Chapter Text
The fluorescent lights of the Vancouver soundstage hummed their familiar, irritating buzz. Jared Padalecki, still in his Sam Winchester flannel, rubbed his eyes and squinted at the call sheet in his hand.
Jared:“ Alright, so we're doing the scene where Sam gets the weird call from the hunter in Idaho, right? But the page numbers are all wrong, or am I going insane from all the nerd talk I have to do?”
Jensen Ackles, leaning against a pillar that looked suspicious, shrugged.
Jensen:“Beats me. The writers have been in a weird mood, grinning like they won the lottery. Maybe it's a flashback? Or a multiverse thing. You know how they love that now.”
Misha Collins, already in Castiel's trench coat and upside down tie, was staring intently at his hand. He flexed his fingers, and a small spark danced above his palm before fizzling out.
Misha:“Huh…” Misha mumbled, “The practical effects team really upped their game. That felt... tingly.”
“Tingly?” Jared arched an eyebrow. “that's just static from the rug. Come on, let's get to the set. This whole thing feels off. Where's Bob? Where's my sandwich? I'm starving.”
“Places!” a PA shouted from somewhere behind the lighting rig. “Scene 12, take one!”
Jake Abel jogged onto the set, already in character. He was wearing Adam's usual t-shirt and jeans, his hair slightly mussed. He gave Jared and Jensen a quick nod, then moved to his mark. The scene was simple enough. Adam would stand in one spot, delivering Michael's lines with that cold, authoritative tone. Then he'd shift, change his posture, and become Adam again. It was a trick of editing, of camera angles. He'd done it a dozen times.
PA:“Action!”
Jake straightened his posture, his face going blank, serene, what he usually does for Michae. “Sam. Dean. You have to understand. I did what I did to protect my vessel. To protect Adam… Or I thought it would’ve .” His voice was measured, cold, but a bit warmer than early seasons as Michael was getting closer to humanity(Adam).
Jared and Jensen exchanged a look. They'd done this scene before. But something felt off. The air was too still. There was no hum of cameras, no whispered chatter from the crew.
“Isn't there supposed to be a cut here?” Jake asked, dropping the Michael persona. He looked around, confused… Everyone was gone.
Jake:“Uh, guys? Where is everyone?”
Jared turned in a slow circle. The soundstage was empty. No cameras. No boom operators. No director's chair. Just the four of them, and the “fake” bunker walls.
“Okay,” Jensen said slowly, his hand instinctively going to his hip where a prop gun usually rested. His fingers met nothing but denim. “This is creepy. Where's the crew?”
“Guys…” Misha's voice was small, strained. He was staring at his hand again. This time, the light didn't fizzle out. It grew, a steady, blue-white glow that cast strange shadows on his face. “I don't think that was static…”
Before anyone could respond, Jake stumbled backward, his hand flying to his head. “What the-”His eyes went wide, darting around the empty set. “Who said that?”
Jared frowned. “Said what? Jake, there's no one here.”
“No, someone just-”Jake's breath hitched. He looked at a spot just to his left, his face draining of color. “Michael-? No. No, I'm not-I'm an actor. You're not real.”
Jensen stepped forward, concerned. “Jake, buddy, you okay? You're freaking me out.”
Jake didn't seem to hear him. He was staring at that empty space, his hands trembling. “You're a character. You're not real. You can't just-“ He flinched, as if someone had spoken directly into his ear. “Stop it. Stop talking.”
“Jake!” Jared grabbed his shoulder, shaking him gently. “There's no one there. Look at me.”
Jake's eyes snapped to Jared, and for a moment, he looked like a terrified kid. “He's talking to me. Michael- He's... he's standing right there. He looks like me. Like Adam. But he's... he's not.”
Jared and Jensen exchanged a worried glance. Misha, however, was staring at the empty space Jake had been looking at, his glowing hand raised.
“Michael,” Misha whispered, and his voice was not entirely his own. “I can hear him, very faintly. He's... he's saying something about a hunt.”
Jensen's face went pale. “Okay, that's it. We're leaving. Misha, stop with the glowing hand thing. Jake, whatever you're going through, we'll get you help. But we are walking out of here right now.”
He turned and marched toward where the exit should have been. But there was no exit. Just more hallway, more fake wood paneling, more darkness.
“What the hell,” Jensen breathed.
“Jensen,” Jared said, his voice tight. “Hold me.”
Jensen:“What?”
Jared:“Hold me and scream. Because I think we're in the show. Like, actually in the show… Like the French Mistake episode but in reverse.”
Jensen stared at him for a beat, then let out a strangled laugh. “You're joking.”
Jared:“I am not joking. The set is gone. Misha has angel powers. Jake is hearing Michael's voice. And we are in the bunker. The actual bunker.”
Jensen looked around again. The details were too perfect. The scuffs on the floor from Dean's boots. The slight crack in the tile from that one fight scene. This wasn't a set. This was real.
“Okay,” Jensen said, his voice shaking. “Okay. We can panic later. Right now, we need to figure out what's happening.”
Jake let out a choked sound, stumbling back against the wall. “He wants me to... he says he needs to talk to you. To all of you. But he can't. Not like this. He says he has to... he has to take over.”
Jared's blood ran cold. “Take over? Like, possession?”
Jake nodded, his eyes wet with tears. “He says it won't hurt. He says he's done it before. But I-I don't know-” He broke off, flinching again. “I know you're trying to help. But this is my body. You can't just-”
The air in the room shifted. A figure shimmered into existence beside Jake, solidifying into a man who looked exactly like him. Same t-shirt. Same jeans. Same face. But the eyes were ancient, weary, carrying the weight of millennia. Michael.
The archangel looked at Jake with something approaching gentleness. “I am sorry, Jake Abel. I know this is frightening. But I cannot speak to the others without a vessel. And you are the only one who can hear me right now.”
Jake stared at his own face, his own body, standing beside him.,his eyes widened comically,“This is a nightmare.” He mumbled.
“I assure you, it is not,” Michael said. “But I want your consent. I will not force this upon you. I only ask that you trust me.”
Before Jake could respond, a new voice cut through the tension. Bright, enthusiastic, impossibly young.
???:“Wow! This is so cool!”
They all turned. A young man stood in the doorway, messy brown hair, a hoodie, and the biggest, most excited smile any of them had ever seen. His eyes sparkled with an energy that was both childish and cosmic.
“Alex- No- Jack?’ Misha whispered, his hand still glowing.
“Hi!” Jack raised his arm, palm facing the boys, practically bouncing on his heels. “I'm Jack! Well, I'm God now, technically, but you can still call me Jack. This is so weird! I've never met actors before! Well, I've met the real Sam and Dean, but you're not them, you're the people who play them, which is different, but also kind of the same? I'm rambling. Sorry. I do that sometimes.”
Jared blinked. “You're... God?”
“Yep!” Jack beamed. “I mean, it's a lot of responsibility, and I'm still learning, but I'm trying my best! And right now, my best is telling you that you're in trouble. There's a monster. A big one. From the Empty. And it's heading for a town in Idaho. The real Sam and Dean were supposed to handle it, but they're not here. You are.”
Jensen ran a hand through his hair, looking slightly hysterical. “So we're supposed to what? Hunt it? We're actors!”
“But you know the lore,” Jack said, his voice calmer than normal. “You know the weapons. You know the spells! That's a lot already-“
“We know it because we read it in a script!” Jared shouted, panic rising.
“I know Enochian,” Misha said quietly, still staring at his hand. “I can feel it. The words. The power. Castiel's grace is… with me.”
Jack clapped his hands together. “See? That's great! Misha, you can use Castiel's powers. Jared, you know how to do research and speak Latin. Jensen, you know how to fight and bluff your way through anything. And Jake…” He looked at the terrified actor. “Jake, you know how to fight, and you have Michael. He can help you. But only if you let him.”
Jake swallowed hard. He looked at Michael, at his own face staring back at him. “If I say yes... will I still be me?”
Michael nodded slowly. “You will. I will not suppress you. I will simply... share. When I need to speak, I will ask. When you need me to be silent, I will be silent. You have my word.”
Jake took a shaky breath. He thought of the character he played. Adam Milligan. The kid who said yes to an archangel and ended up in Hell in a cage. But also the kid who survived. Who found a strange, highly complicated family in Michael.
“Okay,” Jake whispered. “Okay. Do it.”
Michael smiled, a rare, genuine expression. “Thank you, Jake.”
He dissolved into a flash of white light, rushing into Jake's chest. Jake gasped, his back arching, his eyes blazing white for a split second. Then he stumbled, catching himself on the wall.
He straightened up, his posture shifting, Michael has taken the wheel.
—Inside Jake’s head
“Okay,” Jake said, he was watching from what seems to be the inside of his mind, seeing through his eyes which was playing on what looks like a television(Like inside out the movie), this is weird, he glanced at his hand.
Jake:“Okay. I'm still me, I think… This is so weird…”
—Back to reality
Jack clapped his hands again. “Great! Now, let's go hunt a monster!”
Jensen looked at Jared. Jared looked at Jensen.
“We’re screwed.” Jensen muttered.
Jared let out a small, incredulous laugh. “Yeah. That about sums it up.“
Jack was already heading down the hallway, practically skipping. “Come on! I'll explain everything on the way. I've never been a tour guide before! This is so exciting!”
Misha followed, his hand finally dimming, a thoughtful but mischievous expression on his face. “I need to learn how to control this. Before I accidentally smite someone…”
Jared and Jensen stood frozen for a moment longer. Then, without a word, they turned to each other and embraced, holding on tight.
“I'm probably going to scream,” Jared said, his voice muffled against Jensen's shoulder.
“I'm screaming too,” Jensen smirked.
They stood there for a long moment, two grown men in flannel, holding each other in the middle of the Men of Letters bunker, in a world that was supposed to be fiction.
Then, from down the hall, Jack's voice echoed back. “Guys? Are you coming? The monster won't wait forever!”
Jensen pulled back, his eyes red. “We're coming.”
Jared nodded, squaring his shoulders. “Let's go hunt a monster.”
They walked down the hallway together, following a god in a hoodie, an actor in an angel’s body, and a man who shared his body with an archangel. It was insane. It was impossible.
But then again, that was just another Tuesday in the Supernatural universe.