*Time skip to after Jack's born*
"You don't have to control your thoughts.
You just have to stop letting them control you." -Dan Millman
<< Meeting Jack >>
Dakota follows Sam and Dean into the precinct, sighing heavily as Dean pulls out his gun. Her and Sam whisper the plan to each other, Dean rolling his eyes at their need to finalize everything. Dakota gets distracted once she feels a strong pull, urging her to go into the precinct, to find Jack. The Winchesters all hear the light bulbs shattering inside, Dakota exchanges a quick glance with Sam before moving.
"Dad." She says before pushing past him, latching onto his wrist and dragging him with her.
They spot Jack stumble into the lobby area, holding his head and groaning in pain.
"Hey!" Dean calls, Jack's gaze snaps to them and his eyes begin to glow yellow.
"He looks pissed." Dakota mumbles, gripping onto Dean's arm.
Dean pushes her behind him when Jack begins to stand up straight, glaring at the two Winchesters angrily. Before the Nephilim could do anything, Sam comes up behind him and tazes the boy. Jack falls to the ground, unconscious.
"Nice shot." Dean sighs, giving Sam a thumbs-up. Dakota shoots him a look before kneeling down next to the boy, she places a hand on his shoulder. "Don't touch it, Dakota!" Dean chastises, Dakota rolls her eyes in response. Sam crouches next to his niece, his eyes not moving away from Jack.
She's about to respond to him when a gun cocks behind them.
"Don't." The sheriff warns them, aiming her gun towards the three. "What the hell is going on here?" She questions, her gaze locked on the unconscious boy.
The three Winchesters stifle their sighs as they slowly raise their hands in surrender. The sheriff stands them in a line to search them, taking their guns and pocket knives from them.
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Dakota and Sam are shoved in the waiting cells with Jack, while Dean answers the sheriff's questions. Dakota leans her head on Sam's shoulder, sighing heavily and closing her eyes.
"I feel like we failed." She whispers quietly.
"What? We didn't fail, Kota, things just didn't go our way." Sam states.
"That's failing, Sammy." Dakota chuckles exasperatedly. "And we did. Our plan? It sucked, it got everybody killed. Kelly died, grandma's gone, and Cas...Cas is--"
"Dakota, we couldn't of known that the plan wasn't gonna work." Sam sighs, patting her knee. "We never do, we just always hope for the best."
"Yeah, but that's never worked out well for us." Dakota retorts, before taking a deep breath and glancing over at the unconscious Nephilim. "Cas believed in Jack, that he was good."
Sam nods in agreement, wishing there was something to say to make her feel better.
"I want to prove him right, I want to help Jack be good." Dakota continues, realizing she wasn't going to get an answer from Sam.
Jack starts to grunt as pushes himself to a sitting position, Sam moves himself in front of Dakota protectively. Jack suddenly springs up, spinning around and sliding into a defensive position, glaring at the Winchesters suspiciously.
"Woah, woah, woah. Easy, easy, easy, easy." Sam mumbles, panicked.
Dakota inches out from behind Sam, edging closer to the Nephilim and ignoring Sam's outstretched hands. She feels the same pull that she felt outside, it reminded her of the one she had with Cas when they first met, but this was stronger.
"Jack, it's okay." She says gently, showing him her palms. "You're okay. I'm not gonna hurt you, alright? Sammy's not gonna hurt you. It's okay."
"He's already hurt me." Jack hisses, glaring at Sam. Dakota stands in front of his gaze, blocking his vision of Sam.
"Hey, Jack, look at me." Dakota demands, her voice soft yet stern. Jack's eyes slowly move over to her. "He's sorry that he hurt you, he didn't know what to do. A-are you okay?"
"I don't, I..." Jack trails in confusion. "I was scared, and when I get scared things happen. I...I can't stop them." Jack's eyes stop glowing, his body trembling slightly.
"Why were you scared?" Sam and Dakota question at the same time.
"Because of the voices." He answers quietly. "They were so...loud, so...angry."
Dakota frowns at him sadly, trying to inch closer but Sam catches her arm.
"Do you hear them right now?" Dakota asks him softly.
Sam watches the scene with narrowed eyes.
Jack looks around in confusion, like he's listening for the voices that were once screaming at him. "No."
Dakota stands up and Jack mirrors her, watching the young hunter curiously.
"Good." Sam chuckles nervously. He exhales sharply, trying to calm himself down.
Dakota pulls her gaze away from Jack, and sits next to her uncle--taking his hand comfortingly. Jack sits on the bed across from them, pulling his feet up and crossing his legs. Dakota gives him an encouraging smile.
"I'm sorry." Jack apologizes softly, his eyes darting between the Winchesters. Dakota's brow furrow.
"What?" Sam questions, sharing Dakota's confusion. They both stare at Jack with identical expressions.
"Will you tell them that I'm sorry?" Jack asks instead of answering.
"Yeah." Sam nods, wrapping his arm around Dakota to comfort himself more than her. Jack makes him really nervous, unsure of whether to trust the Nephilim or not. And Sam doesn't really like whatever connection Dakota has with him.
"Sure. Of course." Dakota agrees, smiling.
"Jack...how are you, uh, how are we...talking right now?" Sam struggles to ask, not understanding how Jack is a teenager when he was born yesterday. "I mean, you're--you're not even a day old. How do you speak English?"
Jack looks down and smiles softly, Dakota's expression softens as she watches him.
"My mother taught me." Jack answers.
"So you talked to her?" Dakota asks quietly.
"I was her." Jack corrects, looking up at Dakota--her cheeks redden slightly under his gaze.
"Okay." Sam states, pulling Jack's attention off of Dakota. "And, um...your powers. Did she teach you those, too, or..." He trails off slightly.
"No, I..." Jack denies, standing up and walking toward the cell wall. "I don't know why these things happen. It's like I'm me, but...not me."
Dakota frowns, watching the boy struggle to understand what's happening. He didn't ask for any of this, it was just shoved onto him.
"Jack, look, um...before you were born, you--you opened up a door to another world." Sam speaks up, Dakota elbows him sharply but her uncle ignore her. "Do you remember that?"
Jack lowers her head, drawing in a large breath. "Yes." He says quietly.
"Okay, um, could you do that again?" Sam asks, Dakota elbows him again, harder this time. "Stop." He hisses at her, Dakota couldn't help but straighten up at his tone--he sounded almost like Dean when he scolds her.
"I don't...I..." Jack struggles for a few seconds, before blinking in realization. "I have to find my father. He'll protect me."
"Jack," Dakota stands, walking closer to the scared boy. "Listen to me. That's not what Lucifer does, he's not good."
Jack chuckles slightly. "Lucifer? No, that's not his name. My father is Castiel."
Dakota's face falls, her eyes turning sad as she stares at him. Jack's brow furrows at her face, not liking that she looks so upset. Dakota took an unconscious step back, returning to her spot next to Sam.
"What?" Sam asks in shock, his hand going towards Dakota's.
"My mother, she said Castiel, he would keep me safe." Jack answers, sitting back on the bed across from them. "She said the world was a dangerous place. That's--that's why I couldn't be a baby or a child. I...that's why I had to grow up fast." He explains. "That's why I chose him to be my father."
Dakota releases the breath that she didn't know she was holding. She looks down at her lap, fidgeting with her fingers.
"Where is he?" Jack continues, his eyes slightly teary.
Dakota and Sam both look away sadly, the former's eyes water. She drawls in a shaky breath before looking up at Jack.
"He's...he's dead." She reveals, shuffling closer to Sam.
Silence hangs over the three, each stuck in their own grief. Each of them wishing that their angel was there to help them.
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Dakota paces around the cell, ignoring Sam's concerned looks. Dean walks through the door as Dakota passes the bars again.
"All right, we're good to go." He tells them, reaching his hand out to Dakota upon recognizing the red around her eyes. Dakota grips his hand through the bars, giving him a soft smile that doesn't quite reach her eyes.
"Really?" Sam asks, shocked and confused.
"Yeah, the sheriff--I gave her the talk." Dean explains, casting suspicious glances at Jack. "She's gonna need a minute, but she's cool."
Dakota looks back at Jack, frowning as he just stares ahead of him blankly.
"So...let's grab Damien here and find some place quiet..." Dean clicks his tongue and brushing his thumb against his neck.
"No, no, dad." Dakota stops him from turning away. She watches him closely. "Jack is not evil." She urges. "He's just a kid, like me, dad."
"Are you...Dakota, he's not like you...at all. He's Lucifer's son." Dean presses.
"We need him." Sam argues, agreeing with Dakota.
"What?" Dean questions, scoffing.
Dakota goes to answer but someone yells for help outside. Dean pulls away from Dakota and rushes out the door.
"Dad!" She calls after him.
Dakota glances at Sam, she didn't have a good feeling about this.
"Dad!" She shouts again, Sam places a hand on her shoulder.
"Dean?" He questions.
The back door of the holding area starts to rattle, Dakota tenses up as Sam inches closer to it. The door's window shatters before the door itself is completely blown off it's hinges, Dakota yelps and covers her head.
"Dad!" Dakota yells at the same time Sam shouts, "Dean!"
A couple angels file in through the broken door, grinning triumphantly at the two frazzled Winchesters. Dakota guides Jack behind her, keeping her arm in front of him.
The angels' eyes begin to glow, Jack immediately starts groaning in pain as angel radio floods his brain. Dakota catches Jack when he stumbles into her, both watching as the female angel rips the cell door off.
"Stay here." Dakota whispers to Jack, shuffling him back as Sam sends a punch across the first angel's face.
The female angel grab's Sam's throat and shoves him against the bars. Dakota growls and leaps onto the angel's back, wrapping her arm around the angel's throat. She holds the angel still while Sam headbutts her.
The angel grabs Sam's collar and throws him across the cell, before peeling Dakota off her back and slamming her face against the bars. Dakota cries out in pain as the angel tosses her to the ground roughly. The male angel rushes in a kicks Sam's face before the Winchester could recover. Dakota slams her foot against the female's chest, sending the angel stumbling back a couple of steps. The male repeatedly punches Sam.
Dakota scrambles to her feet, punching the female and ducking her head as the woman tries to kick her. Dakota lands a couple more punches on the woman before the angel grows tired of her, grabbing her jacket and throwing her across the cell. Dakota hits the back wall, across from where Sam was attempting to drawl a sigil from his blood, she whimpers in pain but stands again.
She spots the female getting closer to Jack, so she does the only thing that comes to mind--jumping on the angel's back again. She grips the angel's head, spinning her body and using the momentum to throw the angel to the ground. Sam's angel comes over and punches Dakota, the hunter stumbles back disorientated.
She blindly kicks the male's stomach, catching a glimpse of a blade in the female's. Her eyes widen and she jumps away as the woman slices at her, she curses and grabs the angel's wrist, kneeing her in the stomach. She wrestles the angel for the blade but the male comes up and sends a punch across Dakota's cheek. She stumbles away but throws herself at the female as she takes a step near Jack.
Dakota spits out blood as it fills her mouth, glaring at the two angels in front of her. Jack groans in pain again, holding his head in his hands. The female steps forward and Dakota launches herself at her, dodging the blade in her hand and punching the angel. The male picks Dakota up, giving her the perfect shot to kick the woman in the face, before slamming the youngest Winchester against the floor, kicking her face until she loses consciousness.
The two angels grab Jack, hauling him toward the exit but are stopped by Sam.
"Hey!" The Winchesters shouts, the angels look back to see Sam slapping his hand against a small sigil, sending the two angels back to Heaven.
The blade clatters to the ground by Jack's feet. Jack's veins glow a bright gold, the boy groaning in pain as it slowly retreats from his skin.
"Dakota!" Sam calls, getting to his feet and rushing toward his niece. He places two fingers against Dakota's neck, checking her pulse. "Jack, you okay?" He asks the Nephilim.
Jack nods, sitting against the bars, breathing heavily. Sam brushes the hair from Dakota's face before making his way to Jack, placing a hand on the boy's shoulder.
The door is thrown open by another angel, the woman that they saw at Pirate Pete's. Sam picks up the discarded angel blade, glancing toward Dakota before walking out of the cell. Jack stands in front of Dakota's unconscious body, blocking her from the angel's view.
"Don't." Sam warns, holding the blade up.
"Or what, other one?" The angel sneers.
"Guess." Dean snaps, standing behind her, blocking her from leaving.
"Stay away from the kid." Sam continues, as Dean casts a worried glance toward Dakota. Her face was already bruising, her eyebrow and lip were both split open and bleeding. Her knuckles were bloody and raw.
The angel stares at Sam before glancing over her shoulder at Dean, she sighs heavily and holds the blade out towards Sam.
"You're right." She tells them before closing her hand around the handle and flipping the blade, slamming it into Jack's chest. "But if we can't have him, no one can."
Sam lunges forward and stabs the angel, killing her. Jack slowly sits on the bed behind him, looking down at the knife in his chest. Dean takes a couple steps up, peering at Jack through the bars of the cell, confused as to why he's not dying.
"Jack?" Sam questions, moving forward. The Nephilim slowly wraps his hands around the blade. "Jack. Ja--"
Sam breaks off as the boy pulls the knife from his body, dropping it to the ground.
"I...I'm fine." He says, his brow furrowed in confusion.
The Winchester brothers exchange a look before Dean pushes past Sam and Jack, kneeling next to Dakota.
"She's just knocked out." Sam assures, watching his brother take Dakota's pulse.
"What the hell happened?" Dean spits angrily, glaring at Sam over his shoulder.
"She took on two angels by herself, I was drawing the banishing sigil." Sam explains sheepishly, looking away from Dean's angry gaze.
"Kota? Baby, can you hear me? Dakota?" Dean questions, rubbing his thumb across her cheek gently. Dakota stirs slightly, groaning in pain as her eyes squeeze shut. "Kota?"
"Son of a bitch." She groans, opening her eyes and peering up at Dean through her lashes. "Damn angel kicked my face."
Dean chuckles at her attitude, helping her to her feet slowly. "Watch your language." He halfheartedly scolds her, smiling slightly.
"I was just kicked in the face repeatedly, I'll say bitch and damn if I want to." She mumbles childishly, Dean laughs breathlessly and presses a kiss to Dakota's forehead gently.
Dakota and Dean perch themselves on the Impala's hood, watching the EMTs load Clarke into the Ambulance. Dean's arm is slung across Dakota's shoulder, she leans her head against him.
"You doing okay?" He questions softly as the Ambulance doors are shut.
"My head feels like a damn rock concert." She answers, groaning slightly.
"Watch your mouth." Sam chastises as he walks over to them. Dakota sticks out her tongue childishly. She always swears more when she's hurt or angry, and she was both at the moment.
"How's the kid?" Dean asks, glancing at Jack--who was sitting quietly on a bench.
Sam watches the cops and EMTs pull away before sighing. "He's gonna be all right. I mean, Angel Radio sets his brain on fire, but other than that..." Sam trails off.
"So apparently, he can take an angel blade to the heart and keep on tickin'."
"Wait, what?" Dakota asks, lifting her head from Dean's shoulder.
"Yeah. I guess." Sam says, ignoring Dakota's question.
"Wait, go back for a second. He was stabbed by an angel blade, and it didn't phase him?" She rambles slightly, her eyes wide with confusion.
"Basically." Dean shrugs slightly, before returning his gaze back to the Nephilim, glaring the young boy down.
"Listen, I-I think we should take him back to the bunker with us." Sam suggests. "I know what you're gonna say--"
"I agree." Dean and Dakota cut him, but they have very different tones. Dean was annoyed, but Dakota's tone was lively.
"W-what?" Sam stutters slightly, glancing between the father and daughter.
"I agree." Dean repeats, Dakota nods briefly before groaning at the pain it causes her.
"So you...changed your mind?" Sam hesitantly questions, rubbing Dakota's shoulder as she holds her head in her hands.
"No. No, nothin's changed." Dean corrects, pulling Dakota closer to him. "He's still the Devil's kid. He's still evil. He still brainwashed Kelly and Cas. And even if he hasn't gone Big Bad yet, he will."
"You don't know that." Dakota mumbles.
"Yeah, I do." Dean urges, Dakota rolls her eyes. "'Cause when have things ever gone right for us?"
"Never." Dakota sighs quietly.
"So until I figure out a way to end him, we'll bring him home." Dean continues over Dakota's answer. "At least there, the only people he can hurt are you, me, and Dakota."
Dean stands from the hood, kissing Dakota's head passingly before heading toward the driver's side. Jack looks over, meeting Dakota's eyes. She sends him a tiny encouraging smile, nodding her head slightly, silently telling him that it was going to be okay.
They all pile into the Impala, Dean forced Sam to sit in the back with Jack--not wanting Dakota that close to him. They head back to the cabin to give Cas a hunter's funeral. Dakota and Dean shove their way out of the car when they park, the former sluggishly moving toward the trunk.
"Hey..." Sam says, walking up to the two, Jack slowly climbs out of the car. "Hey, you, uh, you sure about this, Dean? I mean, it's--it's Cas, you know?"
"He deserves this." Dakota hisses, glaring up at her uncle, nearly standing toe-to-toe with him. "Cas was a hunter, he deserves a proper send-off." She stalks off and stands next to Jack.
"That's not what I meant, bug." Sam assures, watching after her with sad eyes. "Maybe we can bring him back, like you said."
"No, we can't." Dean sighs, before casting a glance at Dakota. "Don't fill her head with false hope, please."
"But Chuck did--uh, God did." Sam argues. "Remember that? So maybe, um, I don't know, maybe if we prayed to him or--or--"
"You don't think I've tried that?" Dean cuts Sam off, standing up straight and breathing heavily. "God's not listening. He doesn't give a damn. I don't need you filling Dakota's head with false hope, I don't want to make this harder than it already is. So, please." Dean shuts the trunk and walking away.
Dakota sighs and pats Jack's shoulder, following Dean to help make the pyre. She trails after him, understanding where he's heading. She leans against the doorjamb and watching Dean uncover Castiel's face.
She inches closer, gazing at the face of her best friend, tears well up in her eyes. Dakota swallows thickly, placing a hand on his cheek before letting Dean cover him back up. She sniffles and turns away from her dad's sad look. They both take down the curtains and wrap them around Cas's legs.
Dakota stops as sobs start to spill from her lips, she takes a step away from Cas and covers her face.
"W-wait outside for me, I can do this, baby." Dean says gently, wrapping his arms around Dakota, letting her cling to him for a few moments. She takes deep breaths to calm herself before walking away, swallowing her cries and waiting outside.
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"You wanna say anything?" Sam asks Jack.
Dean wraps an arm around Dakota's shoulders, pulling her closer to him. Dakota's arms go around her dad, burying her face in his chest, crying quietly. Dean kisses the top of Dakota's head before pulling away to pour gasoline on the pyre.
"I...what do you say?" Jack questions, his brow furrowed in confusion.
"Right." Sam's lips twitch before falling into a frown quickly, his eyes were slightly red. "Thank you. You say thank you. And you say you're sorry. You hope they're somewhere without, uh, sadness or pain." As Sam explains, tears well up in his eyes and his voice cracks. "You hope they're somewhere better. You say goodbye."
Sam clenches his jaw to stop any tears from spilling, glancing quickly at the distraught Dakota. Dean comes back and gathers Dakota up in his arms, pulling out his lighter.
"Well, goodbye, Cas." Dean says, almost emotionless. "Goodbye, Kelly. Goodbye, Crowley. Goodbye, mom."
"Dean, we don't know if mom--"
"Yeah, we do." Dean cuts his brother off, not meeting Sam's teary gaze. "We do, Sam. Lucifer killed her the moment he realized we trapped his ass. He killed her. You know he did."
Sam tightens his jaw, shaking his head and looking away from Dean. Dakota sobs, digging her face into Dean's chest.
"She's gone." Dean continues sadly, placing his chin on Dakota's head and looking up at the pyre.
"They're all gone." Dakota cries.
Dean pulls away slightly to click the lighter on, before tossing it into the gasoline filled pyre, burning the remains of their best friend. Their angel.
Dakota watches the flames sadly, the tears not leaving her eyes as her dad brings her into his arms again. Sam forces away his tears as the flames burn, clenching his hands into fists and burying them in his pockets. Dean stares at the pyre, little to no emotion on his eyes, his eyes almost look dead.
Dakota turns away, holding onto her dad as tightly as she can, hiding her face in his jacket. Her tears making his shirt wet, but he didn't even notice, as he tightens his arms around her.
Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I don't know how I feel about it.
Exciting news! Tomorrow is Dakota's birthday! June 11th! I'm super proud of how she's turned out, and I hope you guys are too.
Please wish Dakota a happy birthday, she deserves some love.
Love, Kaz.