Chapter Text
It was late evening by the time Sam and Dean rolled into the small town. As usual, they got themselves a motel room on the outskirts, the cheapest most run-down place they could find. As they settled themselves into the room, Dean flopped himself backwards across the bed. "So, this is the place?" he asked.
"Yeah," Sam replied. "All sorts of demonic markers. Higher levels than I've seen anywhere in a long time. We're talking near-apocalyptic levels." He set up his laptop on a table and powered it on. "But nothing lasting, it's all there and gone again. Massive blips."
"I dunno, the town didn't seem too bad, really." Dean looked over at his brother without sitting up. "I mean, nothing torn up or anything, and if this was really ground zero in the demon civil war, you'd think there'd be some collateral damage. I mean, demons don't really seem to be the type to clean up nicely after themselves every day. Hell, even angels don't do that."
Sam sighed. "I know. Everything was just so normal." He started typing, looking up recent instances that would point to demonic activity. "It's weird. It's like there's all the signs of demons, but the demons aren't actually here."
"Let's go cruise the down, then. Try to draw them out. I'm pretty sure no matter whose side they're on they're going to recognize us." Dean sat up and tossed his keys into the air, catching them and smiling at Sam. "Besides, I haven't done any joyriding in a while."
"I think I'll stay here and keep looking into things," Sam said. He was tired from the full-tilt speed they'd been going at recently. All he really wanted was a nice meal, a hot shower, and a few hours to sleep.
Dean stood and closed the laptop, nearly catching Sam's fingers. "C'mon, Sammy. If this town is really crawling with demons, do you really want to split up?"
Sam sighed and shot Dean an annoyed look. "Alright, can we at least wait until we get the room secure before we go anywhere?" He stood up and began the ingrained ritual of lining all the doors and windows with salt and shifting furniture to engrave protection sigils into the walls where they wouldn't be easily seen and destroyed. He noticed Dean helping out, and within a few minutes they were ready to go.
The town was like any other small midwestern town. The old downtown area was clearly defined, and suburbs had grown up around it. Without the interstate, the city hadn't grown any since it had been founded, but neither had it faltered. Some of the older men they passed by nodded appreciatively at the car, and the young boys watched it pass with wonder and desire. The town was nothing but normal on the surface, and Dean and Sam could see no evidence of anything unusual as they drove through.
After a time they finally stopped at a greasy spoon diner on the other end of town from their motel. The brunette behind the counter waved at them when they walked in. "Have a seat wherever, I'll be with you in just a second," she said before heading back into the kitchen. They took a seat in a booth along the front wall and took menus from a holder.
"Look," Dean said, pointing at the menu. "Best burgers in Plymouth County, as voted by the residents." His eyes lit up as he read, and he grinned stupidly.
Sam just rolled his eyes and looked over his own menu. There wasn't much of a selection of salads, but the meatloaf and dressing looked interesting.
The woman came to the side of the table, pad of paper in hand. "Sorry about the wait. What can I get you boys to drink?"
"Just waters, thanks," Sam said. Dean just smiled up at her.
"Two waters, coming up. And just so you boys know, my evening cook never showed up. I'll do my best to keep an eye on your drinks, but I'm running the place alone tonight, so just holler if you need anything. My name's Betty." She smiled at them and walked away, coming back within a minute with their drinks. "Now, you figure out what you want to eat yet?"
"I'll have a cheeseburger, extra bacon, with fries," Dean said.
Sam looked at Dean then looked back at the menu. "I think I'll have the same," he said. It wasn't his first choice, or his second, but it would be easy to make the same thing twice than it would to make two separate orders. He glared at Dean before he could say anything as Betty headed into the kitchen.
"So, nothing out of the ordinary?" Dean asked. "What's with the sudden change in diet?"
Before Sam could respond, an explosion leveled the building across the street. The windows were blown out with the explosion, and Sam and Dean were thrown across the diner into the counter. Betty burst through the door to the kitchen and swore loudly. She rushed over to where Sam and Dean lay crumpled against the counter, covered in fragments of glass and plaster. "Come on, boys, be okay," she pleaded at their unconscious forms.
Sam coughed and shook his head weakly. His ears were ringing, and as he cracked his eyes open and looked around. The pain in his body made him wince, but he shook it off internally and sat up, leaning on the counter. "Dean?" he slurred, reaching over to his brother.
"Hold still," Betty said, putting a hand on Sam's shoulder. "You're hurt. It'll be okay, I'll get you to the hospital when this is all over."
"No, get back to the back room," Sam said to her. "It's not safe."
Dean sat up slowly, blinking his eyes and trying to figure out what was going on. "Sammy?" he said, reaching out.
Betty sighed. "I had hoped I was wrong about you boys," she said. "Let me guess, hunters? And you're here about the demons, and you're going to run out there and protect me, right?"
Dean looked at Sam, then to Betty. "Yes?" he said, still dazed by the explosion.
"Well I don't need it. And you two need to stay put. You're hurt. Matthew will be here soon, it'll all be okay then."
"Matthew?" Sam asked. "Who is that?" He was still slurring his words a bit, but feeling better than he had when he first sat up. "And how do you know about demons?"
"Better yet, what makes you think we're hunting anything?" Dean added. He sat himself up, leaning heavily against the counter. His head was still spinning a bit, but it didn't seem to be too terrible, and it was fading fast.
Betty sighed and shifted her weight so she was squatting comfortably. "First of all, you haven't denied being hunters. If you were actually game hunters, you'd know that nothing's in season and defend yourselves early or be accused of poaching off season. Secondly, neither of you flinched at mention of demons. Third, and best of all, I KNOW you. You can't lie to me about this, boys." She shook her head and took a deep breath, despite the dust still settling.
Both of the boys looked at each other, confused. "Don't get me wrong," Dean started, "I'm not too great with faces, but I'm pretty sure we've never met before."
Betty rolled her eyes. "Would it help if I talked like this, then?" she said, her voice changing to a posh British accent. "Come on, nothing? What about all the good times we had together?" she asked, reacting to their confusion.
"Are you a demon?" Sam asked plainly. He wasn't in the mood to be messing about with this.
"I'm shocked and appalled that you would think such a thing," Betty replied. "The base implications alone are simply dreadful."
"Alright, not a demon, we get it," Dean said. "Jesus Christ."
Betty sighed. "Wrong again. I don't think he's had the dubious pleasure of your company yet. But closer." After a long pause, she closed her eyes and shook her head. "Okay, boys, I'm going to spell this out very carefully for you, but you're still going to have to work for it. Matthew doesn't know who I am, and I want to keep it that way for as long as possible, so think as hard as your little tiny minds can." She opened her eyes and looked intently at them, one at a time. "Look at yourselves. Look at each other. Take a good hard look. Then look at that window that you were sitting next to. I'll wait."
Sam looked over at Dean and frowned. Aside from a few smears of blood on his face, he looked unhurt. He reached up to wipe the blood from his own face and was surprised when there was no pain. He could see a similar confusion on Dean's face. "What the hell?"
"I told you, wrong direction," Betty snapped. "Try again, and be quick about it. Matthew will be here soon. I'm surprised it's taken him this long."
"Look, we've dealt with plenty of supernatural crap over the years, so how about you spell it out a bit plainer for us, okay? I'm not in the mood for twenty damn questions." Dean winced in anticipation of sitting up further, but then looked more confused when nothing hurt.
"You're an angel," Sam said quietly.
"Half credit for the boy giant," Betty said, slipping back into her midwestern accent. "And that's all the time we have now. Matthew's here." She stayed squatting in front of the boys, not looking over her shoulder at the man walking through the door.
He was completely average looking, nobody would spare him a second glance on the street, but as he approached them his features morphed into something more recognizable.
"Gabriel?" Sam asked, more confused than ever.
Betty was on her feet in an instant, turning and glaring angrily at Matthew. "You! I knew it had to be someone, but YOU!" Her voice had changed back to the British accent. "Let me guess, you've been causing all the problems in the first place, yes?"
Gabriel opened his arms and made like he was going to hug the woman, but she pushed him backwards. "Hey there, no need to be mad. I got those chuckleheads here, didn't I?" he asked, motioning to the Winchesters, still sitting against the counter amid all the glass. "Besides, it's good to know I'm not alone in this. Though if I'd known you were really-"
"Don't you DARE say my name," Betty interrupted. "I've done well enough to stay hidden. Those two figured out what I am, but I will NOT have you telling them who I am." She jabbed her finger into Gabriel's chest angrily, making him retreat a few steps.
Relax, sister, came a voice into Betty's head. I'm not even certain who you are, though I can tell you're on my side in all of this. All I was going to say was that you were another angel. She did relax visibly, taking a step back from Gabriel.
It's me, she responded, chuckling. Hardly a sister, big brother, though I suppose I can forgive you your mistake.
Gabriel's eyes widened. "Well, color me surprised!" he said aloud. He looked past Betty to the two boys and waved his hand, pulling them to their feet. "Up you go, geniuses. Come on, we've got a war to plan." He looked back to Betty, a wide grin on his face. "You can be in charge of weapons procurement."
Dean raised an eyebrow. "Balthazar?"
"Well look who finally decided to bring his brain to the party," Betty quipped. "Now both of you can split the genius award for figuring it out." She turned back to Gabriel. "I don't know why he sent you here, but I was here for her specifically. I'm not jumping right onboard with your plan until I know what it is."
Gabriel touched two fingers to Balthazar's forehead, passing the plan along directly to her brain. He smiled as she digested the information rapidly. "You like it? I think it's got a certain flair, myself."
"Whose plan is this, yours or his?"
"He gave me the outline, I filled it in. And don't worry, Dad made sure I knew how to lead, and he trusts me." Gabriel once again turned his gaze on the Winchesters. "And now it's your turn." He reached out his hands and stepped around Balthazar.
"Whoa whoa whoa whoa, hold on a minute, you're not beaming anything straight into my brain. No way," Dean said, trying to take a step backwards. He ran straight into the counter behind him.
"Aren't you both supposed to be dead, anyway?" Sam asked.
"You disappoint me, Dean. It's like you don't trust me or something. And that hurts me, deeply," Gabriel said, placing his hands over his heart. "If you don't trust me with that, will you at least accept a token of goodwill? Your car is outside, perfectly safe from the explosion. And if you're going to be stubborn and make us explain things the long way, we might want to clear out and make ourselves scarce. There's only so long I can hold off the actual authorities."
Balthazar turned to face the boys. "See you back at your motel." She smiled and winked, disappearing along with Gabriel.
"Damnit, what the hell was that about?" Dean asked. Sam shrugged in response. "I guess we'd better head back to the motel, there's no telling what those two are doing without us."
They walked out into the rubble strewn street to the Impala, which was completely untouched by the devastation, as Gabriel had promised. Dean ran a hand along the hood, having a hard time believing what he was seeing. They piled into the car and made the short drive across town in silence.