Chapter 37

Well, this is it, gang! The last and finaly chapter of the Buffy/Supernatural saga. I can't believe it's finally done. I couldn't believe it when I looked at the publish date on this thing and saw that I had been writing it since July of 2012.

Well, I know of a few I am about to disappoint, but I felt that this ending stayed true to my original intentions. Enjoy!

Dean stood staring at Lucifer, trying to get a feel for the situation. Dean was doing all he could to help Gabriel and Castiel hide the others from Lucifer's sphere of influence, but he was using the rest of his power to hide his soul from the archangel. He had to make it look like Michael had squashed Dean's spirit as he conquered his vessel. If Lucifer saw that his brother wasn't the one in charge, it would blow this whole thing.

Right now, these two efforts were taking up all of his power and strength. Of course, Dean would reveal who he was before he began fighting Lucifer and would then be able to throw everything he had at Lucifer once the others joined in. Nevertheless, Dean was getting a little nervous that Lucifer would jump him before he was ready. Dean would just have to hope for the best.

"It's good to see you, brother," Lucifer told him.

Dean knew now that it was working; Lucifer could only see Michael. And if Lucifer thought he was talking to Michael, Dean would have to play along. But how to make Lucifer believe he was Michael was something he had no clue how to do. Michael and Lucifer had been the closest brothers in the universe, as close as Dean and Sam were.

Wait…That was it…

If Dean was standing here and Sam was standing there…what would he say to him?

"You, too," Dean told him, taking on the smug, superior air he had felt from Michael earlier. "It's been too long. Can you believe it's finally here?"

"No," said Lucifer. "Not really."

"Are you ready?" asked Dean.

Lucifer shrugged. "As I'll ever be. A part of me wishes we didn't have to do this."

"Yeah…" said Dean. "Me, too."

"Then why are we?" asked Lucifer.

"Oh, you know why!" said Dean, taking a step towards him. "I have no choice after what you did."

"What I did?" said Lucifer. "What if it's not my fault?"

Dean frowned, letting him rant so the others could get into position. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Think about it," said Lucifer. "Dad made everything, which means He made me who I am!" He stepped closer to Dean. "God wanted the devil."

"So?" said Dean.

"So why?" said Lucifer. "And why make us fight? I just can't figure out the point."

"What's your point?" asked Dean, sensing the others taking their places in the trees behind him.

"We're going to kill each other," said Lucifer. "And for what? One of Dad's tests. And we don't even know the answer."

"Dean, we are ready," Castiel's voice told him in his head.

"Got it," Dean thought back, tuning back into the conversation and waiting for his moment.

"We're brothers," Lucifer went on, gazing hopefully at his sibling. "Let's just walk off the chessboard."

Dean looked away, appearing to contemplate his proposal. He paced for a moment before turning back to the devil. "You're a monster, Lucifer."

The hope slid off of Lucifer's face in a moment of shock as he stared at Dean.

"I'm not going anywhere," Dean told him.

"Michael…" began Lucifer, confused.

Raising his hand towards him, Dean released the cloak on his soul, using that power to throw Lucifer across the field. Lucifer landed on the ground in a sprawl, jerking back up to stare in shock at Dean.

"Guess again, dick-wad," Dean growled at him.

Lucifer stood slowly, eyes narrowed at him. "Dean…Hardly recognize you in there next to my brother." He ticked his head to the side. "That's a nice trick."

Dean shrugged. "What can I say?" He smirked. "I'm awesome."

Lucifer charged towards Dean, swinging a punch at him. Dean unleashed his rage on the devil, using all the power he could spare in the fight. Dean gave two jabs and a right hook before Lucifer swung a backhand, driving Dean back. Dean responded with a kick, putting all of his mental force behind it. Lucifer blocked the blow and grabbed hold of Dean's throat. Dean grabbed at the hand around his neck, not choking and yet not able to get away.

Lucifer pulled Dean close to his face. "Did you really think I wouldn't come prepared?"

A small crowd of people appeared suddenly fifty feet behind Lucifer. All of their eyes were black.

Looks like the Scooby gang was right, Dean thought. Lucifer did bring reinforcements.

As forty or so demons stared back with hungry glares, Dean looked back down at Lucifer, sending a psychic poke at Buffy. "Did you think I wouldn't?"

The sky darkened above them, blotting out the sun and giving a generous layer of shadow. Lucifer's gaze moved past Dean's face as Dean lifted the cloak from the gang. Dean could sense them fanning out behind him, Buffy and Faith at the forefront and surrounded by their Slayers.

Lucifer looked back at Dean, narrowing his eyes. "Please. Some thirty-odd pimply-faced girls, don't know the pointy end of a stake? I'm quaking in my boots."

Dean smirked. "You should be."

Confused, Lucifer's eyes slid back to the others behind Dean, and Dean could practically feel Lucifer getting a sense for what he was dealing with. As Lucifer's eyes began to widen in shock, his hand unconsciously loosened around Dean's neck and lowered to his side.

"They're…" began Lucifer.

"That's right," smirked Dean. "An army of Slayers."

Lucifer shook his head. "That's impossible…"

"Guess you underestimated the importance of that scythe, didn't ya?" Dean shot at him.

Angered by his oversight and Dean's attitude, Lucifer punched Dean, causing him to spin around with the force of it. Dean shook his head, adjusting his jaw, before spinning around and slamming an uppercut into Lucifer's face. Lucifer flew back, landing on the grass.

Dean stared at the demons glaring at him, waiting, before looking back at the others. "What are you waiting for?"

Buffy and her Slayers gave a battle cry as they charged into the fight. Angel and Spike, Sam and Adam, Castiel and Gabriel—all of them—were all close behind. Dean looked back over at Lucifer, who had stood to face him. Lucifer raised his hand, and his army of demons charged into the field. Close behind them was an army of Turok-hans, joining in now that the sun was no longer a problem.

Lucifer rushed towards Dean, disappearing from in front of him. Dean reached up behind him and blocked the angel blade coming at the side of his head. He took hold of the hand holding it and spun towards and around Lucifer, bringing the arm down and then behind him. Lucifer dropped the blade as his arm was twisted behind him. He held his other arm out, causing the dropped blade to fly into it before it hit the ground.

Dean swung his own blade as it slid from his sleeve, but Lucifer brought his blade up. The two blades clashed with an almighty CLANG as Dean pushed with all his might against Lucifer's blade. The two of them faced off before Lucifer pushed the blades away enough to get a punch in. Dean took the blow, going with the momentum, and turned, delivering a side kick. Lucifer turned, and sensing the archangel's intentions, Dean snapped his fingers. A circle of holy oil that he'd been telekinetically laying down during the fight burst into flames, sealing himself and Lucifer inside.

"Not so fast, you bastard," Dean told him.

Dean could sense Sam and a few others staring in shock at the cage he had just trapped himself inside. Now it really was a fight to the death…

Welcome to Thunderdome. Two men enter, one man leaves…

Dean had planned the trap this morning, knowing it was the only way to guarantee that the battle between them would not lash out to the rest of the state, much less the earth.

Lucifer turned with wide, impressed eyes. "You're better than I would have expected."

"Well, I've been practicing," Dean answered, raising his hand and hurling his blade at the devil.

The devil easily dodged the blade, which flew past the ring of holy fire and into the fray beyond.

Damn, wish I'd thought that through… Dean scolded himself.

Lucifer rushed towards him, and Dean braced himself for another round.

**********************************************************SPN&BTVS*******************************************************

Sam stabbed Ruby's knife into a demon's chest as another vampire rushed at him. He quickly staked the vampire, looking over at anyone that he could help.

Buffy was taking down Turok-han after Turok-han with her scythe, sometimes dispatching a demon or two. She and Faith had agreed that the Slayers should focus their energies on the Turok-hans since they were the only ones strong enough to take them. Everyone else would take down the demons, vampires and other monsters Lucifer had brought. Mostly, it was demons and vampires, but they would occasionally find themselves facing a shapeshifter or werewolf.

Adam was handling himself just fine with a demon, and Bobby, of course, could take care of himself any day. Sam was more worried about the other civilians. They weren't hunters; they hadn't really ever fought some of the things they were fighting now. Despite that, everyone seemed to be holding their own.

Sam turned as a Turok-han jumped him, pushing him to the ground. Sam held it away from him as much as he could, but the uber-vampire's strength was no match for him. As Sam felt its fangs on his neck, it suddenly burst into dust. Faith stood over him with a stake, bleeding from a cut on her face.

"Thanks," said Sam, quickly pulling himself to his feet.

"Go help Xander!" Faith shouted as she jumped back into the fight.

Sam glanced quickly at the circle of holy oil, where Dean and Lucifer were still fighting, before hurrying over to Xander to take care of the rabid werewolf he was fighting with.

*******************************************************SPN&BTVS**********************************************************************

Castiel smote another demon, turning to blast a few vampires. He glanced over at Gabriel, who looked like he was hardly trying. He was destroying everything that came at him as though they were nothing, which was only natural. Aside from Michael and Lucifer, Gabriel was the most powerful angel in existence.

Castiel turned back to the fight, smiting another five demons or so before something caught his eye. He looked over at a sparkle of silver hidden in a clump of tall grass at the base of a gravestone. Castiel stepped towards it, kneeling in front of the grave and pulling the item out of the grass. It was a blade…Michael's blade.

Castiel looked over at the fight in the holy oil. Sure enough, Lucifer was swinging and jabbing with his blade, but Dean was empty-handed.

Castiel stood, looking over at Sam fighting off a werewolf with Xander. "Sam."

Sam took one last swing at the wolf before Xander plunged a silver knife into its heart. He looked around for where the voice had come from before locating Castiel.

Castiel held the blade up in front of him, showing him what needed to be done. Sam nodded as he turned and took out another demon charging him.

**************************************************************SPN&BTVS*************************************************************

Dean threw all his mental power at Lucifer, pushing him back towards the holy fire. Lucifer vanished and reappeared behind Dean, who spun around to meet him. Dean kicked Lucifer in the gut, swinging a punch at his head. Lucifer gave an uppercut to Dean's ribs, and Dean doubled over a little, which allowed Lucifer to shove his knee into his face. Dean's head flew back, and Lucifer shoved his foot into Dean's chest. Dean flew back, hitting the ground a few feet from the holy fire.

As Dean tried to regroup, Lucifer pounced on him, squeezing his throat. Dean gasped past the intense strength choking the life out of him, but he could do little more than wheeze as his throat closed.

"You pathetic Good Samaritan," Lucifer spat at him. "You really thought you could beat me? Me? You may have defeated Michael, but you were never going to be a match for me."

Dean's vision began to blur as Lucifer strangled him. So, this is it…This is how the world ends…

After Lucifer kills him, he'll start with the rest of the angels…and then the world. Dean was so sure he would be able to kill Lucifer, or at least take him with him. Now…he would die underfoot in Lucifer's march to ultimate victory.

Guess you were right, Dean told Michael. I was in over my head.

But the voice that responded was not Michael's…It was Castiel's.

"Dean, catch!"

Dean's eyes slid up to see Sam standing on the other side of the holy fire. Sam tossed something into the air, and silver captured the light of the fire, shining down into his eyes. Dean smiled a little as he extended his arm and caught the blade. He swiftly shoved the blade between them and stuck it into Lucifer's chest.

Lucifer's eyes widened as light burst from the gash in his heart.

"Michael says 'hi,'" Dean told him, wrenching the blade from Lucifer's chest.

Light burst from Lucifer's chest as he fell back off of Dean. Dean pushed himself to his knees, watching as light began cracking out of Lucifer's body and face.

Thunder crashed, and Dean's head snapped up to look at the sky. The sky had darkened to black, and lightning was zapping from cloud to cloud. The earth began to shake under them as the entire battle froze in surprise. Dean glanced around at the battlefield. Demons stood in shock, as did the vampires and monsters. Slayers and humans alike were watching Lucifer's destruction with awe.

The only ones not affected by Lucifer's downfall were the Turok-hans. They could have cared less who was winning; they only wanted to feed and kill. The Slayers fought off the ones that remained as they ran forward.

Dean looked back over at Lucifer as the light began streaming from his eyes and mouth. The light built and built until suddenly, Lucifer threw his head back, light shining into the sky. Thunder clapped loudly, and Dean looked up to see a streak of lightning worm its way down towards him.

Oh, crap…

************************************************SPN&BTVS*****************************************************************

Sam threw the angel sword over the line of holy oil, hoping that Dean would catch it. Dean's hand feebly came out and unerringly caught the blade, using the last of his waning strength to shove it deep into Lucifer's heart.

YES! Sam's mind screamed as he gave a mental whoop.

As Lucifer fell backwards and Dean climbed to his knees, all hell broke loose. The sky blackened, lightning flashed, thunder cracked, the earth trembled. His heart thudding in anticipation, Sam watched in almost stunned disbelief as Lucifer put up a fight before he went.

The next second, Sam's heart stopped as a bolt of lightning suddenly struck the ground between his brother and the devil. Lucifer and Dean were knocked backwards from the shock before a tidal wave of energy shot out from the circle of holy fire, knocking Sam on his back.

Sam shook his head as he pulled himself up, looking quickly over at his brother. The holy fire had been blown out, and a line of scorched grass encircled the two men. Dean wasn't moving.

"Dean!" Sam yelled, rushing towards him.

Everyone joined him, Cordelia in the front, as Sam reached his brother.

"Dean?" Sam asked, placing his hands on Dean's chest.

There was no response.

Sam looked up at the devil, who stared up at the sky with wide, dead eyes. Massive wing-prints were burned into the ground beneath him.

Sam looked back down at Dean. "Dean, come on."

"Dean?" Cordelia exclaimed, tears in her eyes.

Sam felt for a pulse, relieved to find one. "He's alive. Dean?"

"Dean, wake up, baby," Cordelia told him, hands on either side of his face.

Dean twitched a little and then opened his eyes, finding Cordelia's face looming over him. "Well, there's a nice sight to wake up to."

Cordelia let out a sobbing laugh, kissing him over and over. "Don't you ever do that again!"

Dean pulled himself up to a sitting position. "I promise." He wrapped her in his arms. "I promise, Cordy."

As Dean, Cordelia and Sam stood, everyone looked over at Lucifer's body. Finally, after everything they had been through to get there, it was finally over.

Sam looked over at Dean, weary smile on his face. "You did it."

Dean smiled back at Sam, paralleling that night three years ago when they had killed the Yellow-Eyed Demon. "I didn't do it alone."

"It's over…" breathed Buffy.

"We saved the world," said Xander, dazed.

Thunder rumbled overhead, and they all looked up to see the dark, black clouds gathering above them.

"But I thought we won," said Dawn.

Dean hurriedly looked back down at Lucifer, but nothing had changed. He was still one dead archangel. "We did."

"Then shouldn't they stop doing that now?" asked Dawn.

Dean looked back up at the clouds as they converged even more. Suddenly, the dark clouds parted, and a giant bolt of lightning pierced through, striking Lucifer's body.

"Whoa!" Dean yelled as they all jumped back.

Surprisingly, the lightning bolt didn't jump back up to the clouds like usual. It stayed solid, connecting Lucifer's body with the clouds. Dean eased away from the others, heading towards it.

"Dean, no!" Cordelia exclaimed, clutching at his arm.

Dean ignored her, approaching the band of light, which was exactly what it was. It was as though a spotlight had just shown down from the heavens. The lightning wasn't lightning at all.

"What the hell…" muttered Dean, reaching his hand out towards it.

"Uh, bad idea, Dean," Gunn called.

"I second that," Faith told him.

As Dean's hand reached within a foot of the beam of light, it suddenly exploded. Dean jumped back as the others braced themselves. The light swept outwards through the cemetery and kept going. As soon as the light reached the Turok-hans, demons and other monsters, they disintegrated into nothing, leaving only healthy human hosts (in the demons' case).

Buffy looked over at Angel in alarm as the light reached him also. Only instead of disintegrating, a light seemed to glow within him. Dean watched in curiosity as he glanced over at Spike, seeing the same thing. A similar glow enveloped Cordelia, Connor and Sam as the light seemed to flood the entire town.

They all have a touch of demon in them… Dean realized.

"Sammy!" Dean called, rushing to him.

The ground began to tremble as everything around them took a stunning turn for the better. The dead, brown grass under their feet suddenly came alive with lush greenness. The trees around them became full and bright. Flowers began to grow sporadically throughout the cemetery. Even the sky seemed one shade more colorful as the dark, ominous clouds gave way to blue skies and white, fluffy clouds.

A smile emerged on Dean's face. It's paradise…

The light wave abruptly erupted, sending a pulse over the whole earth. As it faded, Dean looked around the cemetery—now void of Lucifer's body, taking in the marvelous landscape and the warm sunshine.

Sunshine?!

"Angel!"

Dean spun around to see Buffy rushing for her boyfriend, afraid for his life in the sunlight. Although it appeared as though Angel had first sought to hide from the sunshine in his jacket, he was now staring up into the daylight with a stunned look on his face.

"Angel?" asked Buffy, approaching him. "You're…"

"Alive…" breathed Angel, resting a hand over his heart. "I'm alive…"

Buffy embraced him, laughing in happiness.

Dean glanced over at Spike to see that he was also not bursting into flames. Buffy and the others seemed to notice it, too.

"Hey, how come he's okay?" Cordelia asked.

Spike was standing with one hand over his heart, a freaked and overwhelmed look in his eyes.

"Wait a minute," said Angel, easing away from Buffy a little. "Are you…"

Spike nodded. "I think so."

"But you can't be," said Angel. "You don't even have a soul."

"Well, I may not have had a soul before…but I think I do now…" said Spike, his hand still on his chest.

"But that doesn't make any sense," said Wesley. "The Shanshu prophecy clearly stated that the vampire with a soul will become human, not any vampire. Why would you be turned human, much less suddenly given a soul?"

"Because he fulfilled a destiny, also."

Dean spun around to find Chuck Shurley standing among a particularly grassy patch of ground. "Chuck?"

"Hello, Dean," said Chuck.

Dean glanced around the cemetery, seeing no cars around. "How'd you get here?"

Chuck gave a smirk. "I have my ways."

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Dean.

Chuck just smiled, but said nothing. Dean rolled his eyes, glancing back at the others. Everyone all seemed to be perfectly fine…except for one thing.

"Cas?" asked Dean, staring at the two angels in front of him.

No, not two angels, he thought.

Something was different about one of them, even though his eyes were telling him that there were two Castiels standing in front of him.

"He's Castiel," said the trench-coated man on the left. "I'm Jimmy Novak."

"Who?" asked Dean.

"My vessel," explained Castiel, "of which I have no further need, apparently."

"This is the real you?" Sam asked him.

"I believe I was given a form that would be familiar," Castiel told them.

"By who?" asked Dean.

"By me," said Chuck, giving Castiel an indiscernible look.

Castiel frowned at him for a moment before his eyes widened. "You…"

Chuck smiled warmly at the angel. "Yes, my son. It's me."

Gabriel was also staring at Chuck in reservation. "Is it really…"

"Yes," Chuck told him. "I've been with you all along. You've done well. You both have done very well."

Dean's eyes widened as the pieces fell into place. "You?! It was you the whole time?!"

"Wait a minute, I'm confused," said Buffy. "Who is he?"

"This is who I thought was Chuck Shurley, A.K.A. Carver Edlund, A.K.A. Joss Whedon, A.K.A. GOD!" Dean yelled, eyes narrowed in anger at Chuck.

Willow's eyes widened in shock. "God?"

He shrugged. "You can call me Chuck." He looked over at Castiel. "And, yes, Castiel, I gave you the appearance of the man your friends had all come to know you as." He dipped his head towards Jimmy. "If that is alright with you, of course, Jimmy."

Jimmy shook his head, staring at his double. "No…it's okay…"

Adam frowned over at Gabriel. "Where's his double?"

Gabriel frowned right back. "What, you thought this was a vessel? Couldn't do that without tipping off the holy rollers."

"And speaking of…" said Chuck, giving Dean a look.

Dean's mouth flew open, and a brilliant white light shot from him, coalescing next to him and forming a person.

I'd almost forgotten I was harboring Michael, Dean thought as the grace poured out of him.

As Dean recovered himself, he glanced over to see his own face appearing in the light as it faded.

"Oh, hell, no!" said Dean, pointing at the archangel. "He does not get to look like me!"

"He can choose any form he wants from now on," Chuck told them. He looked over at Castiel and Gabriel. "You all can."

Gabriel shrugged. "I think I'm happy with this."

Castiel nodded. "Same here."

Michael shared a look with Dean before nodding. "Very well."

Before Dean's eyes, his own visage began to transform, becoming a little taller. His brown hair grew darker, turning almost black, and his green eyes became a deep, murky olive. Dean frowned, staring at Michael's new face.

"Okay, that's not really changing your look," Gabriel pointed out. "Now, you just look like a mix between Dean and his father."

Dean assessed the new look Michael was sporting and then shrugged. "I can live with it."

Angel stepped towards Chuck. "What were you saying about Spike? He had a destiny?"

"Yes," said Chuck. "Although the Shanshu never mentioned him specifically, he did help end the apocalypse. Doesn't that deserve a reward?"

Angel stared at him for a moment before turning towards the younger vampire. Well, human. He supposed he could make peace with this Spike. After all, this wasn't the obnoxious, self-absorbed vampire that had gotten on Angel's nerves that past hundred years. This was the human named William that Angel had never gotten to meet.

"Yes, it does," said Angel, giving Spike a nod.

"What about them?" asked Dean, nodding at Cordelia, Connor and Sam. "They had that same glow thing, too. But they were already human. What does that mean?"

"If my world is to be a true paradise, there can be no more evil in it," Chuck explained, "which includes the pieces of them that were not entirely human." He looked at the three in question. "But you don't need to worry about that anymore."

Sam's eyes widened. "You mean…I don't have demon blood anymore?"

Chuck nodded, looking over at Cordelia. "Nor are you part-demon anymore, since you no longer need the visions." He then looked at Connor. "And you now have what your father has always wanted for you…a normal life. Which reminds me…" He stepped over to Connor and held his hand out. "If you will."

Connor stared at his hand before glancing over at Angel, receiving a nod. Connor placed his hand in Chuck's, and Chuck then looked over at Angel.

"You, too, Daddy," Chuck told him.

Angel frowned and stepped over to them, offering up his own hand. Chuck clasped their hands and closed his eyes. The next moment, Angel was bombarded with images:

Connor taking his first step…

Connor saying his first word…

Connor's first day of school…

Taking Connor to the amusement park, the both of them enjoying the warm summer day…

Connor's team winning the California Amateur Hockey Association High School State Championships, Connor smiling wide as he hoisted the first place cup over his head…

Passing his driver's test…

His first date…

The night of his Senior Prom, in his tuxedo with his beautiful girl on his arm…

Angel stared at Chuck as the images finished flashing through his head. "What was that?"

"I gave you both a life together," Chuck told him, releasing their hands. "The life you would have had if Holtz had not kidnapped him."

Angel looked over at Connor to see tears in the boy's eyes.

"Dad…" said Connor, a smile starting to show on his face.

Angel pulled Connor into a hug, holding him tight. Connor wrapped his arms around his father, burying his face in his chest.

Angel held his son for a moment before giving Chuck a grateful smile. "Thank you."

Chuck walked over to Buffy, holding his hand out once more. "And as for you…"

Buffy frowned, but offered up her hand for him to take. Chuck closed his eyes once more, and Buffy found herself staring at images flashing through her mind:

Angel stepping from the shadows of a building and into the sunlight, heading for her and giving her a kiss…

"Why didn't you ever tell me about chocolate and peanut butter?"

"Well, I figured if your vamp taste buds couldn't really savor it, then it would only hurt you, you know?"…

Buffy resting her head on Angel's chest. "It's a good sound. Thump-thump. Thump-thump…"

"I'm guessing that expression isn't because they were all out of fresh OJ at the deli…"

"I went to see the Oracles. I asked them to turn me back…"

"I wasn't sure if I could do it if I woke up with you one more morning…"

"How am I supposed to go on with my life, knowing what we had, what we could have had?"…

Buffy placing her hand over his heart. "I felt your heart beat…"

Buffy hugging Angel close. "I'll never forget. I'll never forget…"

Tears fell down Buffy's face as the images ended, the surreal emotions from that missing day lingering on. That was the day. That was the day that had been taken away from them.

"I want to stay awake…so this day can keep happening."

"Sleep. We'll make another one like it tomorrow."

And we will, Buffy thought, looking over at Angel and stepping over to him.

Angel pulled her into a hug, holding her tight.

Chuck turned towards the Winchesters. "And as for you guys…" He nodded off into the distance.

Dean, Sam and Adam turned to see five people walking towards them. They couldn't really make them out, but it appeared to be four women and one man. The man had his arm around one of the women, and one of the women started running towards them. As she got closer, her face became clear, and Dean's eyes widened. He looked over at Sam to see that his brother's jaw had dropped.

"Jess?" Sam asked.

Jessica Moore smiled as she ran towards him. Sam rushed to meet her, wrapping her up into his arms and holding her tight as she laughed.

"I missed you so much!" Sam told her, huge smile on his face.

Dean smiled as he looked back at the three approaching figures, now able to see who they were. "Oh, my God…"

"Mom!" Adam cried, rushing towards her.

Kate Milligan embraced her son as Dean stepped towards two of the people.

"Mom?" asked Dean, staring in shock.

Mary Winchester smiled, running a hand down the side of his face. "Dean…" She looked past him to Sam, who had joined them. "Sammy…" She stepped over and gave him a hug.

Dean looked up at his father. "Dad…"

John Winchester gave him a smile, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Good job, Dean."

Dean wrapped his arms around his father as the family of four reunited. As Sam was introducing Jessica to their mother and father, Dean noticed the final woman. He had seen her in photos around Buffy's house. She was walking towards Buffy and Dawn, smile on her face.

"Mom?" asked Dawn.

"Hi, sweetie," Joyce Summers told her daughter, pulling her into a hug. He glanced over at Buffy, holding her arm out to her.

Buffy joined the hug, looking stunned and thrilled at the situation.

Everyone spent a few minutes reacquainting themselves with their long-lost relatives and introducing the others to them.

Dean walked over to the angels with his family. "And this is Castiel, Gabriel and Michael."

"And they helped you boys end the apocalypse?" asked John.

"That's right," said Sam. "I'm not sure where we'd be if it weren't for them."

"You could say they're kind of our guardian angels," Dean told them.

Castiel glanced over at Dean and back at John and Mary. "We're also good friends."

Dean frowned over at him. "Friends? We're not exactly friends, Cas."

Castiel scowled slightly, looking down at the ground in disappointment. Dean stepped up to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. Castiel looked back up at him in curiosity.

"We're family," Dean told him.

A smile appeared on Castiel's face as Dean removed his hand.

Mary grinned at Castiel. "Welcome to the family."

Dean watched as Castiel nodded, accepting her greeting. He looked rather pleased about the turn of events, and Dean could imagine why. Dean had the feeling that Castiel had never really fit in with his heavenly family, and it seemed that now, he had found his true family. Dean was just as surprised as he was. He had never imagined that the awkward, cold-hearted angel that had appeared that night in the barn would be as close a brother to him as Sam was.

"It looks like you all have things under control," Chuck finally spoke up. "It's about time I leave you to it, then."

"Just answer me one thing," said Dean, stepping over to him.

"Sure," shrugged Chuck.

"Why didn't you take care of things?" asked Dean. "You're God, for crying out loud. You could've had this done and over with in a second. Why didn't you do anything?"

Chuck shrugged again, looking around at the paradise that Dean had won them. "You had it handled." He turned away from them before pausing and turning back. "Besides…what makes you think I didn't do anything?"

Dean thought back to what Castiel had said earlier that year.

"My Father gave me an important mission to rescue Dean Winchester from hell. And when I pulled him from perdition, I was to transfer Buffy's Slayer essence to him."

Chuck had known that Dean would need to be a Slayer in order to use Michael to kill Lucifer, ending the apocalypse and bringing on paradise while avoiding a planetary bloodbath.

You sneaky son of a… thought Dean, giving Chuck a wry smile.

"That brings up another question," said Dean. "Do I have a Slayer line?"

"Of course," Chuck said.

Dean frowned. "Then why haven't any of them shown up at Buffy's place?"

"They did," Chuck told him. He took in Dean's confused expression before continuing. "You were never the beginning of a new Slayer line. Your power was intercepted before it could get to the next Slayer. You were simply inserted into the current Slayer line. In fact, your successor would have been Kennedy."

"Really?" asked Dean, glancing over at the Slayer in question. "Who was going to take Buffy's place before I was called?"

Chuck gave a smirk. "Buffy's successor was actually supposed to be Jo."

Dean frowned. "Jo? Jo Harvelle?"

Chuck nodded. "She was a Potential Slayer."

"She's not anymore?" asked Dean.

"Well, you did take her place, but she is still a Potential," Chuck explained. "Well…was."

Dean smiled in laughter. "Jo's a Slayer?"

Chuck nodded. "She is."

"Well, we gotta look her up later," said Dean, looking back at Sam. He gazed back at Chuck, something the man had said not making sense. "Wait a minute. If there's no more evil in the world, then what do we still need Slayers for?"

Chuck smirked suggestively at him. "I'm sure you can think of something." He looked over at Michael. "Come on, I have work for you."

Michael nodded and stepped over to Dean. "Thank you."

"Thank you?" asked Dean. "For what? I manipulated you into cheating the 'grand design.' I thought you'd be pissed."

"I was…at first," said Michael. "But I'm indebted to you for showing me the error of my ways."

Dean gave him a smirk. "Don't mention it."

Michael gave a smile back as he turned towards Chuck, and the two of them vanished.

Dean turned towards everyone else, thinking over everything that had happened in the last day. They had won the apocalypse, beaten Lucifer, brought on paradise, and been rewarded with their loved ones.

"Well…" said Dean, "it's all over, then."

"Actually, it's not," said Xander suddenly. He smiled at Anya as he clasped her hand before looking back at the others. "We're getting married!"

Everyone stared in shock for a moment before offering up their congratulations.

"How long has this been going on?" asked Buffy.

"Since before you died," Anya told her.

Willow stared at them. "You've been engaged for two years and didn't tell anyone?"

"Well, let's face it," said Xander. "We've kinda had our plates full."

"Full?" chuckled Cordelia. "We've only been fighting off the usual bad guys, bringing Buffy back to life, time traveling, killing Alistair, teaching an angel how to be human, discovering a long-lost brother, stumbling onto a prophet—who turned out to be God—that had written books about us, finding out the angels were bad guys, detoxing Sam, freeing Lucifer and starting the apocalypse, tracking down the Horsemen's rings, training Potentials, nabbing an ancient Slayer axe, saving the resurrected long-lost brother from angels, surviving three counts of assassination by gunshot, awakening every Slayer on the planet, having Michael possess Dean, and then Dean using Michael to kill Lucifer and usher in world peace." She narrowed her eyes in concentration. "Did I miss anything?"

Everyone stared at her for a moment before bursting into laughter. The summation of the last two years of their lives sounded like a soap opera from hell. It was amazing that they had lasted as long as they had, both physically and mentally.

"So…" said Buffy, looking around at her friends, "what do you guys wanna do tomorrow?"

"I just want to sleep for, like, a week," said Faith.

"I guess we all could, if we wanted to," said Sam.

"Yeah," Willow smiled. "Lucifer is scrunched, so…what do you think we should do, Buffy?"

"Yeah, you're not the one and only chosen anymore," said Faith. "Just gotta live like a person. How's that feel?"

"Yeah, Buffy," said Dawn. "What are we gonna do now?"

"I don't know about you guys," said Buffy, wrapping her arm around Angel, "but I'm gonna take a long, long weekend."

"Sounds good to me," said Dean, wrapping his arms around Cordelia's waist. "I think I'll follow your example."

Cordelia laughed as Dean kissed her.

Everyone began mingling amongst themselves, each speculating on what they would do now that there was no more evil to fight, nothing to worry about but their own lives.

They were all free.

Alive and free.

Whew! That was a long chapter!

And I know a lot of you wanted a male Slayer line for Dean, but I kind of liked the idea of him being the one and only. Not to mention how he became a Slayer (taking the next one's place) wouldn't really create a new Slayer line.

Other than that, I hoped you liked and stayed tuned for my future stories!

Very sincerely,

Your author