the Wolf tonight, alright?"

Her own confusion and concern crested against his residual agitation, making her stomach churn. "Why?"

"Just-" a frustrated growl "-please." He nearly spit it out as if it were something foul, and she couldn't help a small giggle.

"I thought you didn't beg." It was meant to be a tease, something light and gentle to ease whatever he needed to say.

Instead, it brought a string of muttered, broken curses bursting from Alkar's lips, and then he pressed his forehead suddenly, almost violently, to hers. His eyes were screwed shut, his breath hot and heavy through his nose. His fingers curled against her waist and her cheek, not hard enough to bruise but hard enough to steady against the tremor she felt in them. She slid her hand from his jaw to his hair, carding her fingers through it, even as she slipped her other arm around his shoulders, holding him close.

"Alkar?" She refused to acknowledge the crack in her voice.

"It's a full moon tonight." She had never heard him so sullen.

Her stomach dropped to her boots.

"Shit," she breathed as realization shot through her veins like ice water. This is what she had been missing in the conversation with August. She couldn't believe she'd been so stupid.

A huff of a laugh, more frustration than humor, escaped her, and Alkar made to jerk away at the sound of it. She refused to let him, burying her fingers more tightly in his hair, and tipping her face up so their noses brushed. His crinkled against her own, and her heart gave a dull thud at the hurt in his eyes.

"I'm sorry," she murmured. "It isn't you. It isn't this," she slid her hand through his hair to trace the edge of one of his wolf ears. "Surely you know that by now." He snorted a little, saying nothing, but his shoulders loosened some under her arm. "I keep telling you, I'm in this for the long haul, too. It's me; I'm an idiot." She felt his brow draw together against her own, saw his mouth twisting in a harsh frown.

He leaned back, and this time, she let him, her hand sliding from his hair to his neck where she could feel his pulse drumming steadily under her palm. He dropped the hand that had been pressed to her face, and her heart swelled with relief when he immediately laid it on her waist.

A heavy sigh escaped her in a rush of spent adrenaline and mental agitation. "I was leaving work because August sent me home for the rest of the day and ordered me to take tomorrow off, too. I know it's a full moon tonight - I've had lunar cycles memorized since I was fourteen - but I just..." She paused, searching for the words to explain and coming up utterly empty. "With everything going on, I just forgot," she finished lamely.

Alkar's stance was looser, his ears back but no longer flat, and the swish of his tail was almost languid. "Willenheim gave you today off?" Disbelief colored his voice, and Greer couldn't blame him.

"They did. And refused to tell me why. Maybe they were being kind. Maybe they just assumed I'd remember." She scoffed a small noise of disgust. "I should have. I'm sorry."

The tip of Alkar's tail grazed against her ankle, and warmth spread through her fingers. A small smirk was beginning to curve his mouth. "Say that again? Think I missed it."

An answering grin tugged at her own. She scuffed her thumb across the fullness of his lower lip, over the bump of a scar that cut through it, before schooling her features into the most contrite face she could manage. "I forgot," she said, simply. Earnestly. "And I'm sorry."

His fingers squeezed her waist, more gently this time, and he shrugged casually. "'Spose I can forgive you. This time."

The quick press of his forehead against hers this time was more a nuzzle than anything, quick and fleeting but sweet, as he turned loose of her waist and instead laced their fingers together. The slide of his palm, the press of it, the feeling of his skin against hers was grounding, comforting. If the way he curled his fingers around her hand was any indication, he felt the same.

He stepped back so she could shove away from the wall, and the familiar, heavy weight of his tail settling around her waist led to the first truly easy breath she'd taken in the last ten minutes.

"Is that why you were coming to headquarters?" she asked as they began to meander toward the end of the alley. "To ask me not to come over?"

Alkar's pout was almost pretty, and Greer had to feign a cough to hide a laugh at the sight of it. "Who said I was coming to see you? Maybe I was coming to see Meriman."

"Right," Greer teased, knocking her hip against him. "You were coming to see Piper."

"Sure. Won't have time to pick a fight with her tonight, now will I? Feels like there's a fucking hole in my day if I don't see Meriman livid."

Greer snickered as they skirted around the edge of the main thoroughfare, keeping as much distance between themselves and the Aibek as possible. "Some days, I wonder if she feels the same." She leaned into Alkar, loving the firm press of his side against hers. His tail tightened around her at her shift in weight, and she raised a hand to bury her fingers in the thick fur.

"Damn straight," Alkar said. "I'm a man who's hard to live without."

The purr that rolled through her chest was only partly intentional. Looking up at him from under her lashes and letting her teeth sink into the edge of her lower lip, however, were wholly intentional. "Damn straight you are," she said, hearing the huskiness in her own voice and not giving a single damn.

A blush immediately darkened his cheeks and his fingers tightened around her hers. "Oh, fuckin' hush," he muttered, completely without heat.

Greer hummed contemplatively, pretending to consider it. "Nah," she finally said. "I don't think I will. You're especially handsome when you blush like that."

Alkar sputtered something that sounded like a curse and the tips of his human ears began to turn red, but he still didn't take his hand from hers.

As the Wolf came into view, though, his tail slipped from her waist, and Alkar gently tugged her around to face him. He raised her hand to his lips, whispering a kiss across her knuckles as his tail wound around her thigh.

Confusion sent her mind churning even as disappointment was a weight on her sternum. She'd been looking forward to spending time with Alkar - in the last two weeks, she had only been given two days off, and those two days had been in the immediate aftermath of her fight with Harry. Time with her boyfriend had been taken as they could get it, scattered hours and stolen moments, most of them asleep, it felt like.

"You aren't going to come in? I can get you some lunch."

A regretful smile tugged up one corner of his mouth. "As tempting as that offer is, sweetheart, not today. Don't want to risk getting caught up," he winked rakishly, and Greer could feel heat rising in her own cheeks, "and being stuck here at, well... y'know."

Greer lifted her other hand to his jaw, tracing the line of it with the barest touch of her fingertips. His next exhale had a hint of a growl to it, something that hit her low in the gut. "Cheeky," she muttered, shaking her head and refusing to fight the smile spreading across her face.

Alkar turned his head to playfully nip at her fingertips. "You love it."

"You're right," she said earnestly as she cupped his cheek in her hand. "I do. I love you. Be careful tonight?"

He leaned into her touch and turned his face enough to press a kiss to her palm. "Love you, too. I'm always careful." A rueful chuckle rolled from his chest. "Usually. Been doing this a long time."

"Well I haven't," Greer grumbled. "And I worry about you."

Something soft sparked in Alkar's eyes even as he blushed again, and he nuzzled against her palm. "Gonna spoil me if you aren't careful. Then what are you gonna do?"

She wrinkled her nose in mock contemplation before offering him a broad wink. "Have a spoiled, six foot two Lycan boyfriend."

He snorted a laugh before leaning down to press his forehead to hers again. "I'll come by tomorrow after I wake up," he said, his voice so low it was little more than a rumble. "Might be after lunch, though."

"I'll be here," she answered as she brushed the tip of her nose against his. "Love you."

"Love you, too." It was quiet, murmured against the curve of her mouth, but he said it all the same. She smiled into the brief kiss, then with a squeeze of her fingers and a squeeze of his tail around her thigh, he walked away and toward the forest.

Greer watched him go, responding to the damnably adorable half-wave he tossed her over his shoulder before he disappeared into the treeline, and began to hatch a plan. ____

Birds were still trilling in the canopy as Greer picked her way through what had quickly become an intimately familiar stretch of forest, though the sun was low on the horizon, bathing the sky in deep oranges and burnished pinks.

She stopped a few hundred yards from the trapdoor, closing her eyes, reaching out with her senses. Trying to see if she could feel him.

Nothing.

Which was exactly how she wanted it. A smile crept across her lips as she continued on. For her plan to work, he had to not be expecting it.

He always left the hatch exposed nowadays, and her heart always swelled at the sight of it. At the realization that he'd done that for her. She wondered, some days, how others couldn't see the kindness in him the way she could.

God, she didn't know if she deserved him... but she was so grateful she had him.

She lifted the trap door as silently as possible and slipped inside.

The fairy lights were low as Greer came down the stairs - not quite as low as Alkar kept them while sleeping, but dimmer than while he was awake. She moved to the back of the cave toward his little low table and raised her finger to a particular bulb in the string that hung above it. The lights flared under the drag of her touch, brightening considerably.

Shrugging her traveling pack from her back, she carefully set it on the table and flipped the top open. She pulled out a cheesecloth wrapped around an assortment of foodstuffs, the cheapest bottle of red wine Edna was willing to sell her, and an expensive imported coffee she'd picked up at the grocer's that afternoon. She tossed the pack over toward the bed, watching it land with a satisfying muted thump on the plush blankets.

As she was unwrapping the cheesecloth, a distant, distinctively Lycan howl echoed beyond the hatch. A chill shot down Greer's spine, and her hand instinctively moved to hover over the hilt of her silver dagger before she tore it away.

She forced her hands back to the table, wrapping her fingers around the edge of it and screwed her eyes shut, reaching out, sensing, searching.

She could feel him now, and she knew it was him. It was an achingly, comfortingly familiar wash of sensation buried under the thin veneer of what she knew to be Lycan. It was such an odd thing, to feel Alkar in the heart of the storm that was a Lycan's sense feedback. She pushed past the strangeness of it, trying to gauge distance.

He was close. Closer than he had been only moments before.

She stood for one slow heartbeat, two, three, waiting to see what he would do. Her heart stuttered when his presence grew stronger, closer, and then with another loud bray, his presence withdrew at terrible speed.

Greer blew out a harsh, fast breath of relief that emptied her lungs.

"Thank you, Finnegan," she murmured as she resumed setting her treasures out on the table. She peeled back the edges of the cheesecloth and splayed it out, settings its contents atop it: a loaf of hearty sourdough, a hunk of cheese, and a thick slab of strawberry poundcake. A quick step over to Alkar's meager stack of dishes, and the place settings were complete.

She picked up the little bag of coffee with one hand and lifted a finger to the fairy lights again, dimming them, then made her way first to the stove to deposit the coffee, and then to the bed.

Reaching into her pack once again, she pulled out her favorite nightclothes and a book she had brought with her when she'd been assigned to Lunaris but hadn't yet had time to start before tossing the pack into the far reaches of the cave. Stripping out of her clothes was perfunctory and habitual, though she did make at least a token effort to ensure her boots were shoved somewhere that they wouldn't become a potential tripping hazard.

The soft, delicate gauze of her sleeping shift whispered over her skin as she tugged it into place. As she slipped beneath the sheets, a waft of scent that was unmistakably Alkar washed over her, and it was all she could do not to purr aloud. His scent clung thick and heavy on his pillow, too, as she cuddled against it, and she burrowed her nose into it, filling her lungs and not even bothering to fight the smile she knew was broad and bright on her face.

And then she grabbed her book and waited.

Hours later, exhaustion was finally starting to drag heavily on her eyelids when daylight flooded down the stairs as the hatch opened. Greer set her book aside and watched as Alkar stumbled down the steps, clothes clutched in his hands. He blinked owlishly at her in the bed, eyes red-rimmed and shoulders sagging until his brain caught up with him and he snapped to rigid attention, immediately on alert. The muscles in his shoulders and arms tensed, and his wolf ears stood straight up.

Greer was almost sure his tail bristled a little.

"Greer? What's wrong? Why're you here?"

She stretched out an arm to him, wiggling her fingers in invitation. "Everything's fine. I'm fine. C'mere."

Alkar squinted warily at her but resumed staggering down the steps and toward the bed.

He dropped his clothes to the floor in a heap as he lifted a knee to the mattress and pressed his face into her outstretched hand. He was too exhausted to pout properly, but he made a valiant effort at it, twisting his lips just enough to frown a bit. "Thought I told you not to come."

Greer reached for him with her other hand, combing her fingers through his hair and coaxing him up the bed with gentle curls of her fingers against his jaw. "You did," she agreed.

Alkar dragged himself up the bed at a slow crawl, reaching for her thigh with a broad hand and tugging her leg over his hip as she pulled the covers over them both.

"I brought you breakfast," Greer whispered against his skin as his arm slid around her waist and tightened, tucking her close to his chest. A broad, deep yawn stretched his chest, and Greer couldn't help but feather a kiss across his sternum. He shuddered at the touch, and she could feel his pulse trip.

He grumbled sleepily, then buried his nose in her hair as his tail slung across her hip. "When?"

"Last night."

Another yawn, then the tickle of his fingertips stroking the nape of her neck. "Next time lock the hatch. Can't open it when I don't have thumbs."

"We'll talk about it later," she whispered, the words nearly lost in a yawn of her own.

Alkar grunted, then whispered a single word into her hair: "Stay."

She pressed another kiss to his chest, his pulse thumping steadily under her lips. "Thought you'd never ask."

#Alkar Cassian #Greer Taggart #OTP: My Home is Your Heart #August Willenheim #When the Night Comes #Galley writes stuff

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shotsbyshae · 5 years

Text

Who I Am

I'm Alexandra Sloan Wilson, the Winchesters are friends that gave me a family and I've been a hunter most of my life. Sam and Dean can often make life complicated, but little did I know, I was the one who was about to make things complicated. Every good hero & villain has their origin story...this is mine.

London

July 2nd, 1988

An older woman stands there, her long blonde tresses of hair framing her thin face as she looks down at the small infant bundled up in the bassinet in front of her. The baby has tiny black curls on her head with dark brown eyes that stare back up at the woman, full of innocence.

"I'm so sorry little one," the blonde-haired woman speaks softly, gently cupping the side of the child's face. The woman is torn in what she's about to do, and it is written all over her face as she holds both of her hands above the child in the bassinet and begins speaking in Latin.

The child's eyes suddenly glow a bright blue purple color for a few moments, then the color starts to glitch out, as if there's a bad connection, while the woman continues the spell. Then the bright color slowly fades away, leaving just the innocent brown eyes looking at her as the baby's face scrunches up in pain and she begins to cry.

She gently picks the infant up from the bassinet cradling her against her chest, "Everything's going to be okay now Alexandra." The blonde woman looks over as she hears someone else enter the room.

"Is she okay Melinda?" the woman questions as she comes closer, her long black hair pulled back into a low ponytail.

"Yes Laura," the blonde replies, "she's just a little fussy is all, she might be hungry."

"Well," the woman looks at her coldly, "go on then."

Melinda hesitates for a moment, looking from the child in her arms to the woman in front of her, "Would you like to hold her?"

Laura crosses her arms and the blonde woman continues, "You're her mother Laura."

"I have some business to attend to," the dark-haired woman replies, "I'll be back later."

She turns and leaves the room and Melinda looks down at the child whose crying has stopped and is looking at her with wide eyes, fingers entangled in some of her blonde curls.

"I will get you out of here," Melinda says quietly to the infant, "I promise."

London

Present Day

Lexi sits at the small dining room table, a folder lays open in front of her, with pages and photos expanding from it. She holds one photo in her hand and Ketch walks over to place a coffee mug on the table in front of her, careful to avoid any of the documents. Greyson and Ketch have been helping her for several weeks now tracking down leads on the witch Katrina and whoever it was who hired her to take Lexi. She'd lied to Dean when he'd asked if they'd had any luck. They had traced the lead back to a woman name Laura Addington.

"Who's this?" she asks looking at the photo of Melinda.

Greyson sits across the table from her, sipping from a coffee mug of his own, "Melinda Clarke."

"She was the one who dropped me at the orphanage?" the dark-haired girl questions.

"Yes," Ketch replies sitting down beside Lexi at the table, "Logan said she was sent by the British Men of Letters to obtain you, but she never returned."

"Obtain me? Why?"

Greyson shrugs his shoulders, "We don't know. There's no records of why."

"What does she have to do with Addington?" Lexi questions.

Ketch reaches over and pulls another photo out from the file folder as he begins, "Addington…"

He carefully slides the photo of a beautiful woman with dark green eyes and long black hair in front of Lexi as he continues, "is your mother."

Confusion and shock flash across the girl's face, as she reaches for the photo and stares at it, "What?"

There's a long moment of silence as Lexi processes this information and she shakes her head incredulously. "So, my bio-mom Laura, wants Michael…Dean, gone," Lexi looks at Ketch in disbelief, "what the hell is happening?"

"I'm as confused as you are dear," he replies.

"I should call them," she says quietly.

"No," Ketch interrupts her quickly, "you shouldn't. We need to wait until we know what Addington's plan is. Don't you think they have enough on their plates as it is?"

"And I want to know why the Men of Letters wanted to obtain you," Greyson adds, "whatever the reason, it can't be good."

"Where do we start?" Lexi questions Ketch.

He reaches over and pulls a piece of paper off the top of the stack, "I have an address for the son of Melinda Clarke."

"Ok," she replies, "Where?"

"Close to home actually," Ketch gives her a smile, "Salina, Kansas."

"Well that's not weird at all," Lexi replies sarcastically.

Saint Louis, MO

October 12th, 2000

A twelve-year old Lexi steps off the bright yellow school bus and slowly walks up concrete path to the small red house. To anyone else, it would appear warm and welcoming, but to her, it was cold and callous. Most of the kids in her class hated school, but for her it was an escape, it was this place she had to call home which she hated.

Today was the start of spring break, which meant a week stuck in this place and the dread weighs her down as she opens the front door.

"Alexandra," Lilian, her latest cream of the crop foster mother, calls from the kitchen.

She'd lost count on the number of foster homes she'd been in, but this one was by far the worst, even though she'd only been here two weeks. She slowly makes her way into the kitchen and pushes the stray strands of hair that have fallen out of her ponytail behind her ear.

"Yea ma'am," she says upon seeing the tall brunette woman in the blue dress. Lexi can smell the vodka from across the room.

"I went to gather your laundry this morning," the woman begins, anger apparent on her face, "you didn't make your bed."

"I'm sorry," the girl says quickly.

Lilian raises her right hand and comes down hard across the girl's cheek and Lexi clutches her face in pain as the woman states, "Don't let it happen again."

From outside the house, the scene is witnessed through the large kitchen window and someone lowers a camera before they turn and leave.

Later that night, Lexi sits at the desk in her room, looking in a small mirror, checking to see if there was a mark left from the slap earlier when she hears a small tap on her bedroom window. She leans over to look and sees a familiar face giving her a small smile.

Lexi stands up and walks over to open the window and the visitor doesn't enter the room, he just moves to sit on the windowsill.

"Peter," she acknowledges the older boy who looks to be anywhere from sixteen to eighteen.

"Wendy," he replies with a smirk at the nickname.

"You're late," she says as she pulls her desk chair over beside the window and sits down, folding her legs up under her.

"Sorry," he reaches over, offering the girl a Styrofoam cup, "I had to make a stop, but I brought you this."

Lexi accepts it with a little hesitation, "What is it?"

"Chocolate peanut butter milkshake," the boy replies, not telling her he had to hand deliver the photographs he'd taken earlier to child services.

She takes a sip from the straw and looks down at the dark brown wooden floorboards below her.

"Are you okay?" he questions quietly as he watches the girl.

"Always," she replies, giving a quick fake smile, "You know you show up when things are great."

"I'm serious," the boy says with concern apparent on his face.

"Then take me with you," Lexi looks at him with subtle contempt.

The boy with dirty blonde hair looks at her dejectedly, "You know I can't. My grandmother is trying, but…"

"You've been saying that for the past year," Lexi narrows her eyes at him, "what's your angle?"

"What?" he asks with confusion.

"I'm thankful," she begins quietly, as not to disturb the rest of the house, "you saved me that day on the street. Those guys would have killed me, but this coming around and finding me…" She places the milkshake down on the windowsill and stands up from the chair before she steps away from the window. "Foster home after foster home," Lexi continues, as she turns back to look at the boy who sits in her window, "I mean…at first, I thought it was nice, like you wanted to protect me, but now…" Lexi spreads her arms out beside her in frustration, "it's getting a little weird. It's been over a year, you keep saying your grandmother is trying to help get me out, but here I am. Is this a game for you, some twisted, perverted game? Are you trying to weasel your way into my pants or something?"

"No Alexandra," he says quickly, with a shake of his head, "God no…I would never do that to you."

Even at twelve, she isn't sure whether to be relieved or disappointed by that statement. He is cute, boy band cute, no doubt about it. The kind of guy other girls her age talked about all day; they scribbled Mrs. Timberlake or Mrs. Carter all over their notebooks.

"Then why are you here Peter?" she questions him as she folds her arms across her chest.

He drops his head for a moment, then glances back up at her solemnly, "It's complicated."

A door slams from inside the house which causes them to look at each other in surprise as Lexi quickly moves to the window, "You have to go."

"I'll be back for you," Peter grabs the milkshake with one hand and Lexi's wrist with the other for a split second to garner her attention, "I promise."

"You better," she replies, then gives him a soft smile before she carefully pulls the window closed so it doesn't make any noise. She jerks her desk chair back to her desk and sits down as she pretends to do homework. The door to her bedroom jerks open and Lilian stands there for a moment, checking the room before she slams the door shut.

Salina, Kansas Present Day

Ketch reaches up and knocks on the door to the apartment while Lexi leans back against the wall, facing him. She's giving him a doubtful look as she folds her arms across her chest.

"What makes you think he even still lives here?" Lexi questions her friend as they hear a deadbolt being unlocked from inside.

"Yea," the man says as he cracks the door open, "can I help you?"

"We're looking for Evan Clarke," Ketch says, indicating himself and Lexi.

"Who's asking?" the guy questions defensively, peering through the crack at the two strangers.

"It's concerning his mother, Melinda Clarke," Ketch continues trying to remain civil, but Lexi slams her hand hard against the door, turning so she can see the man who is peering through the crack.

"Look," she says sharply, "are you Evan Clarke or not, because I don't have time for this shit."

The man's blue eyes look as if they recognize her for a moment, but he shakes it off, "give me a minute." He closes the door and Ketch looks at Lexi in exasperation at her outburst and she shrugs her shoulders.

After a few moments the door opens back up and a tall, beautiful blonde woman exits the apartment, purse and shoes in hand, walk of shame evident. Lexi cocks an eyebrow and gives Ketch a smirk as she enters the apartment. The dark-haired girl looks over to Evan then points back at the blonde who just left as she says, "Sorry for the intrusion."

"I doubt that. Now, what about my mother?" Evan questions from the small kitchenette area. "And who are you?"

Lexi takes note of his athletic figure in the dark jeans he's wearing, and the grey pocket t-shirt which fits just a little too snug around his shoulders and chest, but she doubts any woman in their right mind would complain. Suddenly she's reminded of all the layers she's accustomed to dealing with when it comes to the men in her life and realizes it's actually a blessing. This one-layer stuff is quite distracting. His hair is darker on the bottom, but lighter on the top and a bit on the longer side, not as long as Sam's though. He's also sporting a dark beard that would almost rival that of the younger Winchester's when he let his grow, not that she would ever tell Dean that.

"Historians," Ketch answers, since Lexi's not going to, "with The British Library."

Evan appears to be putting coffee grounds into his coffee maker, but quickly moves to pull out a small pistol from under the cabinet, pointing it at the two people standing across from him.

"British Men of Letters sounds more appropriate," his tone is laced with anger, "I'm not an idiot."

"Do I sound British?" Lexi looks annoyed, but she has her hands up, "Trust me, we're not with those assholes. We're hunters."

Evan eyes them suspiciously still, "Why do hunter's need information about my mom?"

"There was a child," Ketch begins carefully, "a child the Men of Letters sent your mother to obtain."

"Yea and," Evan says, still training the weapon on them.

"We just need to know why?" Lexi adds.

Evan slowly lowers the weapon and lays it on the bar in front of him, before he begins, "Because…my mother was a witch…they needed her to bind the child's powers before she brought her back to them."

"Powers?" the dark-haired girl questions, confusion apparent on her face.

"The child was a fourth generation natural," Evan says, "My mother was able to bind her powers, but she still died trying to protect her."

Lexi has grabbed the nearest chair to lean against, her legs feeling weak under her. The entire room seems larger now than it was when they first entered it and suddenly the voices of the men in the room with her seem so very distant and far away. Powers. Witch, I'm a friggin' witch, she thinks to herself.

"Do you know why the Men of Letters wanted the child?" Ketch questions, reaching over to place a reassuring hand at Lexi's elbow.

"No idea," Evan shrugs his shoulders, "what does it matter anyway? The girl died when she was twelve."

"What?" the dark-haired man asks in surprise at this comment.

"The child," the other man continues, "the Men of Letters had her killed. She's dead."

Ketch and Lexi immediately share a glance as Evan turns to pull a coffee mug from the shelf above his sink, and Lexi speaks up, her voice meeker than she prefers, "No…I'm not."

The mug slips from Evan's hand and shatters upon impact on the floor, he turns to look behind him at the young woman standing in his living room. Evan stares at her for a moment, anger flaring in his blue eyes.

"Get out!" he snarls at them as he raises his hand toward his door, causing it jerk open.

"Easy there," Ketch's eyes go wide in shock, the revelation Evan has powers made very obvious.

"I said get out," Evan repeats himself, using his hand to fling Ketch out of the door.

"Look," Lexi tries to bargain, she can see the extensive emotional state the man is in, "I just need answers…"

Evan walks the small distance separating him and the dark-haired girl until he's towering over her, but she doesn't back down, "I don't know who you are, but I watched Alexandra die when she was twelve. I was there when the car exploded, the British Men of Letters murdered her, and for you to show up at my door…"

"An explosion?" Lexi interrupts him and she takes a step back, "I was told my foster parents died in a car crash when I was twelve. Why were you there?"

Evan tilts his head slightly, unsure if he wants to answer her question, "My mother died protecting her. I felt like it was my job to protect her too, a way to honor my mother."

Lexi's staring at him and suddenly the piercing blue eyes don't belong to the man before her, they belong to the teenage boy sitting on her windowsill offering her a milkshake. She snaps back to the present and she's nauseous; he hasn't crossed her mind in over fifteen years. Lexi realizes she's still staring at him and she slowly covers her mouth with both hands as she turns away from him. Evan turns around still agitated and begins to walk back to the kitchenette, using his hand to fling his door shut, leaving Ketch outside of the apartment.

"Peter," the name slips from her lips quietly, stopping Evan dead in his tracks, "you're Peter Pan."

No one had ever called him by that name but her, it was the nickname she had given him years ago.

Evan slowly turns to face the girl, confusion replacing some of the anger as he says, "Wendy."

Lexi raises her eyebrows and gives a small, reassuring nod.

"You're alive," Evan nearly chokes on the statement.

Lexi nods her head once more, "I am."

Eighteen years of self-hatred for not protecting her comes boiling to the surface and Evan doesn't control himself. Lexi sees the mixture of relief and anger wash over the man's face and she takes a small step backwards as he jerks his hands sending a lamp crashing to the floor, while books and magazines from the end table beside the chair go flying across the room. Various other small objects vibrate off the shelves that line one wall of the apartment as the man's emotional outburst continues. Lexi ducks as a book sails past her head which scares her a little, after all, she's not used to dealing with this kind of environment and she quickly grabs the book angrily.

"Hey!" she yells as she throws the book back at Evan and he stops it with his hand, "Watch it!" She realizes what she's just done and has a split-second regret, because it's apparent he's a witch like his mother.

Evan drops the book onto the bar and closes his fists tightly, looking a little shameful, "Sorry. It's a lot to process."

"Really?!" She yells, unable to contain her outburst, "You just told me I'm a friggin' witch. That's a lot to process."

There's a small knock on the door, which is Ketch signaling he's still outside, and Lexi moves to open the door for him. The black-haired man adjusts his jacket as he walks back inside the apartment and looks over to Evan, "Are we all on the same page now?"

"The 'I'm alive and apparently, I'm a witch' page," Lexi says with a touch of sarcasm to Ketch.

"Fourth generation I believe," her friend corrects her.

The bearded man gives a single nod of his head as Lexi closes the door and a thought occurs to him, "Wait, how did you find me?"

"An old Men of Letters file," Lexi replies crossing her arms, "why?"

"They know your alive?" Evan asks, concern growing on his face.

Ketch looks over at Lexi, as he answers, "Of course, why?"

"We should go," Evan replies, "as soon as they found out you were alive, they've probably had someone watching you."

That would explain those surveillance photos, Lexi thinks to herself.

"I have a box of my mother's things in a storage unit about thirty minutes outside of town," Evan says, then looks over to Lexi, "I've never really gone through it, but I know there was a folder with your name on it."

"Let's go then," Ketch responds before he turns towards the door.

"Hold up," Lexi interrupts, "we're just supposed to trust Chris Halliwell?"

The bearded man looks a little offended by the Charmed reference, as Ketch turns back to look at Lexi, "The door isn't sound proof, I thought you knew him?"

"Yea," she begins with a tone of exasperation to her friend, "eighteen years ago. People change Ketch, hell, two years ago you I wouldn't have trusted you with a dog, much less my life."

"I'm standing right here," Evan says with annoyance raising his hand to signal his presence.

"Don't you know," Lexi continues her speech to Ketch, ignoring the other man's remark, "you don't trust the strange guy from your past who seems to have good intentions, especially when he has magic hands."

Ketch stands there for a moment in silence and then takes a deep breath before he pulls his pistol out of the shoulder holster under his jacket and holds it out for Evan to see as he glances over at the blue-eyed man with annoyance, "This is loaded with witch killing bullets by the way, if you're considering using those magic hands of yours again."

"Understood," Evan replies with a smirk, "keeping my magic hands to myself, not a problem, just keep psycho Sally there in check."

Lexi gives Ketch a death glare before she storms passed him to jerk the door open. He's holstering his pistol as Evan walks up, knowing Lexi's out of earshot he gives an exasperated sigh as he says, "That's easier said than done sometimes."

"It's number eleven Alexandra," Evan says as he climbs out of the car in front of the storage unit.

"Lexi," she corrects him, "or Wilson, please, no one calls me Alexandra." The three of them approach the unit with the number eleven on it and Evan pulls a key from his pocket to unlock the padlock. Once he slips off the padlock, he opens the door and flips on the light switch. Once the room is illuminated, it is evident the small unit has been ransacked.

"No!" Evan states, rushing over to a shelf and pulling an empty banker box from it, "son of a bitch!"

Lexi and Ketch follow cautiously behind him and she picks up a broken picture frame, in it a picture of Melinda and a little five-year-old Evan stare back at her and she gently lays it on the shelf beside her.

"When was the last time you were here?" she questions him quietly.

"Two days ago," Evan replies, then slings the empty box across the room in frustration.

"I'll go check the security footage," Ketch states before he turns to exit the unit.

"I'm sorry," Lexi says, "I did this."

"It's not your fault," he responds, picking up some photo albums from the floor.

"I kicked the hornet's nest," she replies.

Ketch is able to recognize two of the men on the security footage as former associates he used to work with. The three of them decide to stop at a small diner they passed on the way to the storage unit for food and to discuss their next steps. Lexi barely eats any of the burger she orders, but she does drink a couple of beers with the order of fries she snacks on, before she excuses herself from the table.

"I need to make a call," Ketch states as he too stands up to step away from the table, leaving Evan alone in the small diner.

Once outside, Ketch dials a number on his cell and places it up to his ear, "Hi, I don't have much time to explain, but we have a bit of a situation."

Lexi approaches the bathroom sink and notices the pretty blonde-haired woman who stands a few inches taller than her standing at the sink beside her re-applying a matte shade of red lipstick to her Kardashian looking lips.

"I saw you earlier," the woman states in recognition looking at Lexi in the mirror as she begins to wash her hands.

The dark-haired girl glances up to the mirror in confusion as the woman continues, "You came in with those two guys, the handsome one and the British one."

The blonde gives her a flirty smile as nudges Lexi's arm with her elbow, "Mmmm girl, I could take one off your hands if you'd like."

"Oh," Lexi laughs as she grabs a towel to dry her hands, "I better hold on to them for now."

The woman leans over close to Lexi and her face turns serious as she whispers in Lexi's ear, "Seduce Evan Clarke, play on his emotions Alexandra, make him fall for you."

Lexi has a dazed expression on her face as the woman whispers the order to her and blinks once before turning to exit the bathroom after the blonde finishes speaking. The woman turns back to the mirror with a malevolent grin and transforms from the pretty Kardashian type blonde-haired woman into Laura Addington.

"So, when I make you kill him," Laura states to herself in the mirror, "It'll be more fun to watch."

Once back at the table, Lexi looks around the small restaurant, "Where's Ketch?"

"Oh," Evan replies, "he said he had to make a phone call."

Lexi nods her head then smirks to the man across from her, "So, there's a blonde in the bathroom…she basically wants to take you home."

Evan raises a curious eyebrow, "Oh really?"

"I grabbed her number," the girl replies, "just in case, I know you like blondes."

Evan leans forward slightly, "I don't, actually."

"If you say so," Lexi shrugs her shoulders as if she doesn't believe him.

"Do you trust anyone?" Evan shakes his head at her in disbelief.

"The list is small," she responds with a smirk.

"You used to trust me," he replies sincerely, "a long time ago."

Lexi thinks on those words for a moment, that was a lifetime ago. She swallows the lump that forms in her throat and she stands up from the table, "I'll be outside."

Evan watches her walkaway, then he somberly pulls his wallet from his back pocket to pay for their food.

Lexi has taken up position on the swing set across the street from the small diner. She hears the chime of the bell on the door indicating that someone has either entered or exited the building, but she doesn't look up. She continues to idly swing back and forth, letting her boots drag through the pea gravel on each backwards pass. After a moment, a Styrofoam milkshake container appears in her line of sight and she slows the swing to a stop, looking up at Evan who gives her a tiny, apologetic smile, "Chocolate peanut butter."

"You remembered," she looks surprised as she takes the container and takes a sip from the straw.

"Was it something I said in there?" Evan questions as he sits down on the swing next to her.

Lexi looks over at him, fiddling with the straw in her cup, "It's dumb, really."

She holds his gaze for a moment, then looks back down to her feet. He furrows his brow and grabs the chains of his swing in each hand and turns it to face her, "Tell me."

"You were the first," she begins without looking up, her arms are wrapped around the chains of her swing, "you were the first boy who broke my heart."

Evan has a look of surprise at this revelation, "What?"

"You promised to come back for me," she replies without looking at him, "and you didn't."

"I thought you died," he says with a touch of exasperation.

"I didn't know that then," Lexi looks at him innocently, "You spent over a year in and out of my life being the guy who would sneak into my room at night just to check on me."

"I never snuck into your room," Evan corrects her, "I always stayed outside the window."

"And then there's that," she continues, "You were the coolest guy, super cute, and you were always checking on me, so I just thought that…and when I brought it up, you shut me down so hard. I never got over that, maybe that's why I like to be in control now; I don't want to feel that way again."

"Alexandra," Evan begins softly, as he sits there staring at her in shock at this confession. Lexi looks back down as he continues, "You were twelve and I was seventeen, that five-year difference meant a lot back then. You were just a kid."

The dark-haired girl cuts her eyes over to him as she responds, "I'm not a kid anymore."

What are you doing? She thinks to herself, stop it, you're basically throwing yourself at him. This is not who you are. You are stronger than this.

"Trust me," he leans closer to her with a flirty grin, "I've noticed."

Lexi turns her swing sideways to face him, some unnatural force inside her feels as if it's making her body move against her will. I mean really, she thinks to herself, it could be worse. At least he's attractive, she carefully moves closer until her nose is almost touching his, she bites her bottom lip seductively and Evan takes a deep breath before he whispers, "Don't do this, unless it's what you want."

The dark-haired girl hesitates for a moment, before she lays her forehead against his, closing her eyes. After a few seconds she lifts her feet and allows the swing to jerk her away from him.

"Sorry, I feel like that was a little slutty of me," she apologizes standing up quickly, "I don't know where that came from. That was weird."

Evan raises a curious eyebrow as Lexi continues, "Where's Ketch?" The blue-eyed man shrugs his shoulders as another voice interrupts them from behind Lexi.

"Ketch," the voice begins, and Lexi turns to see Greyson standing behind her, "is back in London."

Was Greyson the call Ketch had to make, she thinks to herself and suddenly feels betrayed.

"What?" Lexi questions him in surprise as Evan stands up quickly, "Why?"

"We need to talk Lexi," Greyson says then glances at Evan, "alone."

"I don't think so pal," Evan remarks.

The dark-haired girl looks over at the blue-eyed man as she folds her arms across her chest, "Excuse you, I speak for myself."

The smug look on Greyson's face drops as Lexi turns her glare back to him, "I don't think so. He goes where I go."

"How long?" Lexi's voice was low but angry as she looks across to Greyson.

The blonde-haired man looks defeated as he sees the pain in her eyes, "Lexi…I'm sorry, I…"

"HOW LONG?!" She yells at him, slamming her fist down on the small table beside her.

"It was after you met," Logan answers, "after you left London the first time."

Lexi looks over at the blonde headed woman, shaking her head in disgust, "I thought we were friends. I thought I could trust you."

"It was the only way to protect you," Greyson says quietly, "they would have sent someone else after you if Logan wasn't the one monitoring you."

"You've been lying to me this whole time," the dark-haired girl responds, the resentment inside her building, "you knew who I was, you knew everything about me…YOU KNEW AND YOU LIED!"

"We need to go Lexi," Logan urges her, "Laura escaped two days ago. She's coming for you."

Lexi shakes her head slowly, "Like I'm supposed to trust you now."

Greyson reaches to take her hand, "Lexi please…"

She jerks her hand away from him, a tear slipping down her cheek, "Don't…don't you dare touch me."

Lexi turns and jerks the motel door open, glancing at Evan for a brief moment, "Let's go."

"They're not going to let you leave," Logan states from behind Lexi.

The dark-haired girl looks back over her shoulder at her former friend, "We'll see about that."

Evan climbs into the passenger seat and looks over at Lexi cautiously as she throws the car into reverse, she reaches over to put her hand on the side of the passenger seat. She looks over her shoulder to check behind her then she slams the gas pedal into the floor. The man braces himself as he watches her turn back, slamming the gear shifter in drive as she spins the steering wheel flawlessly around, executing a J-turn. She can't help but smile to herself, knowing Dean would be proud to have seen that, after all, he'd spent almost an entire Saturday teaching her.

Lexi pulls the car out onto the road only to slam on the brakes as her headlights illuminate four dark SUV's blocking the roadway. She counts eight men, each standing on either side of the vehicles, weapons drawn and aimed at them. The dark-haired girl grips the steering wheel with both hands but doesn't look away from the scene in front of her as she speaks, "Hey Ev."

"Yea," he's also sizing up their current situation.

"You can use those magic hands now," she says.

"Thought you'd never ask," Evan remarks with a smirk as he raises his hands up and uses them to slide two of the SUV's apart, wide enough for Lexi to drive through and she slams on the gas. The blue-eyed man quickly disarms the men left standing with a wave of his hand as they try and take shots at the car as it blows past them.

They drive in silence for a while in the dark before Evan breaks the silence, "I'm sorry."

"That list of people I trust just got a lot smaller," she comments, not taking her eyes off the road.

The screen on her dash lights up: Incoming Call: Dean W.

She reaches over and pushes the green answer button on the screen and says hesitantly, "Hey Dean."

"Lex," his tone is stern, indicating he knows something is up, "what the hell is going on?"

She glances over to Evan as she speaks, "I may need you to elaborate?"

"Ketch left me a voicemail earlier saying he didn't have time to explain, but that there was a situation," Dean begins.

So, Ketch didn't call Greyson, he called Dean, Lexi thinks to herself, so he didn't betray her after all.

"Then I hear him say 'What the bloody hell Moore?'," the older brother continues and Lexi can't help but smirk at Dean's British impression of Ketch, "then the phone cuts off and I've tried to call him back three times and I just keep getting sent to voicemail. Aren't you with him?"

"I was," she replies, "but yea, I'm pretty sure Greyson took him back to London."

"Wait your stateside?" Dean questions incredulously.

"Yea, long story, I promise I'll explain later," Lexi says, "but unless I tell you otherwise, don't trust Greyson or Logan."

"Got it, that guy was a dick anyway," he responds, and she can hear the concern in his voice, "Lex, are you good?"

"Always," she answers, "I'll call you later."

"You better."

"Bye D."

"Bye."

Evan waits for a moment before he speaks, "Friend of yours."

Lexi smiles warmly and it's the first time he's seen her actually smile, "My best friend, he and his brother Sam, they gave me a family, something I never really had before."

"That's good," the man replies with a smile, "Happy looks good on you."

Lexi and Evan are walking up the front walk to a small house with blue siding when the front door suddenly jerks open and a young woman looks at them angrily, "Hurry up and get inside."

The dark-haired girl can't help but notice the blonde mohawk the other woman is sporting, along with a lip ring and dark eye liner, which just adds to her 'don't mess with me' vibe. She has on black cotton shorts, which only accentuate her long tan legs. Lexi wants to compliment her Guns n Roses tee-shirt, but she thinks it's probably best to keep her mouth shut for now.

"Sorry V," Evan says as they make their way inside the house, "I wasn't sure where else we should go. Alexandra, this is V."

"Lexi is fine," the dark-haired girl corrects him with a smile to the woman, noticing the dark purple stud on the side of her nose.

The woman nods but doesn't seem overly friendly as she points to the couch in the room, "I put some pillows and blankets over there, bathroom is down that hallway."

"Thanks," Evan responds, "I need one more thing though."

"You know it doesn't always work like that," V looks at him with slight frustration.

"Will you try," the blue-eyed man responds, "please."

Lexi is sitting in the middle of the tiny living room, V sits directly in front of her, both women sit with their legs crossed under them and three white candles are lit and sitting in the floor between them. Evan sits on the edge of the coffee table overlooking them.

"Psychic huh?" Lexi says quietly to the other woman.

"I prefer the term clairvoyant," V replies, "the future is my niche. Sometimes I see things without having to be near someone, especially people I know."

"One night," Evan says, "I'm at bar and V calls me, tells me the redhead I'm talking to is married, and to leave, because she just saw a glimpse of my future and it involved her husband walking in on us the next morning and killing me."

"True test of friendship there, because she was hot," V smirks to Lexi then continues, "Now, for this to work, I need you to open your mind to me Lexi, no walls, understand?"

The dark-haired girl takes a deep breath, not liking the idea of letting a stranger in her mind, but she glances over at Evan, "Understood."

V takes both of Lexi's hands in hers and both women close their eyes. V's face looks as if she in distress as her eye lids flutter and after a few moments she jerks her hands away from Lexi, looking at the dark-haired girl in anguish, "Oh no."

"What did you see?" Evan questions his friend.

"Her death," V responds quietly, then looks over to her friend in horror, "Evan you kill her."

The shock is apparent on Evan's face at her statement and Lexi sits there in silence staring blankly into the flames of the candles in front of her.

"No," Evan responds quickly, "that can't be right."

"When have I ever been wrong?" V sounds offended, "Someone named Laura wants her with her powers unbound, but you said Laura can't have that type of control and there is no other way."

Evan looks confused and he looks over to see Lexi looking up at him. He can see the fear she's trying to keep hidden, a lot has changed in eighteen years, but that look hasn't. Evan shakes his head, "No, we'll figure something out."

"There may not be another choice," Lexi says stoically.

Later that night, Evan rolls over onto his back on the floor, staring wide-eyed at the ceiling, sleep evades him with his mind racing over the evening's earlier events. He feels a pair of eyes on him and glances over to the couch beside him and sees Lexi is curled up on her side staring at him.

"Can't sleep?" he states the obvious.

"Tell me about your mom," she says quietly.

He rubs an exhausted hand across his face, "I don't remember much, mostly stories my grandmother would tell me. She loved Elton John, which drove my grandmother crazy at the time but growing up she would play my mom's old Elton vinyl's whenever she would start missing her, which was often. She would tell me that my mom always saw the good in people, even when others didn't."

"Did your grandmother ever talk about what happened to her?" Lexi asks the question hesitantly.

"Not really," he responds, "all she ever told me was that she had given my mother a resurrection charm before she left for London that day and how angry she was that she hadn't used it."

The words resurrection charm rings a bell in Lexi's mind and Rowena's name comes to her and a sudden realization hits her, "That's it."

She sits up quickly and Evan looks at her in surprise, slowing pushing himself up from the floor as Lexi continues, "Laura wants to unbind my powers. What if we beat her to it?"

"How?" he questions her.

"I don't know," Lexi replies, "but I know someone who might."

"Lexi dear," Rowena sounds a bit groggy in the phone, "this better be important."

"It is," the girl replies into the phone in her hand, she has it on speaker and is holding it between her and Evan, who has moved to sit on the edge of the coffee table across from Lexi, "Hypothetically speaking, if a witch's powers were bound, how does one go about unbinding them?"

There's a momentary pause on the other end of the line, "What's this about dear?"

Lexi can hear the trepidation in her friend's voice, "I promise to explain everything, but it's very important Rowena, you know I wouldn't ask if it wasn't."

The woman sighs audibly, "The only way to unbind their powers is through a specific ritual."

"Do you know it?" Lexi questions trying not to sound eager.

Another momentary pause, "Do you have a pen?"

Evan scrambles on the table for something to write with and finds a pencil with a notepad as Lexi speaks, "Yes, go ahead."

Rowena gives Lexi the necessary information and Evan writes everything down as the woman speaks through the phone. Once she finishes speaking, Rowena's tone of voice changes, "Lexi dear, have you talked with Samuel?"

The dark-haired girl looks up at Evan and pushes the button to take Rowena off of speaker and puts the phone up to her ear, "No, I spoke to Dean earlier tonight. What's going on?"

"Michael's gone," Rowena says calmly, "Dean suffered some major head trauma and he escaped. He…he convinced me to let him inside and I did, but he still killed some of the hunters in the bunker."

"Who?" Lexi questions solemnly and Rowena's voice seems distant as she sadly names them off to Lexi.

"Jack was able to defeat him though," the woman continues, "Michael is gone for good this time."

"How are they?" she asks wondering why Dean hadn't said anything before.

"I can't quite get a read-on Dean," Rowena says, "but I know Samuel's taking it hard."

"I should be there," she says more to herself than anyone else.

"Why aren't you?" Rowena's tone isn't hurtful, she sounds genuinely concerned.

"It's complicated," Lexi responds, "I promise, I will explain everything later."

After she ends the call with Rowena, she holds the phone in her hand for a moment debating on whether to call Sam or not. I need to finish this situation with Laura first. If Michael is gone, she has no reason to be after Dean at this point. She'll only want me and if I have my witchy powers unleashed, I'll have the advantage.

"Everything okay?" Evan's question breaks her train of thought.

"Yea," she replies, nodding at the notepad, "You think you can do this?"

"This will be easy," he taps the notepad on his knee, "are you sure you want to do this?"

"What?" she questions.

"There's no going back," Evan responds, "once we do this, everything changes."

"I get it," she holds her hands up, wiggling her fingers, "powers."

"With great power comes great responsibility," the man says his tone serious.

"Spider-man," Lexi furrows her eyebrows, "really?"

"It's all I could think of," he shrugs his shoulders, as Lexi stands up from the couch, "are you sure you don't want to call your friends, talk this over with them."

Lexi starts to walk toward the hallway but stops at his statement and turns slightly to look at him, "I'm not looking for forgiveness, and I'm way past asking for permission."

She turns to continue towards the bathroom as Evan raises a curious eyebrow, "Was that Captain A…"

"Damn straight," Lexi calls over her shoulder without turning around.

"Language," Evan smirks as she disappears into the bathroom.

Lexi sits in the middle of an elaborate circle lined with candles that Evan had drawn in the middle of V's living room floor; he made the comment she'd make him clean it up later while he was drawing it. Lexi gives a final nod to Evan before she begins the incantation, which she repeats twice before taking the small knife in her right hand and cutting a small incision in her neck.

Evan watches in awe as purple energy pours from the cut and illuminates what appears to be shackles surrounding the girl. The room begins to shake as blood pours from Lexi's eyes, and each shackle slowing begins to shatter. Once they're completely gone, the blood from her eyes disappears, the cut in her neck heals, and all the candles surrounding her are blown out by a sudden breeze.

When Lexi opens her eyes to look at him, they're glowing a bright blue that slowing fades away and she takes a deep breath as the bedroom door to their right jerks open and V looks at them angrily, "What the hell have you done?"

"Trying to change the future," Lexi states from her place on the floor.

"No shit," V responds, then she looks over at Evan, "it's changed alright. She lives, but now several other's die, including you."

Lexi looks at her confused, "What? What do you mean several others?"

V looks back down to her, "I don't know, I didn't recognize them. Two guys, one tall with long hair and a woman with blonde hair, all of them around you."

Lexi feels nauseous, "When?"

V looks over at the clock on her wall, seeing that it is two in the morning, "Today."

Lexi quickly stands up, her mind racing, "I should…I should go."

"What?" Evan questions, "Wait a minute, just calm down."

"NO!" Lexi says louder than she means to, "I'm going to go, you need to stay here."

"I don't think that's a good idea," he responds.

"She literally just said everyone around me dies today," Lexi says in frustration as she walks towards the front door, "stay away from me. Please. I don't want your blood on my hands."

Lexi walks out the door and V grabs her friend's arm as he starts to chase after her, "Evan, let her go." He turns and sees the concern on his friend's face, and he takes a deep breath as he glances back at the closed door.

Lexi sits in her car as the sun comes up over the horizon, I just have to stay away from everyone today. No problem. She looks down at her hands, she doesn't feel any different after the unbinding ritual, Maybe I don't have magical powers after all, maybe everyone was wrong about me this whole time.

Her phone rings, and she looks down to see Dean's name on the caller ID. It seems a little early for him to be calling and she hesitantly answers, "Hey."

"Hi sweetheart," a woman's face says from the other end of the phone and she knows without question it's Laura.

"Where's Dean?" Lexi questions angrily.

"Oh, he's here with me," Laura responds, "So is little brother. I'll text you the address. It goes without saying that if you don't show up, I'll kill them both."

The phone clicks and angry tears begin to stream down Lexi's face as she starts her car.

Lexi parks her car beside the brick building and walks around the front of it to see an abandoned parking lot, a couple old cars scattered about it. She sees Sam and Dean both standing about six feet from each other, it apparent they're being held in place by an invisible force. She's also surprised to see Greyson and Logan are standing close to them as well, both of them in the same situation.

Laura comes walking out from behind a van and past where Sam stands to smile at the girl who's just joined her party, "My little girl is all grown up."

Lexi shakes her head balling her fists up at her sides, "Don't…don't you try to play the mom card now you psycho."

"Oh, you're angry with me," Laura feigns sadness, "why? Because I kidnapped your friends? They're not your friends sweetie, they lied to you, remember?"

She points a finger over at Greyson and Logan who look ashamed at her statement and Laura continues pointing over to the Winchesters, "And let's not get started on these two, they're holding you back."

Lexi doesn't respond, the anger inside her building as Laura says, "You were meant for greatness darling and the life you've been living…it's pathetic really."

"Leave her alone," Sam snarls to the woman and Laura turns to him, using her hand to throw him back against the van. Lexi can see pain shoot through his body from the impact as Laura begins to move her hand again.

"STOP!" Lexi yells, gaining Laura's attention in time to see Lexi throw her hand up in her direction, sending a shot of energy at her, knocking the witch back across the concrete and causing all the windows in the cars to shatter around them.

Everyone looks at Lexi in disbelief as Laura begins to laugh maniacally as she stands back up, "Look at you. You unbound your powers; did Evan help you with that?"

Lexi just stares at her without responding and Laura continues, "He did, didn't he? Well this makes things more interesting."

The dark-haired witch looks over to Greyson and Logan and then back to Lexi giving her a direct order, "Kill the blonde girl."

"No!" Greyson yells.

Lexi's eyes go wide in surprise at the statement and she realizes she can't control her hands as they raise up and shoot a blast of energy straight into Logan's chest. Greyson yells out in agony as he watches his sister's body crumple to the ground. Sam and Dean watch the scene unfold in horror and see the sadness on Lexi's face at what she's just done.

"How could you?!" Greyson screams at Lexi.

"No," she says quietly, "I didn't want to do that."

Laura flings her hand at Greyson, knocking his head hard against the car behind him, rendering him unconscious, "Men, so dramatic."

"Why," Lexi asks in confusion, "why are you doing this?"

"Because it's fun. I've been in a cell for almost thirty years, I've been a bit bored," the witch says with a smile.

"Lexi," Sam says carefully as he begins to walk towards her, "this isn't you."

"I know," she says nodding her head, "I can't stop though. There's something wrong."

"We'll fix it," he reassures her with a half-smile.

"Fight him," Laura orders and Lexi shakes her head, her face is wrought with guilt as she rushes towards Sam, slamming her right fist into his jaw.

Dean starts to pull his pistol from the back of his jeans, but Laura flings it away with her hand and pins him back against the car with a fling of her wrist.

"Lexi stop," Dean calls out and for a moment Lexi stops her assault and looks over at Dean in fear.

"No Alexandra," Laura interrupts, "continue." The dark-haired girl starts her assault on the younger brother again.

"What did you do to her?" Dean snarls at the witch as she moves closer to him.

"Melinda may have bound her powers," Laura begins, "but I cursed her with obedience as soon as she was born."

Dean tilts his head curiously waiting for the woman to explain and she does, "The curse of obedience, you've never heard of it? To think you call yourself a hunter. Once cursed, you obey every order given to you by the one who cursed you."

Sam is trying to defend himself against Lexi's onslaught, refusing to fight back, as Laura leans in closer to Dean with a mischievous smile, "Or the one who's love is pure and true, or some stupid Disney princess shit like that."

She sees the realization in his eyes and Dean starts to smile as he starts to speak, but Laura holds a finger to her lips and says, "Ssshhhh, sweet prince. I don't think so."

When Dean tries to speak again, no sound escapes and panic is evident on his features as he realizes that Sam's voice is gone as well when his brother looks at him in fear before Lexi does a low leg sweep and takes the younger brother's feet out from under him, knocking him on his back.

"KILL HIM!" Laura's voice booms from the distance and Lexi looks down to the man on the concrete below her.

Lexi sees blood coming from a cut she caused during their fight and watches it roll down the side of his head. She can see the fear in Sam's eyes upon hearing Laura's order and she closes her eyes for a moment as tears begin to stream down her face. She's fighting everything in her body, keeping her hands balled tightly into fists at her side; she falls to her knees beside the man.

The dark-haired girl looks over to the car Dean is pinned against, his face anxious and blood red as he yells, but no sound escapes his mouth. His eyes meet Lexi's and she feels her heart shatter from the hatred she sees in them. The inner struggle is evident as her hand moves, slowly and trembling, towards Sam; her nose is starting to bleed from the force with which she's fighting against the obedience curse.

"I'm sorry," she whimpers as the tears fall, "I can't stop it."

Sam reaches up with one hand and cups the side of her face, brushing away a tear as one slips down his own cheek, mouthing the words 'I know' and giving her a small comforting nod before he closes his eyes.

"LEX," a voice from behind her yells, "STOP!"

The force inside her disappears and she turns in time to see Evan step out from beside the building, he has a pistol trained on Laura and he takes a shot quickly. Laura looks from Lexi to Evan with surprise, then clutches the bleeding hole in her chest as she falls to her knees. His gun apparently loaded with witch-killing bullets.

"You," she spits at the man holding the pistol.

"Surprise," Evan's words are sharp as he moves closer to the witch, "that was for her."

He nods his head toward the dark-haired girl on the ground then continues, "This is for my mom."

Evan takes another shot and a dark red hole forms in the center of Laura's forehead and she limply falls backward.

The force holding Dean against the car releases him and Lexi collapses onto Sam's chest, tears of relief wash over her, and he finally exhales as he rests one arm across the girl's back while he moves his other hand to rub the side of his head.

"Sammy," Dean's voice cracks as he calls out from the ground beside the car as he begins to compose himself in order to stand up.

"I'm okay," Sam calls out to his brother, and the girl moves back to sit on the concrete so Sam can stand up and he goes over to check on his brother.

She can't help but notice Dean doesn't make eye contact with her and she silently wipes away the tears from her face. An outstretched hand appears in front of her and she looks up to see the man it belongs to staring at her, his face solemn. She takes the hand and Evan pulls her to her feet and watches as she dusts her jeans off.

"I told you to stay away," Lexi says quietly.

"I know," he replies, "I don't listen very well."

"Thanks," Lexi glances over to see the two brothers checking on one another and she looks back up at Evan with a smile, "Did you call me Lex?"

He laughs with a shake of his head, before a voice from across the lot is heard, "You're the reason she's dead."

Lexi and Evan turn to see Greyson walking towards them, he looks frazzled and angry as he pulls a pistol from the waistband of his jeans and points it at the man standing beside Lexi. She knows Greyson's pistol should be loaded with witch-killing bullets.

"Whoa!" Dean announces, as Sam glances over to Lexi in concern.

Being a witch is still new to Lexi so using her powers doesn't occur to her, being a hunter comes naturally and she just instinctively takes a step to her left, keeping her arms out to her side, putting her body between Evan and the gun; hoping Greyson wouldn't shoot her.

"Greyson, wait," she begins to say, trying to talk him off this ledge, but the deafening sound of the pistol being fired startles everyone, even Greyson himself looks shocked to see Lexi sharply inhale and stumble back into Evan.

Evan catches her as she starts to fall backwards. "Lexi," his voice is shaking as he drops to his knees with her, but she doesn't respond. She's gone.

"LEX!" Dean's voice breaks the silence surrounding them, as the older brother appears on the other side of them. He pulls Lexi to him, angrily shoving Evan backward as he mutters, "No, no, no."

Sam staggers in his steps when he's close enough to realize she's gone and he turns menacingly towards Greyson, "You son of a bitch!" The younger brother storms across the empty lot and sees the gun fly out of the blonde-haired man's hand, not knowing how and frankly not caring. The anger inside flows through him as he comes across with his right fist connecting hard with the side of Greyson's jaw, knocking him to the ground.

Evan was responsible for jerking the gun from his hand, and he's coming up behind the younger brother now, anger evident on his face as well. He jerks Greyson back to a standing position with the wave of his hand and he comes in with an undercut to Greyson's stomach then another punch to the face which once again knocks him to the concrete.

Sam stands there, still a bit surprised at the revelation of Evan being a witch also, having just watched him move a grown man with just the flick of his wrist. Evan glances over at the younger Winchester and both of them stand just a little bit straighter, sizing each other up, and giving nods of understanding.

"Sammy," Dean's voice is cracking a bit as he calls out to his brother.

Both men turn their attention back to the oldest Winchester as they move quickly back to where he's still kneeling on the ground. Sadness evident on each man's face as they look down at the lifeless body of the girl.

One of them barely knew her, but yet he felt so connected to her even though he hadn't seen her for nearly twenty years. To know her, was to love her. He thought this chapter of his life was just beginning, how could it already be over?

One of them was already more broken than he wanted to admit and looking down at her just reminds him how fragile life really is. She was his sister; she was the one who could make him laugh when things started to become more than he could handle on his own. How is he supposed to do this without her?

One of them allows the tears to fall from his eyes, because she was his best friend. The one who knew him better than he knew himself, the one he could confide in about anything, she was his person. He never wanted this, he never wanted her, but she scaled those walls he'd built up. This is his breaking point. How is he supposed to let go?

Lexi finds herself sitting on a park bench by a beautiful lake, the sun is shining brightly. The view is breathtaking and for a moment she forgets where she is until a voice beside her speaks.

"Amazing isn't it."

Lexi glances beside her and sees the blonde-haired woman from the photo: Melinda Clarke. The dark-haired girl stares at her in disbelief as Melinda glances over to her with a warm smile, "Hello Alexandra."

"Hi," Lexi replies, shock evident on her face.

Melinda reaches over and cups the side of Lexi's face proudly as a tear slips down her cheek. She isn't sure why she's overcome with emotion at the woman's presence. Maybe it's because this person had cared more for her than her own biological mother had, or maybe it's a slight familiarity to another blonde-haired mother figure in her life, or maybe it's both.

"You saved me," the girl says curiously, "why? Why me?"

The blonde smiles again, "Sweet, sweet Alexandra, there's so much good inside of you. I knew it from the moment I saw you, and there are more bad witches in this world than there are good."

"But I was just a baby," Lexi says, confusion in her voice, "and Evan…he needed you."

Melinda's smile falters at his name and sadness graces her features, "I knew Evan would be okay, he needed you more than he needed me. I had to save you, in order to save him."

Lexi tilts her head in slight confusion at her statement and Melinda smiles, "So, you two found each other?"

"Yea," the girl answers hesitantly.

'And I'm already dead,' she thinks to herself, 'I just thought the Winchesters were a hazardous relationship to have in my life.'

"I hope he's doing well," the blonde replies.

"I don't really know him," Lexi gives her a small smile, "but I think he takes after you."

"I'm glad," Melinda says, then pats Lexi's knee lovingly, "It's almost time for you to be getting back. Do me a favor?"

"Of course."

"Tell Evan I love him very much," the blonde begins, "and that I said how wonderful life is while he's in the world."

Lexi catches the Elton John song reference and smiles before a thought crosses her mind, "Wait, he said his grandmother gave you a resurrection charm when you left that day. Why didn't you use it?"

Melinda's posture straightens up a little bit as her face lights up and she gives Lexi a quick wink, "Because I knew someone needed it more than I did."

"Let me try to bring her back."

Dean wasn't one to trust strangers, especially witches, but that phrase alone was enough to get Evan's foot in the door. Evan had driven Lexi's car, following the black Impala back to some place the other two men had kept referring to earlier as 'the bunker'.

Sam kicks the door open to the infirmary room and carries Lexi's lifeless body over to the bed, carefully laying her down on the mattress, while Dean shows Evan to the storage room for supplies. He pauses for a moment, brushing hair out of her face, and his features falter for a moment as he allows the pain to get the best of him again. He runs both hands over his face and regains his composure the best he can, turning to go in search of his brother.

He finds Dean standing in the kitchen, phone to his ear, looking very impatient and furious, and after a beat he throws the cell phone angrily against the opposite wall, shattering it instantly, "DAMMIT!"

"Still no answer," Sam says solemnly, knowing his brother had been desperately trying to contact both Castiel and Jack with no luck, as well as Rowena.

The only person he'd spoken with was Jody right after everything happened, completely by mistake, he had assumed it was Castiel calling him back and answered without looking at his caller ID:

"Cas, Lexi's…" he hesitates a moment, "Lex's gone, and we need Jack…we need him to try and bring her back."

There was silence on the other end of the line, then Jody's voice breaks a little as she says, "She's gone?"

Sam and Dean exchange 'oh shit' glances at each other, as Sam carries the dark-haired girl's body to the Impala.

They both knew it was only a matter of time before Jody came barging into the bunker. Dean walks over to the sink, keeping his back to his brother. He's barely keeping it together and he knows right now he needs to be alone.

"Go check on the witch or warlock or whatever the hell he is will you?" Dean doesn't look at his brother when he speaks.

Sam understands the meaning behind the request, and he turns to leave the kitchen, giving his brother some time. Dean contemplates praying to Chuck, but he's not helped the last few times he's called out to him. He closes his eyes tightly trying to hold back the overwhelming emotion which makes his knees weak. A few tears slip past as he sinks to his knees in the kitchen floor, bringing his hands to his head in frustration. After a few moments, he lifts his head, staring at the ceiling, not having heard the person walk into the room behind him.

"What did you do?" A familiar, but breathless voice questions.

Dean twists his body around to find Lexi standing just a few feet behind him, she's gingerly touching the blood-soaked shirt she's still wearing, and she glances up at him in confusion as she continues her tone slightly harsh, "If you made a deal…I swear to God…" He's on his feet as she's speaking, a smile of relief creeping back on his face at the anger in her words.

"I didn't," he says, closing the distance between them. Lexi can see the tears in his eyes and feels a tinge of guilt for her tone. "Thought crossed my mind," he continues as he wraps his arms around her, effortlessly lifting her off the floor and she feels the quick kiss on her forehead.

"Dean," she whispers sadly, cupping his face in her hands as she brushes away the remaining tears with her fingers and thumbs. He closes his eyes as she does, but not before she sees the pain there; He watched me die. She can't imagine what he'd felt, what he's feeling.

"I'm sorry," she says and without hesitating leans down to brush her lips across his. It wasn't a kiss brought on by passion or attraction, nor did it linger for long. It was a small, fleeting moment of love and comfort, but neither could deny the intensity behind it as she pulls away, her eyes landing on his for a brief second. Lexi quickly moves up to kiss his forehead and then pulls his head to her chest as she lays her cheek against the top of his hair.

"Lex," Sam's voice is barely audible from the kitchen doorway, but she glances back over her shoulder to see the look of relief wash over the younger brother's face as he makes his way into the kitchen.

"Hey Sam," the dark-haired girl gives him a small smile as Dean places her back on the floor in time for his brother to envelope her in a hug. He holds her for a bit longer than he normally would, but he'd just lost her and if he was being honest with himself, he was a little scared to let her go again. Losing the other hunters had taken its toll on him and losing one of his closest friends was almost more than the man could take.

After a few moments he does pull back with a smile on his face, "It worked."

"What?" she questions searching his face, unsure what he's meaning.

"The spell," Sam continues, "that Evan did to bring you back."

"Evan's here?" Lexi looks at him in surprise, the name bringing back a memory.

"He wasn't in the room when you woke up?" Dean questions and Lexi shakes her head.

The brothers share a look of concern.

"If it wasn't him," Sam begins, confusion on his face, "what brought you back?"

Lexi looks between the two of them, remembering what had at first felt like a far away dream when she'd woke up, but now was beginning to feel like more than that. She takes a deep breath before she says quietly, "I think I know."

Lexi manages to find a burgundy t-shirt in a basket Sam insists are clean clothes and would contain some of Mary's things before she makes her way into the storage room. She sees Evan frantically searching drawers, a small pile of things he's gathered lay on top of cabinet. She watches him for a moment before she clears her throat and he turns quickly at the sound. He looks at her in disbelief for a moment before he carefully takes a step towards her.

"You died," he says hesitantly, not sure how it's even possible she's standing there.

Lexi shrugs her shoulders nonchalantly, "I walked it off."

He shakes his head, narrowing his eyes at her disapprovingly.

The girl takes a deep breath before dropping the information she has, "I saw your mom."

Evan's brow furrows after he registers her statement, "What?"

"When I died," she continues, moving closer to the storage cabinet, which he's now using to support himself with one hand, "I saw your mom."

"Really?"

Lexi nods her head, "The resurrection charm your grandmother gave her…" The girl takes her finger and points it at herself, and suddenly, everything makes sense to him. The charm is what brought Lexi back.

"Whoa," Evan replies turning to look at the supplies he has gathered on the cabinet, "that explains a lot."

Lexi nods her head quietly and stands there for a few moments in silence with him before she speaks again.

"This looks like some serious spell work," Lexi points at the ingredients.

Evan gives her a sidelong glance, "Well, you did die."

He stares at her and she can see the emotions waging war behind his eyes. She tries to think of a witty comeback, but words evade her, and she has to break the stare by glancing back down at the ingredients. She picks up a small bundle of white sage to toy with in order to keep her hands and mind occupied.

"Did she say anything else?" he asks after a moment.

"That she loves you very much," Lexi says, which makes him smile, "oh, and to tell you, how wonderful life is while you're in the world."

The smile fades away, sadness replacing it briefly and she panics, "What's wrong? Did I say right?"

He nods his head as he adds quietly, "She used to sing that song to me all the time."

They stand there in silence for a second before Lexi says with uncertainty, "Do you need a hug or…do you need me to go?"

Evan looks over at her with a raised eyebrow, "Did you just ask if I needed a hug?"

"I'm usually really good at this friend stuff," she replies beginning to ramble, "being there for someone emotionally. I just don't really know you, and technically I'm exhausted, so I can't tell what that look is…"

"You took a bullet for me," he says flatly, "and died."

He shakes his head angrily and uses both hands to shove the pile of ingredients off the cabinet and into the floor, turning to stalk away from her as he does so.

'How very Dean Winchester of you,' she thinks to herself, 'Least he didn't use magic. Maybe he only uses magic when he's really angry, or maybe when he's really angry he uses physical strength instead of magic.' She watches his shoulders rise and fall slowly as he takes a few deep breaths, 'Easy big guy, please don't Hulk out me, I don't want to fight you. What's with all the Marvel references? FOCUS Lexi!'

"That makes twice," he begins then turns to look at her, "I've watched you die."

She doesn't respond, she just stands there holding the sage in both her hands, watching his movements cautiously as he continues, "Do you have any idea what that's like?"

Lexi hesitates, glancing down at the mess in the floor for a moment before brings her eyes back up to meet his. For the first time Evan can see a small glimpse of the pain she's hiding.

"I know what it's like to lose people…friends and family," she replies quietly, her voice breaking as events from earlier replay in her mind, "and I would have lost Sam today, and Dean, but I didn't, because of you…you have no idea what that means to me…and I owe you for that."

"That's not how friendship works," Evan says genuinely with a small smile.

Suddenly, a sharp pain shoots from the right side of Lexi's temple behind her eyes and she reaches up to gingerly touch the side of her head. She grabs the cabinet in front of her with her other hand to steady herself, momentarily feeling weak.

"Are you okay?" Evan questions with concern as he takes a step closer.

"Yea," she replies, the pain still emanating through her skull, "just a headache."

"LEXI!" Jody's voice echoes down the hallway and Evan glances towards the door to see a woman with short dark hair come bursting into the room, a look of relief on her face upon seeing the girl in front of him. He can tell from the redness in her eyes she's been crying.

"Lexi," she says again as she approaches the girl, seeing the current state of pain she's in, "what's wrong?"

"Headache," Lexi manages to say as Jody reaches over to place her hands on her shoulders, but as soon as she does a blast of energy from the girl sends the short-haired woman flying back towards the door, knocking her off her feet.

Both Winchesters have walked in through the door in time to see this phenomenon occur and they look at Lexi in shock as she fearfully glances to Jody in the floor.

"Jody," she says with concern, turning towards her.

Sam moves to help the sheriff to her feet as she shares a look of concern with the youngest Winchester, "I'm okay."

"What was that?" Dean questions moving further into the room.

Lexi shrugs her shoulders, "My head just started pounding. I don't know what's happening."

He nods his head with understanding as he slowly walks towards his friend, holding his hands out in front of him cautiously, "Why don't you come lay back down? Maybe you just need to rest some?"

Lexi's head is throbbing to the point she feels as if it could explode and when Dean reaches for her hand, she pulls away from him and says quietly, "I don't want to hurt you."

"You won't," he replies with a reassuring smile, "you got this."

Sam's eyes search the shelf next to him and they land on the magical cuffs he and Dean keep on hand for Rowena in case of emergencies. He doesn't want to use them on his friend, but if she's having trouble keeping these new powers in check, then it's better to be safe than sorry. Evan's on the offense too, he's already picked up some of the ingredients he shoved to the floor moments earlier and has placed them back on the cabinet; carefully, he takes the top off a gold powder.

Dean steps closer to Lexi, while Jody and Sam watch fearfully as he reaches out with one hand to touch to the top of her shoulder, then says carefully, "It's going to be okay."

As soon as his hand touches her though, the same unseen force flings him back across the room, crashing him into his brother. Lexi watches the scene unfold in horror and she says quickly, "I'm sorry."

She glances over to Evan who's moving towards her and she says pleadingly, "I can't control it."

"I know," he replies as he opens his hand in front of her face, revealing a small amount of the gold powder, "I got you." He speaks a phrase in Latin before blowing the powder from his palm into Lexi's face which immediately makes her eyes close and he grabs her around the waist with his other arm to keep her from falling to the floor.

Sam grabs the cuffs as Dean recomposes himself looking over at Evan curiously, "What'd you do?"

"Just a sleeping spell," he responds, scooping her effortlessly into his arms, "Until we can find something to temporarily bind…"

Sam holds out the handcuffs in front of him, "Like this?"

"Exactly," Evan responds, then waits for Sam to slip the cuffs on Lexi's wrists.

"What the hell happened to her?" Jody questions in exasperation, then looks at the person holding her, "And who the hell is this?"

Evan sits at the table in the large library, feeling very much out of place in a room of strangers, but at least Dean had offered him a beer. Jody was sitting at the opposite end of the table from him while Dean had taken his place in the middle, explaining the events of the day to her. Jody takes a long drink from her bottle as she processes everything.

"So, this is our new normal?" she questions the older brother.

Dean just nods his head in agreement, it's obvious this thought is just now occurring to him as well, "Yea, looks like we've added another witch to the ranks."

"Witches…psychics…werewolves…angels…Lucifer's kid...alternate worlds," Jody lists, "are we sure this isn't the plot of a new film franchise?"

Dean rubs the back of his neck as he agrees, "Right."

"Sorry, did you say Lucifer's kid?" Evan questions from the far end of the table.

"Yep," Dean says tilting his beer toward the other man, "welcome to the party."

Lexi's eyes slowly start to peel open and she realizes she's back in the infirmary. She sits up quickly, remembering the events in the storage room.

"Hey," Sam says soothingly, standing up from the chair he was sitting in, "it's okay."

She realizes her hands are bound and looks down at the metal cuffs etched with engravings. The dark-haired girl recognizes them, she knows they've had to use them with Rowena before to bind her powers. A feeling a relief washes over her, and she closes her eyes for a moment as she takes a few calming breaths.

"Rowena's on her way," the younger brother states as she feels him sit down on the bed beside her, "She thinks she can help. We had to use the cuffs, I'm sorry."

"No," she turns to him, "thank you. I can't…I…"

Thoughts race through her mind, she'd been pushing them down since she'd woke up earlier. Focusing on everyone else made it easier not focus on herself, but the tears finally well up in her eyes.

"I killed Logan," the words come out quietly, "I almost…almost killed you…"

"Lex, I know what you're going through, I've been there," he replies, trying to console her, "that wasn't you."

"But it was me," she responds, staring up at him, "I wasn't possessed Sam. I wasn't subconsciously stored away in a happy memory somewhere in my own mind. I wasn't in control of my hands, but I was there the whole time, and I saw everything. I heard everything. I felt everything."

The tears fall silently down her cheeks as she stares at him, remembering the look of forgiveness he'd given her in those almost final moments of chaos, and she swallows the lump in her throat, "I felt everything Sam."

Sam wraps his arm around her, pulling her into his side as she rests his chin on top of her head, hiding his own tears from her. His heart breaks for his friend and for himself, because regardless of all the good they do, all the people they save, it feels as if it's never enough. Why can they never seem to catch a break?

Here's a question for your soul;

How many times can a broken thing break?

And the Gods whispered:

Let's see, shall we?

-Nikita Gill

#supernatural fanfiction #dean winchester #sam winchester #oc

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