03 || CROWLEY

Writing out the entire plot of Supernatural was harder than Vanessa thought, especially when she couldn't quite remember what happened just before Purgatory was opened. She could see it in her head but she just couldn't quite get to it. She kept thinking the word dragon over and over again but that didn't seem to help her much.

It didn't help either that Dean kept trying to peek in her journal to get a glimpse into the future.

"Oi' go away outta that now, how many times do I have to tell ye to stop snooping in me journal?" Vanessa had never sounded more Irish in her entire life as Dean jumped almost a foot in the air before darting back from the table.

"I have no idea what you just said." Dean shook his head, eyes wide as he tried to put the few words he understood together to form a coherent sentence.

Sam and Bobby exchanged amused looks at Vanessa scolding Dean and it hadn't even been the first time either. Nobody dared utter the phrase 'top o' the morning' again, not after the wrath it unleashed when Dean greeted Vanessa with it one morning. She could sure get mouthy when she was angry, and the angrier she was, the harder it was for them to understand her.

"I think she means get lost." Bobby called over to them and Vanessa nodded in approval, eyebrow raised at Dean who folded his arms and sulked as he walked into the living room.

"Making any progress?" Sam asked her, rolling his lips to hide a smile as Dean grumbled next to him about wanting to know his future.

"A wee bit, it'd be a lot easier if yer man over there would leave me alone for five feckin' minutes." Vanessa glared at Dean who shrunk into his seat, if he wasn't so scared of her he'd find amusement in the word 'feckin'. It had become his knew favourite word although he didn't dare say it incase she thought he was making fun of her accent.

"God, you're scary when your angry. And Irish, don't know what half of the words you're saying mean." Dean mumbled. "I just want to know what happens in the future, is that so bad?"

"Yes." Vanessa replied bluntly and Dean groaned, making Sam laugh to himself as he stole looks over at Vanessa who was huddled over her journal.

She was cute when she concentrated, her forehead would crease into little lines and her tongue poked out through her teeth when she was deep in thought.

"Dragons... Dragons..." Vanessa repeated, tapping her pencil on her forehead before she stopped. "Oh shite."

"What? What is it?" Sam asked, concerned.

"Right, so, I couldn't exactly remember what happened after Sam got his soul back, only that it involves dragons and virgins-"

"Fun times."

"-but I just remembered that it happens literally the day Sam woke up which means-"

"It's already happened." Sam finished for her and she nodded. "What does that mean? What did the dragons do?"

"They released Eve."

The guys had been some distracted by Vanessa turning up they hadn't been looking for cases, lord knows what they've missed since she arrived in their world.

"Eve? Like Adam and Eve?" Sam questioned, a puzzled look on his face as he glanced over at Dean.

"No. Eve is the mother of every monster on Earth and she's been locked away in Purgatory for like, ever."

"And you didn't think it was important to tell us that?" Dean exclaimed, his tone not one that Vanessa liked.

"Didn't I say I only just remembered?" Vanessa replied back through gritted teeth. "You try multidimensional travel and see how your memory fares!"

"Okay, okay." Sam stood up, his hands out at his sides as he stood between them, looking over at Vanessa. "Look, you've seen the outcome of this, how do we handle it?"

Vanessa seemed to calm down at little as Sam's soft tone and apologetic look for his brother. She sighed, running her hands down her face.

"I know how to kill her, and where to get what we need, I just don't know where she is. The show doesn't go into detail about stuff like that and I don't know America, like at all."

"That's alright." Sam approached her, making her look up at him. "You know how to kill her and that's enough."

"How do we kill her anyway?" Bobby asked and Vanessa told them as much details as she could remember about Eve. About the phoenix ash and where to get it. About the Jefferson Starships, Dean was proud of future his name choice, and about the Khan Worm, which led to Rufus' death (she never said anything about who actually killed him, Bobby didn't need to know that, even if it wasn't his fault).

"There's something else I feel like I should tell you but I'm not sure how." Vanessa bit at her lip, should she tell them about Castiel and Crowley or talk to Cas first? Would they hate her for leaving it so long to tell them or would they understand?

"What is it?" Sam asked, curiously.

"I think it better wait, I should talk to Castiel first." Vanessa stood up, her hands flat on the table as her words made the guys share concerned looks with each other. "Trust me."

Vanessa went outside, making it clear to those inside that they shouldn't follow her or she'd kick their ass and stop making them food, that one was a bigger threat than her beating them up.

"Castiel, I know you're busy but this is really important." Vanessa spoke to the sky, feeling like a right eejit and she was glad no one was there to see her. She waited for the flutter of wings but they never came. "I know you're working with Crowley, Cas. Please-"

"Hello." Castiel appeared after the wing flutter and Vanessa spun on her heels. "What do you know?" He stepped towards her, eyes squinted as they stared into hers.

"Everything." Vanessa replied, shuffling on her feet with her arms crossed. "You burned fake bones to help fake Crowley's death so you could work together to try and open Purgatory."

"Did you tell Sam and Dean?" He asked, his voice stern as if he was subtly warning her not to.

"No. But I will." Vanessa wasn't scared of him, she knew he'd never truly do anything to hurt her. If anything he'd put her to sleep and leave her somewhere until he'd managed to bust open Purgatory.

"You can't- You don't understand-"

"I do, Cas. I understand better than anybody that this is the only way to defeat Raphael. And it works, it does but it also causes bloodshed."

"What do you mean?" Castiel stepped forward, he was glad to hear that his plan would work but the word bloodshed didn't instil much confidence in him.

"You better take me to Crowley, so I can warn both of you."

"I don't think that's wise, you of all people should know what Crowley's like."

"I do know, but I also know what he becomes." Vanessa replied, making Castiel tilt his head a little in confusion but he didn't ask further questions. He knew she wouldn't tell him anyway.

Vanessa was both scared and excited to meet Crowley, he had been one of her favourite characters after all but she also knew it might not go down great. He hadn't been subjected to human blood yet so he wasn't the same Crowley she remembered. He was still just a new King who was desperate to hold onto his throne and would do anything for it.

"How do we explain what you are- who you are?" Castiel asked as the two of them stood behind the doors to the Purgatory lab.

"Just tell him I'm a seer or psychic or whatever." Vanessa would be lying if she said she hadn't thought this through. She'd spent the last week or so trying to come up with ways to tell people how she knew what she did without exposing herself and seer seemed like the best way to go.

"Honey, you're home." Crowley said sarcastically as he stood with his back to them, a half tortured alpha sitting in front of him. He glanced back over his shoulder. "And you brought a guest, is she here for a good time too?"

"No, she's here to warn us." Castiel replied, fed up with Crowley's attitude.

"Warn us? About what?" That seemed to get Crowley's attention as he turned to face them fully, his apron covered in blood and a knife in his hand.

"About what will happen if you open that door." Vanessa's words made his eyes flick towards her and she almost blushed, it's not everyday you get to meet your favourite TV character and have him stare right into your eyes.

"And how would you know what happens when we haven't opened it yet?"

"I've seen it." Those three words made Crowley throw the knife onto the table and strut towards them.

"Psychic?" He seemed intrigued.

"Something like that." Vanessa gulped as he came face to face with her, the two of them similar heights. The strong smell of sulfur hitting her like a bus.

"Really? Well, colour me intrigued. Tell me darling, what happens when we open that door?"

The words poured out of Vanessa's mouth like a waterfall, from Castiel's betrayal to Raphael's demise. The breaking of Sam's wall to the massacres in Heaven and on Earth by Castiel who declared himself the new God.

The Leviathans seemed to grab their attention and neither of them quite fully believed her about the ancient beasts, but after she went on to tell them what they did, leaving out Kevin and the tablets, they seemed to come to the conclusion she was telling the truth.

"Sounds sexy, well except the whole betrayal part and the ancient beasts." Crowley said with his usual grin on his face. "But that still leaves one problem, say we don't open the door, if what you say about me not needing the souls to keep my throne is true-"

"It is."

"-then how will you..." Crowley pointed towards Castiel. "...defeat Raphael?"

Castiel looked over at Vanessa, expecting her to have all the answers but she just shrugged.

"I have no idea. I only saw it this way which means there may be no other way to stop him." Vanessa told him and he pondered for a minute.

"Then we have to open the door. We have to defeat Raphael."

"Did you not hear what I just said? If you do this then hundreds of people and angels will die at your hands, do you really want to be responsible for that?"

"No, but it's like you said, there's no other way to defeat Raphael." Castiel seemed determined to follow through with his plan to open the door and Vanessa had hoped she'd be able to stop him, be able to stop everything with the Leviathans happening.

Stop Bobby from dying.

Before Vanessa could say anything she was back in Bobby's house, swaying on her feet in the middle of the living room.

"Ness?" Sam looked up from the table at her sudden appearance.

"Shite." Vanessa mumbled as she sat down on the sofa, running her hands through her hair. She knew she hadfailed, Castiel would open the door and there's nothing she'd be able to do to stop him.

"Ness?" Sam approached her cautiously and when she didn't react he sat down beside her. "What happened?"

Dean and Bobby entered the room, their faces falling confused at Vanessa's defeated one.

"You two should sit down for this." Her words didn't exactly make the guys feel any better but they did what they were told, Bobby even passed round glasses of scotch which he thought they might need.

And he was right.

Vanessa told them everything, everything she could remember. Castiel's betrayal, the Leviathans, Crowley, Bobby's death, Sam and Dean's doppelgängers and the year Dean spent in Purgatory as a result of killing Dick Roman. Obviously she didn't mention anything about Sam not looking for him, or about Amelia and Benny, they didn't need to know that.

"Crowley's alive?!" Dean exclaimed after downing his whole glass in one go.

"That's it? That whole story and you're worried about Crowley?" Vanessa asked, her own glass empty and being refilled by Bobby.

"You don't know Crowley-"

"I do know Crowley and he's the least of your worries." Vanessa snapped, she'd always hated how the boys treated Crowley, especially in times when he took it upon himself to help them and never got any thanks for it.

"She's right, Dean. We should be focusing on stopping Castiel from opening the door." Sam said, looking over at Dean.

"Actually, first we need to focus on Eve. She dies before the door opens so right now she's our main priority." Vanessa told them, downing her drink again in one go.

"Our?" Sam raised an eyebrow at Vanessa, he hadn't expected her to include herself in the taking down of Eve, she didn't exactly scream hunter.

"You think I'm gonna sit around on my arse writing stories while you three do all the work? That's how you eejits end up dead." She shook her head, hearing a small scoff leave Dean's mouth.

"Can you even shoot a gun?"

She could. And she did. Every target Bobby pointed to, Vanessa took down easy, a smug look on her face as she turned back to face the rather impressed looking guys.

"Good enough for you?" She smirked, her eyebrow raised at their gaped mouths.

"Where did you learn to shoot like that?" Sam asked, impressed... amongst other things.

"Me da was a hunter, used to take me and me sister out sometimes. I'd never actually shoot an animal but the old bean tins never stood a fightin' chance against me."

"There's hunters in Ireland? What do you shoot, Leprechauns?" Dean said amused before Vanessa raised the gun at him and his face dropped, his hands held up in surrender.

Vanessa squinted at him in warning and lowered the gun. Obviously she wouldn't shoot him but he needed to be warned.

"Squirrels mostly. Sometimes birds... and deer when allowed." She told them, setting the gun aside.

"Any other skills you're hiding from us?" Sam asked with a small smile on his face.

"A few." Vanessa replied, a teasing grin on hers that made Sam almost choke on his own saliva.

"Well we best start planning on how we're gonna handle Eve, then we'll worry about Cas." Bobby said, breaking the tension between Vanessa and Sam, the two of them blushing awkwardly.

Dean would find it amusing but he was too busy thinking about the fact that Castiel had betrayed them and would have broken Sam's wall had Vanessa not warned them. After everything he'd done for the guy and this is how he repaid them.

As they headed inside, Vanessa pulled Dean back, the two of them stood outside the door.

"Are you okay?" Vanessa asked him, she knew how Castiel's betrayal had hurt Dean in the show so she wanted to make sure he was doing okay.

"Not really." Dean sighed, leaning against a wooden post. "Cas lied to us, he went behind our backs. He-"

"I know he did, but if it's any consolation he thinks he's doing the right thing. And he thinks he's doing it for you. He got Sam out of the cage, he-he's just trying to win the war against Raphael. To save Heaven and to save Earth."

"By working with Crowley? By breaking Sam's wall?"

"Crowley isn't the enemy here, Dean. He never was and he never will be, well except this one small time but if things go my way that won't ever happen. But anyway, just don't take it personally, Castiel is trying to do right. I won't let him break the wall and if the door opens then it opens, it's a good thing I know how to fix it when it does."

"I guess you're right." Dean sighed and Vanessa was honestly a little surprised. Dean would never normally admit anyone was right but he was just too tired to argue, if Vanessa said Cas was trying to do right then he'd believe it. He had to. "Like you said, you know how to fix it. Just... keep me out of Purgatory will you?"

"I'll try my best." Vanessa crossed her heart and smiled, Dean patting her on the shoulder before they went inside.

"Found you kids a case." Bobby's voice greeted them and Dean's ears perked up. "Janitor murdered in a college lab last night. Doors were locked, nobody else in or out of the building."

"Ring any bells?" Dean turned to Vanessa who shook her head.

"Doesn't sound familiar, sorry."

"That's alright, we've managed this long without you, I think we can handle one little case." Dean said with a grin and Vanessa rolled her eyes, but smiled.

"You wanna come with?" Sam asked, he was hoping she'd say yes as he kinda didn't want to leave without her, which may have had something to do with the little crush he'd developed on her.

"Not this time. I should get back to Eve business." Vanessa said with a sigh as she pointed to her journal, one page open that just had 'Eve' written at the top. She was a little disappointed she couldn't go, she wanted to see the boys in action, see Sam in action but she knew she had to stay here.

"Right, Eve." Sam said disappointed, which didn't go unnoticed by Dean who chuckled to himself over the oblivious pair of idiots next to him.

Even Bobby picked up that there may be something between them, after all he'd seen them stare lovingly into each others eyes many times and despite having her own clothes now, Vanessa still wore Sam's shirt to bed.

Vanessa wouldn't lie and say she didn't like Sam, because frankly she did. But she was scared he wouldn't like her back, she'd seen who he went for in the show and she was the complete opposite of those women, she probably wasn't even his type. So she'd just have to push her newfound feelings aside and focus on fixing their lives instead.

And so Sam and Dean headed off to New Jersey, with a tub full of Vanessa's famous cookies which earned her a big bear hug from Dean. Sam hugged her too, a short hug but a nice one. He almost didn't want to let her go but Dean was rushing him out the door, eager to hunt so eventually her had to.

"Be careful." Vanessa said softly as Sam pulled away from her.

"Always am." Sam chuckled and Vanessa made a face to say really?

When are Winchesters ever careful?

Sam shot her one last smile as he got into the Impala before she went back inside, the house seeming more quiet now that they were gone.

"Boys gone?" Bobby asked as he came downstairs.

"Aye, they just left." Vanessa replied as she slumped down onto the sofa, her journal in her hand. She had told the boys she was working on a way to find Eve but actually she was trying to figure out a way to stop Raphael before Castiel opened the door to Purgatory.

There had to be a way to defeat an archangel, besides using another archangel as there weren't any of those left. (There was but she hadn't quite remembered that yet).

"What do we know about archangels?" Vanessa asked, making Bobby look up from his desk.

"We know there ain't many left." He folded his arms, leaning back in his chair. "And we know they're tough sons of bitches, ain't much that can kill them besides themselves or... God I guess."

God wouldn't help.

"I wish we had Jack..." Vanessa mumbled to herself.

"Who?"

"Never mind." She waved a hand towards Bobby who just shrugged, brushing it off as 'Irish nonsense' as they called it. "Lucifer and Michael are in the cage... Gabriel is dead... Wait no, actually, that's it. Gabriel."

"What about him? You just said he was dead?"

"He isn't!" Vanessa jumped from the sofa, making Bobby jump from shock and the sheer volume at which she spoke.

Of course, how could she forget that Gabriel faked his death in that weird episode with all the Gods? But where was he... she recalled someone held him hostage but who was it.

"Gah, who is it... Who has him?" She ran her hand over her chin as she paced, her other hand on her hip.

"Has him? Like kidnapped him?"

"Aye, I remember him getting rescued and sacrificing himself, for good that time, but I can't remember the demons name... Colonel Sanders looking dude...? Amadeus... No. Amodeus?Asmo... Asmodeus! That's it! He was taken by Asmodeus the fourth Prince of Hell."

"Prince of Hell?" Bobby's mouth gaped. "The hell is a Prince of Hell."

"You remember yellow eyes?"

"Kinda hard to forget."

"He was a Prince of Hell, there's four in total. The demons spread rumours, making everyone believe Azazel was the last of them as they wanted to be left alone so when he died, everyone thought them extinct. But it was actually the opposite, the other three are still alive. There's Dagon, who doesn't really come up and probably won't if this one thing doesn't happen, and the other one just wants to live quietly. Then there's Asmodesus, the youngest and the weakest of the four, well he was before he started injecting archangel grace into him."

"Come again?" Bobby had a hard time understanding Vanessa when she spoke at the literal speed of sound.

"If we can track down Asmodeus, we can rescue Gabriel and maybe he can stop Raphael."

"And how exactly do you plan on tracking down this Asmo-whatever. Unless you know his exact address, it ain't gonna be easy."

"Is it ever easy?" Vanessa huffed out a laugh, but Bobby was right. She had no idea where Asmodeus was keeping Gabriel and she doubted anyone even knew about the Prince as he was never even mentioned until season 13.

"I'm gonna call Crowley, he might know." Vanessa was already dialling when Bobby took her phone from her hands.

"We ain't calling Crowley."

"Why? He might be able to help, he knows where one of the Princes are, he might know where Asmodeus is. Bobby, this is our only chance at stopping Castiel."

Bobby sighed and handed Vanessa her phone back, watching in confusion as she dialled 666 before it started ringing.

Crowley was surprised himself when she called, appearing immediately in Bobby's living room.

"Hello, darling." He said with a smile, earning an unamused look from Bobby who stood protectively beside Vanessa.

"Crowley." Vanessa greeted with a nod of her head. "I have a favour to ask."

"Ask away, just know, my favours don't come cheap."

"Don't I know it." Bobby mumbled, making Crowley smile to himself.

"Do you know where Asmodeus is?" Vanessa's words came as a big shock to Crowley, how in the hell she knew about the Princes was something he'd never know.

"Asmodeus? He's dead. As are all the Princes."

"Wrong, they're all alive except for Azazel." Vanessa said bluntly, earning a eye squint and a tensed jaw from Crowley. "Asmodeus has Gabriel."

"The archangel? I thought he was dead."

"So did everyone, he faked his death, went back into witness protection only to be betrayed by Loki and sold to Asmodeus, who's using his grace to give himself a power boost. And when he's strong enough, he'll come for your throne." That was a lie but Vanessa knew she needed to tell Crowley something that would make him help her.

"You're bluffing."

"Am I?"

"What kind of psychic are you anyway?"

"I'm not." Vanessa took a breath and Bobby realised what she was about to do.

"Ness, don't." He took hold of her arm, giving her a warning look which she ignored.

"I'm from another world, from the year 2023 to be exact. I've seen everything that happens as in my world, all this..." She gestured around her. "...is a TV show."

Crowley stood still, his mouth gaped and his eyes blinking as he looked between Vanessa and Bobby.

"Is she joking?" He asked Bobby who shook his head. "You're telling the truth?"

"I am." Vanessa nodded. "Ask your business partner, he'll tell you."

"Interesting... And how many seasons of this show do I happen to be in?"

"Seven and a half."

"Out of?"

"...Fifteen." Vanessa said hesitantly and Crowley sighed, biting the inside of his cheek.

"I see." He seemed almost disappointed at her answer and seemed to realise that meant he died at some point. "How?"

"You don't need to know." Vanessa shook her head. "If I have my ways it won't ever come to that."

"You'd purposely change the future to save me? Me?" Crowley seemed taken back, as did Bobby who looked at her confused.

"Not just you, a lot of other stuff as well. But if I can save you, I will. You were my favourite character after all."

"He was?"

"I was?"

"Don't look at me like that, he was fictional in my world." Vanessa shot towards Bobby who sighed and rolled his eyes.

"And Asmodeus, he has something to do with my death?"

"Yes." No.

"Well, I guess that leaves me no choice." Crowley pulled at his suit jacket, straightening it. "Tell me something though, something Moose and Squirrel don't know. Something they wouldn't have told you about me." 

Shite, what would she ever say? There's not much that the guys don't know about Crowley already... Unless...

"Ramiel." Vanessa spoke as she remembered the name of the Prince who'd given Crowley his throne and who Crowley had given the colt to. Which they may actually need at some point.

"Who?" Bobby's question went unanswered as Crowley seemed to believe Vanessa, otherwise how would she know about Ramiel. How would she even know about the Princes if she wasn't telling the truth.

"Well, I guess I better start asking around about Asmodeus." Crowley replied, satisfied with her answer.

"Oh, and Crowley." Vanessa stepped forward and Crowley looked up at her. "Thank you."

Crowley smiled briefly, nodding his head before he vanished. No one ever thanked him before. He was starting to like this Vanessa girl.

"Now what?" Bobby asked, still lost about the whole conversation that had just happened.

"Now we wait."