Chapter Text
Deanna felt the wisps of the universe wrap around her arm. It was an awe-inspiring feeling, holding the universe. It was fragile yet indestructible at the same time. She let it wrap around her forearm and when it reached her wrist she grabbed ahold of it. It evoked a sort of glow inside her, and she felt like the world was suspended in time, and she was content.
The world suddenly went black. The tendrils of the universe turned to stone and gripped her arm. Everything was still.
She could hear faraway cries for help, but when she tried to move her body, nothing happened. She thrashed internally.
And then she was in hell. But not as a victim or a torturer. As an outsider. The landscape around her changed, piece by piece and she could only watch. She felt a force tugging her up.
She was back to where she started. Holding the universe. Cass stood in front of her, and Sam was at her side.
“You ready?” Sam asked. She was holding her own tendril of universe around herself as well. Deanna opened her mouth to reply.
There was no warning. No, “ready, set, go.” She was just suddenly falling through the darkness.
“Cass!”
~
Deanna woke with a start. She mumbled to herself in her half-asleep state.
“Sammy… Cass…” she looked around the dark room. Samantha was breathing peacefully in the bed beside her. No Cass. Of course not. It had been months since they were shot into this universe, after all. Still, after all this time, whenever Deanna had woken up from a dream, she thought for a second that she was back in her old universe. Back home. For just a moment, she thought Cass would be there.
Deanna got up slowly, as to not make noise and wake Sam. She made her way to the restroom and shut the door behind her. She turned on the sink and bowed her head over it. She splashed some cold water on her face before slowly looking up.
She looked at her reflection, and her reflection stared back at her. She glanced to her side at the shower area, then looked back at herself.
Decision made, she turned on the shower to the hottest setting before slipping out of her clothing. Before she stepped in, she looked back at herself again. Her tattoo over her collarbone and the amulet she always wore stood out against her skin. She fingered the amulet for a moment and lightly brushed her fingers against the tattoo before she turned away and got into the shower.
The steam hit her face before the scalding water hit her skin. She cringed at the heat, but after the initial burn went away she let herself get lost in the warmth. She closed her eyes and let her mind take over.
She thought about her family. Not just Sam, but the people they had left behind. Bobby, for one. Sure, there was probably a Bobby in this world, but he wouldn’t know her. She wouldn’t be able to stand that. She didn’t want to meet anyone from this world that would have known her in her world, really. She would know them, but they wouldn’t know her.
She wondered what Cass was doing now that she and Sam were officially “dead”. Deanna wanted to believe that Cass was doing something good. Maybe she was a hunter now. Maybe she stays behind and helps Bobby with the phones and research. Maybe she just goes to hospitals and heals people.
But in the back of her head, Deanna knew that probably wasn’t true. The angels were her brothers and sisters, and heaven was her home. Cass wouldn’t have anything tying her down to earth anymore.
Deanna felt her eyes prickle, and steered her mind away from the dangerous topic.
She turned around and shut off the water. She stood there for a second, only concentrating on the sound the water made when it dripped off of her and hit the floor. She stepped out and pulled a towel around herself. She dried off quickly before putting her clothes back on. She opened the door of the room, and the steam poured out.
Deanna made her way to her bag and opened it quickly, and found an over shirt and jeans that she threw on over her nightclothes. She turned around, scanning the room. Noticing her shoes in the corner, she walked over to them, and picked them up by the edge with two fingers. She pulled them on her feet and straightened up.
Deanna put her hands over her pockets, feeling for her keys. Not finding anything, she walked over to the table, where they glinted off the muted light from the city outside. She picked them up and swiftly grabbed her jacket as well before opening the door and heading out.
She opened the door to her car and sat down in the driver’s seat. After sitting there for a few seconds, she pulled out her keys and started the ignition. As soon as the car was on she switched on the music. She drove away from the motel, and she didn’t even know where she was going. She just drove away.
The music played softly in the background. She didn’t even pay attention to the song that much. It was just there. She dimly noted that “Going to California” was playing. She hummed along.
She drove until she was past the city limits. The countryside was all around her. Her windows were down, so the wind blew past her. She relaxed in the warm night air.
Deanna heard the engine sputter, and realized she was running on fumes. The needle indicating how much gas she had left was hitting the bottom. She pulled over, and made it completely off the road before the engine died.
“Goddamnit,” She said to herself. “God-fucking-damnit!” She shouted, hitting the steering wheel. The car honked loudly, startling her. Deanna got out of the car before standing outside and staring at the sky.
“Okay. Okay,” She mumbled. “I’m stuck in this damn parallel universe, so I don’t even know if you can hear me,” She started. “And you can’t reach me, so I don’t even know why I’m praying to you.”
She sighed into the night air. “I know I’m gone. I know Sam’s gone too. So… just don’t be a dumbass and let those dicks with wings use you. Okay?”
Nothing happened. Not that she was expecting anything to, anyway. She turned around to get back into her car when she heard the telltale fluttering of wings behind her.
“I do not appreciate you referring to my brothers and sisters as “dicks with wings”,”said a deep voice behind her. Deanna whipped around. A man with messy black hair, donned in a trench coat stood in front of her. His eyes were piercingly blue.
“Well you know what? That prayer wasn’t meant for you. So you can shove your complaints up your angelic ass.”
“But I received it,” he said, confused. He tilted his head and squinted his eyes. Deanna recognized the gesture and her blood ran cold.
“Oh god.” She scanned him with her eyes. Messy hair. Blue eyes. Blue tie. That stupid trench coat. “Oh god,” she repeated. “You’re Castiel.”
His confused expression refreshed itself on his face. “That is who you prayed to, is it?”
“No, I was praying for my Cass.”
“You’re from a different universe,” He stepped forward and reached for her with two fingers. Deanna slapped them away.
“What the hell are you doing?”
“I’m only trying to get a closer look at your soul.”
“Like hell you are! I’ve had enough angels poking around in my head.”
“You said there was a Castiel in your universe. Did you trust him?”
“Her,” She said softly.
“Did you trust her?” He asked. She didn’t respond. And when he reached for her forehead again, she didn’t slap him away. She felt him touch her face for a few seconds before withdrawing.
“Dean,” he said, with wide eyes.
“Deanna,” She corrected. “My name is Deanna, and I’m stuck in this universe, and not really in a good mood right now. So, if you wouldn’t mind zapping me back to my motel room- I’m room 114 at the Stratus Motel.“ Cas reached forward again. When his fingers reached her forehead, she felt her stomach lurch and suddenly she was in front of her motel room.
“Oh, and can you bring my-“ But she stopped as soon as she heard the flutter of wings, signaling his departure.
“Well at least that’s the same,” She muttered. Deanna walked up to the door and unlocked it. She opened it slowly, hoping Sam would still be asleep. She peeked in. Sam was sleeping soundly.
Deanna walked in the room, more at ease, but she knew she would have to explain where the car went. And she knew Sam would want to know why she left, and then she’d get all concerned about her nightmares, and Deanna didn’t want pity.
She was debating on what to do when she noticed something on Sam’s nightstand. She walked over toward it. It was a piece of paper with a phone number and a motel name and room number on it. She picked it up. It wasn’t Sam’s handwriting. But it looked familiar.
“Maybe-“ Deanna walked over to her nightstand and picked up a pen. She wrote the exact same number underneath it. The handwriting matched almost exactly. She picked up her phone from the table and grabbed the paper before heading outside so she wouldn’t wake up Samantha.
She dialed the number and put the phone to her ear.
~
Dean was tired. He was asleep and wanted to stay that way. Of course, he couldn’t ignore his phone ringing in the middle of the night. He rolled over to be able to reach it. He picked it up and saw it was a call from an unknown number.
“What?” he said grouchily into the phone.
“Oh it’s you. Good. I need a favor.”
“Who are you? And why are you calling at hell-o’clock?”
“It’s Deanna. I was out for a drive, but I ran out of gas. I met Cas, he zapped me back, but I need to get my car back here before Sam wakes up because she’ll ask me all sorts of questions.” She sounded slightly shaken. Or maybe stressed. Either way, Dean could tell that there was more to her story than she was sharing.
Dean understood that. “Okay.” He agreed. “Do you have some sort of container filled up with gas to put in your car?”
“Yeah. Pick me up outside the motel.”
The line went dead. Dean slowly got up and pulled on his jeans and jacket. He was already in a T-Shirt, that would have to do for now. He grabbed his phone and keys before walking out the door.
~
Dean pulled up next to Deanna. She opened the door and sat down.
“So where’d you end up?”
“Pretty far out. I was going east.”
Dean looked toward the direction she was pointing. The sun was peaking over the edge of the horizon. “We better get going,” He said. “I don’t want to wake up and have Sam on my ass.”
“Yeah, me either.”
Dean turned his car down the road. He flipped on the music and Led Zeppelin’s “Ramble On” started playing.
“Oh, I love this song.” Dean heard Deanna say as the same words come out of his mouth. He looked over at Deanna. He gave her a confused look as she returned the facial expression. By unspoken agreement, Deanna reached forward and turned up the volume. They sat in silence and let the music play.
Seven songs later, they reached the spot where Deanna had run out of gas. She pointed out her car and Dean pulled over. Deanna refilled her tank with the gallon of gas they had brought with them.
“Thanks,” She said.
“It’s no problem. I get it.”
“Of course you do. We’re the same person,” Deanna said.
“Not quite.” Deanna gave Dean a puzzled look.
“You have boobs,” Dean said in a serious tone but then he grinned. She grinned back.
Deanna emptied the can and closed up her gas cap. She threw the empty container into the trunk.
“Alright, well I’ll see you at the diner,” She said. “It’s time to make it look like I never left.”
“Same here.” Dean got back into his car, as Deanna did the same. He drove off with the rising sun to his back.