They get to the cemetery since Rowena said she needed to be near the opening of Hell for the spell to work.
"What's the word from outside?" Dean asks his brother as they walk towards the cemetery.
"Ghosts are still at it, trying to break down the barrier. I left some hunters at the gym to keep the peace. The rest are set up around the perimeter, in case--"
"IN case the spell breaks and a hundred billion ghosts come bursting out." Dean says. He turns to Rowena. "This better work."
"It will work. The "Rafforza I'incantesimo" is a potent transubstantiation spell. It can turn gossamer into concrete." Rowena states. "Like I said, get me close to the epicenter, find me a nice, protected ghost free space -- I'll patch those crumbling walls right up, and we'll all be home in time for high tea."
They walk past the rift and there's bodies everywhere.
"Ah. Great. A nice, protected space." Cas says sarcastically.
They go to the crypt, Sam locking the doors after everyone is in. Dean and Cas scatter salt around and Rowena gets ready to do the spell and takes her coat off. She opens the Book of the Damned and prepares to perform the spell.
Rowena starts performing the spell, speaking in a different language, and soon enough her eyes glow violet.
Sam's phone dings and he looks at it.
"Looks like it's working." Sam says.
Rowena suddenly stutters the spell. She tries to continue it, but starts panting. "Forte!" The bowl clatters to the ground and she falls to the floor.
"Rowena?" Evie calls, crouching down next to the witch, with a worried expression on her face.
"We're all going to die." Rowena states, terrified. She sits against a pillar, the three Winchesters crouched next to her. "Drink."
"Of course. Dean." Sam says and Dean hands him a water.
"A real drink." Rowena says.
The two brothers stare at each other until Dean reluctantly passes over his flask and Sam gives it to Rowena.
"OKay, now that we're waiting for the witch's hooch to kick in, can we finally admit the obvious? Uh, she failed. So if we're keeping scores, that's, uh, 1 for the demon, uh, 0 for the witch." Belphegor says.
"Well, demon may be getting punched if he doesn't shut up." Evie bites.
"Seriously, don't you feel the sexual tension between us?" Belphegor asks. All three Winchesters and Cas glare at him. "No? Just me?"
"The enchantment couldn't work." Rowena says, getting everybody's attention to the bigger problem at hand. "No magic could. The spell put me into a-a communion with the wall. I-I could feel how weak it is, how close to collapse-- and I could feel why. I could feel them. All of them."
"All of them? Them who?" Sam asks.
"The spirits. Their anger and their hatred, writhing and raging. They're pressed up against those walls breaking them down. There are too many and they're too wild and desperate and angry." Rowena says. "Together, they are too strong. Those walls will fall, and there's no magic on earth can stop it."
"How long do we have?" Cas asks.
"Hours, if we're lucky." Rowena says.
"THen we get out of here, and we take out as many as we possibly can before those walls fall. Rowena, mix up some of those crystals you got." Dean says.
"It wouldn't matter! Those things?! It would be like tossing mousetraps at the Great Plague. I'm telling you -- it's over!" Rowena exclaims. "Perhaps if I'd gotten here sooner, there are any number of spells I could've tried to close the gate to Hell before it got to this point. But now it's too late. The cat's out of the bloody bag."
Belphegor starts to leave.
"Where the hell you going?" Dean asks. "Hey!"
"I got him." Cas says, following Belphegor out.
"We're not gonna give up. That's not who we are. Let's go out there and let's take care of--" Sam gestures Dean to be quiet.
"Can you not be an angry dickhead when somebody is obviously distressed for once?" Evie asks, glaring at her uncle who glares right back.
Sam kneels next to Rowena.
"Rowena. Hey. You okay? You need anything?" He asks.
"A moment." Rowena says.
"Of course. Sure." Sam nods. Him and Evie get up, the three walking away a bit.
~ ~ ~
Rowena is sitting on the stairs while Dean is loading up a bunch of rock salt bullets and Sam and Evie walk over, Sam sitting next to him.
"Hey. What are you doing?" Sam asks.
"I'm not gonna give up. That's what I'm doing. Not just gonna sit in this crypt and wait for the walls to come down." Dean says.
"You heard Rowena." Sam says.
"Yeah, I heard her, okay? Ghosts are gonna bust out, and they're gonna swallow this world. And you want to what, just relax? Take a knee? No. NO, we're gonna end this, Sam. Like you said. We're gonna be free." Dean says.
"I know, Dean, I-I just... this feels bigger than us. You know? And--And I'm out of ideas, and... and I'm freaked, too." Sam says.
"Oh, I'm not freaked. I'm angry, okay? I'm pissed." Dean says.
"At God." Sam says.
"Yes." Dean nods.
"Me too." Sam agrees.
"I mean, this whole mess, you know? This--this sloppy ass ghostpocalypse -- that's Chuck's ending? No. No, I don't think so. After everything that he has put us through? I'll be damned if I'm gonna let some glorified fanboy get the last word." Dean says.
"Right." Sam mutters. Evie sees him glancing over at Rowena for the third time.
"Oh, my God, just go check on your girlfriend." Evie says. Sam gives her a confused bitchface. Evie gives him a look that tells him to go and he rolls his eyes, going over to Rowena.
"You do know going out there is practically suicide, right?" Evie asks her uncle. "Especially after the warding comes down."
"Well, I'm gonna go out swinging. Not kicking back and staring at the walls." Dean says.
"Well, you could stare at the ground or the ceiling, or a pillar, or one of us -- that would look creepy, though." Evie says. Dean gives her a glare. "I'm just saying." Evie shrugs.
"Look, you make jokes, I get that. But sometimes it just isn't the correct time for jokes, E." Dean says.
"Sometimes it's not the correct time to bring up a dead mother or be a jackass and yet here you are." Evie says, fake smiling. Dean rolls his eyes.
~ ~ ~
"Wait, what do you mean "Lilith's Crook"?" Sam asks Belphegor.
"Yeah, you know, one of those, uh... curvy ended canes that shepherds use? Little Bo Peep?" Belphegor says.
"We know, we just don't wanna answer you." Evie says.
"It's just a nickname. Doesn't matter. Thing's actually more of a horn. Anyways, when Lilith began sending demons off to Earth to do her bidding, there was a little problem. I mean, yeah, she commended absolute loyalty in Hell, but there was no guarantee that once her minions were topside, that they wouldn't just take advantage of the situation. She needed to control her flock. So--"
"So she forged the Crook." Sam says.
"Slash horn." Dean says.
"It could -- can retrieve all of Hell's lost creatures and bring them--" Belphegor snaps his fingers. "Straight back home."
"And why haven't we heard about this before?" Cas asks.
"She never needed to use it. When she ruled, it was enough for us that we knew she could. And then when Crowley took over, he had other forms of discipline... endless lines, endless paperwork. Not that he liked to spend a lot of time down there, anyway, with us." Belphegor says.
"Where is it?" Dean asks.
"Last I heard, it was in Lilith's chamber, which has been sealed for ages." Belphegor says.
"NOw that all the doors in Hell are open--"
"It's just sitting there, ripe for the taking." Belphegor says, cutting Sam off. "I get the Crook, sound the Crook, and we suck all Hell's ghosts back into Hell. Then if the witch is feeling up to it..."
"I slam the door shut behind them." Rowena says.
"Wait a second. How? With magic from the Book of the Damned?" Sam asks.
"A spell of my own devising. The Sanetur Acre Vulnus. A healing spell of a kind. If this gateway to Hell isn't a gate at all, but a wound, a rupture, I can use the spell to undo the damage Chuck did, and the hole will heal, close itself up. We'll have to time it perfectly. If--If you're in Hell when all this goes down, how will we know when to start?"
"Oh, trust me. You'll know." Belphegor says.
"That sound ominous." Evie mumbles.
"What are you gonna need?" Dean asks.
"A--A few ingredients, nothing too exotic -- lavender, myrrh, the skull of an owl, quiet to perform the spell, and an assistant. Dibs on Samuel." Rowena says.
"Er, what?" Sam questions.
"You're as close to a seasoned witch as we've got in this lot. And I'll need someone out there by the rupture." Rowena says.
"Why?" Cas asks.
"I need to do the spell in the safety of the crypt, but we need someone close to the edge to serve as a fulcrum, a carrier. Well, to put it in, uh, American action movie terms, they'll be carrying a bomb, I light the fuse, they toss it in -- boom. Whoever does this, they'll be unprotected. No salt circles -- all manner of angry spirits right up in their grill."
"Oh, well, that screams Uncle Dean, obviously." Evie says.
"Sounds like fun." Dean says.
Belphegor raises his hand.
"Yes, Belphegor?" Rowena asks.
"Uh, who's coming with me? I'm sorry, but I'm not going down to Hell and getting past all those pissed off ghosts and demons that are maybe loitering down there, and sounding the Crook all by myself." Belphegor says.
"So you want company?" Sam asks.
"I want protection." Belphegor says, turning to Cas. "Muscle."
"Yeah, Cas'll go." Dean says. Cas looks both stunned and hurt. "You've been to Hell before."
"I mean, so have you, but okay." Evie mumbles under breath.
"Well, it sounds like I don't have a choice." Cas says.
"Good. Great. Go team." Dean says.
+++
Stevie gets to the crypt with the ingredients for Rowena's spell.
"Salt, a couple of guns from the back of the Impala. And for the ginger... witch stuff." Stevie says, giving Rowena a bag who looks through it.
"Forget something?" Rowena asks.
"Right. One owl skull." Stevie says, handing the skull wrapped up in a towel to Rowena.
"RIP, Hedwig." Dean says.
"How do you know who Hedwig is?" Evie asks her uncle.
"I know enough about Harry Potter to know Hedwig is the owl, alright?" Dean says.
"You're welcome." Stevie tells them.
"Alright, so, how bad is it out there?" Sam asks.
"People are pretty restless, but we're keeping a lid on. Getting here through the quarantine zones, I stuck to the corners, only got attacked a few times. I think most of the ghosts are at the edge of town working to bring down those walls." Stevie says. "So what are you planning in here? Another long shot, magical Hail Mary?"
"Yeah. Yeah, except this time, hopefully it works." Dean says, looking at Rowena.
"Okay, the last thing was not her fault." Evie hits Dean's arm.
"So we need you and the other hunters armed up and ready on the other side of that wall. Cause if this goes sideways, you'll be the only thing standing between those ghosts and the world." Sam says.
"No pressure, right?" Stevie jokingly asks and Dean's phone buzzes.
"Ketch. Says he's ready to get back in the game." Dean says. Evie watches as he replies.
"Aw, you put Bel. New nickname for your little demon buddy?" Evie asks, just trying to annoy her uncle.
"Shut up." Dean grumbles.
+++
Evie is at the rift with Dean -- after a long argument with both Dean and Sam and Rowena having to butt in, threatening that she'd curse the brothers if they didn't let Evie help Dean out -- and they're both sitting behind a headstone that's right on the edge of the rift.
Dean checks his phone, looking around for Ketch.
"Where you at, Ketch?" Dean mutters.
"You wanna talk?" Evie asks.
"What?" Dean asks, looking back at her.
"Well, what are we supposed to do? Just sit here impatiently waiting?" Evie asks.
"Yes." Dean nods and Evie rolls her eyes.
"Why do you keep bringing my mom up?" Evie asks.
"Evie." Dean sighs, not in the mood for conversing.
"What? I mean, are you trying to hurt me? Remind me of one of the worst times in my life? I don't go around talking about your mom dying in a fire. Or Jack killing her." Evie says.
"Why are you so focused on this?" Dean asks.
"Because honestly it hurts." Evie says.
Dean looks over at her, seeing that hurt is glistening in her eyes. He can also see a bit of confusion. Evie looks at him, but he has an unreadable expression so she can't tell what he's really thinking. After a few minutes, Evie gets uncomfortable and looks away.
"Okay, I wanted to talk, not for you to stare into my soul." Evie mutters, picking at her nail polish.
"As cool -- and yet creepy -- as that seems, it's more of a Cas thing." Dean says. Evie gives him a look and he smiles. She rolls her eyes, but he can tell it's out of amusement and not annoyance.
~ ~ ~
Meanwhile, Rowena is prepping everything while Sam stares at the shut doors in worry.
"Eyes on the page. I need you off book for this incantation." Rowena says.
"Yeah, sorry. I just feel like I should be out there fighting. I mean, I let my 16 year old daughter go out, but I'm in here -- somewhat protected." Sam says.
"And magic isn't fighting? Little Evie will be fine. Dean's doing his part." Rowena says.
"Yeah, but they're also not getting along right now. It's two annoyed people together, not a good combo." Sam says.
"Oh, it's not like they're going to throw one another into Hell." Rowena assures. "Well, I suppose they might." She mutters and Sam looks at her. "Oh, I'm only kidding, Samuel. We both know Dean wouldn't let anything happen to your girl. Now, it's time for you to do your part. The plan."
"Of course, right." Sam says after hesitating for a bit. "Our one shot."
~ ~ ~
Dean holds Rowena's bomb and him and Evie watch as the spirits flock to Hell. Everything is shaking, but not enough to knock the two Winchesters down or anything. The bomb in Dean's hands starts glowing. Dean throws the bomb in before sitting down next to Evie and the walls of Hell start to tumble down.
Dean keeps a semi tight grip on Evie's arm for safety precautions. The rumbling stops making the two confused.
"What the hell?" Dean mutters.
"Is this supposed to happen?" Evie asks. Dean doesn't answer her, pulling his phone out and calling Sam.
"Sam?" Dean asks.
"Hey. WHat's going on? Are the ghosts gone?" Sam asks.
"Hell if I know. But the crack's starting to close up." Dean says. "Something doesn't feel right."
"Fine, just... don't..." Sam trails off, leaving Dean confused. Sam hangs up, leaving Dean to not know anything.
"Great." Dean sighs.
They continue to watch as the walls rumble down.
"Dean." They hear and turn to see Cas.
"Cas! What the hell happened?" Dean asks, standing up, and Evie also stands up. "Where's Belphegor?"
"I killed him." Cas states.
"You did what?" Dean asks. "Wh-what about the Crook?" Dean asks.
"It's gone. It was destroyed." Cas says.
"What?!" Dean asks.
~ ~ ~
Rowena and Sam are in the crypt as she's trying to get him to kill her for the spell.
"Hell's closing. The walls are falling." Rowena says.
"There has to be another way." Sam says.
"I wish there were... I do. I don't care about anything enough to take my own life, Not you, your brother, your daughter... not even the world. But I believe in prophecy. I believe in magic. And I'm here, and you're here, and everything we need to end this right is in our hands." Rowena states.
She puts the dagger in Sam's hand, holding the end of it against her stomach.
"I know this in my bones... it has to be this way. Do it! Kill me, Samuel!" She orders. Sam hesitates and Rowena puts her hand on his shoulder. "I know we've gotten quite fond of each other, haven't we? But will you let the world die, let your brother die? Let your little girl die... just so I can live?"
"No." Sam whispers. He wraps his free arm around her as if he's hugging her and stabs her, the witch gasping out in pain.
~ ~ ~
"Cas, this was our only shot. What the hell were you thinking?" Dean asks.
"Dean..." Cas says, but his eyes divert behind the Winchester. Dean and Evie follow his gaze seeing Rowena and Sam walk out of the crypt. Rowena has a wound in her stomach and all the spirits are flocking into it.
"Rowena?" Cas asks.
Rowena walks to the rift, the spirits still going to her wound. When she absorbs all of them, she stands at the edge of the rift, glancing back at the four.
"Goodbye, boys. Dearie." Rowena says. She turns back around, letting herself fall into the rift.
The rift closes up.
+++
They're back at the bunker and Evie took a shower before staying in her room for a bit so she can silently cry to herself.
Evie makes her way to Sam's room, stopping when Dean walks out of it.
"How's he doing?" Evie quietly asks.
"As you would expect." Dean says, just as quietly. "You?"
"As you would expect." Evie echoes, letting out a small and slightly humorless laugh.
Dean kisses Evie on the forehead before leaving.
Evie goes into her dad's room, seeing him sitting on the edge of his bed.
"Hey." Evie greets.
"Hey, sweetie." Sam quietly responds, forcing a small smile.
Evie sits next to him and hugs his arm, resting her head on his shoulder.
"You wanna watch a movie or something?" Evie asks. She knows not much is going to cheer him up -- if anything at all -- but she can still try.
Sam doesn't answer for a few moments so Evie assumes it's a no.
"Sure." Sam nods after a bit and Evie looks up at him.
"Really?" She asks.
"Yeah." Sam nods, another small smile making its way to his face. "Better than just sitting here in silence, I guess."
"You want hot chocolate?" Evie asks.
"Sure." Sam nods and Evie smiles. She kisses him on the cheek before going off to the kitchen to make hot chocolate. She makes sure to overload them both with marshmallows before going back to Sam's room, careful not to spill the drinks.
She gets in and Sam's laptop is now on his bed, ready for a movie to be played. Evie gives him his hot chocolate and he looks at the mass amount of marshmallows.
"Did you, uh, dump the whole bag in here?" Sam jokingly asks.
"Ooh, you're joking." Evie smiles, glad he's not completely out of it at the moment. "And no... only half the bag." She says and Sam looks at her. "I'm joking."
They pick a movie and it starts.
"Are you okay?" Sam asks as the movie starts.
"I'm okay as can be. I cried, I'm just trying to not be sad right now." Evie says.
"You know, you can be sad. After everything tha--that happened." Sam says.
"I know... and I mean, I am still sad. But you... I don't like seeing you so depressed so I'm trying to not be depressed, too." Evie says.
"Baby, you can be. It's okay. And I can comfort you while you also try to comfort me." Sam says.
"I know." Evie mumbles, looking down at her drink. "But can you just let me attempt to cheer you up? It was a lot easier for my existence to bring a smile on your sad face when I was little. I was cuter then."
"You're still cute." Sam says. "But okay." Sam kisses her on the head and the two watch the movie.
In the middle of their second movie, Evie ended up falling asleep with her head on Sam's shoulder. She's lightly holding the empty mug of hot chocolate. Sam looks down, seeing her peaceful face and he carefully takes the mug out of her hands.
The removal of the object causes Evie to stir but she only cuddles into the blanket more and moving her head down his arm a bit so she's more comfortable.
Sam stays frozen until he knows she's still asleep. He puts her mug next his that's on the side table. Sam wraps pulls the blanket up more so it's up to her shoulder. He kisses her on top of the head before resting his cheek against her head.
"I love you." Sam mumbles to his sleeping daughter.