Author's Note: So as explained, this is the last chapter. Castiel and Ember's story will continue in the sister story, Ember: Half-Demon, Half-Human... this story was mostly a way for me to explain Castiel's point of view in Seasons 4-8 and 10-12 (with Castiel and Ember together during the other seasons, Season 9 and Season 13+.

Thank you to everyone who has read, and please review!

UNKNOWN

"Mother," someone called. "Father." Castiel knew, somehow, that it was his son. Jack, Ember had named him. Jack was calling him.

Castiel's eyes flew open. Everything was black. The darkness stretched on for ages, like an endless dark cloud. Yet somehow, Castiel was laying on something flat.

Castiel sat up, and immediately spotted Ember.

"Ember!" he cried in relief, jumping to his feet.

"Mmmm…" She said, pushing him away.

He began to shake her. "Ember! Wake up!"

"Cas!" she cried, her eyes flying open.

He threw his arms around her. He didn't know where they were, and everything was dark… but the love of his life was here with him. He could tell it was really her by her smell and by the way she was grinning back at him.

We should be dead, Castiel remembered suddenly. He remembered being killed by Lucifer – of that he was certain. Ember must've died too, he realized with horror, from the birth of their son.

Castiel followed Ember's gaze downward, and realized that she no longer carried the baby weight. She looked thin and robust – not emaciated as she had been near the end of the pregnancy, but trim and healthy. Her eyes widened, and she grabbed Castiel's hand as though it was a lifeline. Her hand felt warm, and her eyes were blown wide and scared. "Cas… where are we?"

"The Empty… I think," he answered.

The vastness of the black swallowed them both whole, like an endless and uncomfortable blanket. He would protect them both – of that he was certain. Here at the end of all things, in this new place, he would do his best to keep them safe.

STILL UNKNOWN

Castiel thought they must've been in this dark, open place for at least a month. They had wandered around endlessly. They had sat and had long conversations about what to do next. They had kissed. They had cried.

He was trying to stay strong for Ember, but he felt constantly on edge, and was beginning to fall into despair. Ember's hand kept him present in the moment, though – nothing was more important than her hand in his.

They could feel that someone was following them. They hadn't discussed it, but both of them kept looking backward and around, as though someone would suddenly materialize.

Finally, Castiel said, "I know you're there. I can feel you."

Slowly, a being materialized behind them. He had taken on Castiel's form, but he was grinning too widely, and smiling too creepily. Ember squeezed his hand, and he could sense her fear. "Hello," he said.

"What are you?" said Castiel.

"Oh, I'm just your friendly neighborhood cosmic entity," the other man said in a nasally voice.

"Why do you look like me?" asked Castiel.

"Oh, yes," said the entity. "Yes, yes. Well, I show up in my real form, and you freak out, rip out your own eyes, et cetera. That would be embarrassing, wouldn't it? For both of us."

Ember swallowed hard, and Castiel guessed that she was trying out her force powers. "That won't work on me, demon girl," said the entity mockingly.

"What is this place?" asked Castiel, squeezing Ember's hand.

"Oh, yes. Excellent question," said the entity. "You see, before God and Amara, creation, destruction, Heaven, Hell, your precious little Earth, what was there?"

"Nothing," Castiel answered.

"Yes. That's right. Nothing. Nothing but Empty. And you are soaking in it. Angels and demons, you all come here when you die."

"Every angel that ever died is here?" asked Castiel.

"Yes, sleeping an endless, peaceful sleep," said the entity, jeering at him. "You know I… I was sleeping, too. Hey, uh, since we're pals, there's something I've gotta know. I've just gotta ask. Hmm."

Here the entity took on its most jeering look yet, and its eyes seemed suddenly painful to look at. "Why are you awake? 'Cause fun fact—in all of forever, nothing ever wakes up here. I mean, ever. Ever. And second fun fact—when you woke up, I woke up, and I don't like being awake. So…what's up, smart guy?"

"I don't know," said Castiel honestly.

"Well, think!" yelled the entity.

"The Winchesters. Sam and Dean, they must've made a deal," Castiel said, because it was the only thing the two of them had come up with during their long conversations.

"No. No, no, no. Not with me, and I'm—I'm the only one that has any pull here. Not Heaven, not Hell, not G-O-D himself. So think harder." He pushed Castiel. "Rack that perky little brain of yours."

Ember moved to get in front of Castiel, but the entity poked her as well, and she flew backward.

"Stay away from us," snapped Castiel angrily. He moved backward so as to cover Ember while still staying away from the entity himself.

"Okay, fine. I'll rack it for you," said the entity.

Suddenly the entity was standing right in front of him, and its hands were on Castiel's and Ember's heads, and Castiel felt only pain. He could hear Ember screaming, and the screams mingled with his own until he could no longer tell which one was which.

Then, finally, it stopped.

"What did… What did you do to me?" asked Castiel, scrambling to once again get in front of Ember.

"I—I read your mind, such as it is."

"What do you want?" snapped Ember finally.

"What do I want? I want you to shut up. I want—hmm. Having you awake, it's like a gnat flew right up here and it's trapped and it's buzzing."

"Having me awake causes you pain," Castiel said with more strength than he felt. He could not allow the entity to touch Ember again. A plan was slowly beginning to take shape in his mind.

"If you can't sleep, I can't sleep. Yeah?" jeered the entity. "And I like sleep. I need sleep."

"Then get rid of me," dared Castiel, and he took a step closer to the entity.

"Oh, I should, should I?"

"Send us back to Earth."

"Or I throw you so deep into the Empty that you can't bother me anymore, hmm?" challenged the entity.

"Except you know that won't work, or you would've done it already," snapped Castiel. He squeezed Ember's hand again to reassure her, or perhaps to reassure himself.

"Pretty smart," said the entity. "Pretty smart, dummy."

"Send… Us… Back," Castiel said, and his voice was firm.

"That's not part of the deal. No, no. Besides, you don't want to go back," said the entity.

"I thought you read our minds," snapped Ember.

"Oh, save it," said the entity. "I know what you hate. I know who you love… what you fear. There is nothing for you back there. No. Here. Let me show you."

Once again, the entity's hand was on Castiel's head. He could see every bad thing that had ever happened to him. The Fall of Lucifer, and the Egyptian plauges… even the things Naomi had hidden were now laid bare to him. He saw his last meeting with Domiel as friends, and Anna's death, and his own deaths, and the angels falling…

Then, suddenly, it stopped. "Come on!" said the entity. "Let it end!"

The entity kicked Castiel. "Just let's lay down. Let's just try and sleep. Hmm? Think about it. Infinite peace, yes? No regrets. No pain. Kiddo, save yourself."

"I'm already saved," said Castiel, scrambling to his feet.

The entity kicked Ember, who went sprawling across the black nothingness. Castiel moved toward it, but the entity kicked him again.

Castiel stood up slowly, and Ember got up too, following him to confront the entity. "I want to see my son. And Sam, and Dean…"

Castiel took her hand again, squeezing it. "You can prance and you can preen and you can scream and yell and remind me of my failings but somehow, I'm awake. And I will stay awake and I will keep you awake until we both go insane."

The entity punched Castiel, but he didn't let go of Ember's hand. They both flew backward. He looked at Ember, just briefly, a fierce look in his eyes, and she nodded. "We will fight you," Castiel said. "Fight you and fight you for…ever. For eternity."

"No. No," said the entity.

Castiel and Ember approached the entity, staring it in the face, and Castiel held tight to Ember's hand. "Release us," he commanded. "Release… us."

March 28

Castiel was lying in field. He could feel the scratchy wildlife even though his pants. He scrambled up hurriedly in alarm, but, just as he'd hoped, Ember was lying right next to him.

"Ember. Wake up."

She was nonresponsive. "Ember!" Cas yelled, beginning to shake her as panic set in.

"Cas," Ember whispered, her eyes flying open.

"Ember," he said. Relief flooded through him, and he hugged her, lifting her to her feet.

They were in the middle of a large field, what must've been miles from civilization.

"We made it!" Ember said, letting out a yell of relief. Castiel kissed her on the mouth, and he lost himself in this victory kiss, and her smell.

When he set her down, her stomach growled, and he laughed. "Typical," he said.

"Where are we?" she asked him.

"Somewhere in rural South Carolina," Castiel said, using his angel powers to sense the world around him.

Ember sighed. "When are we?"

"March 28, 2017," he said immediately. "Four forty-five in the evening."

"March?!" Ember said, alarmed. "We've been dead for three months?"

"I'm not sure how it all works," Castiel said. "But it doesn't feel that long."

Ember sighed. "Well, c'mon, let's go." She held Castiel's hand and closed her eyes, but nothing happened.

"What the hell?!" Ember said, angrily.

Castiel put his hand on her, sensing her powers. "Your powers have reverted to what they were immediately after the Apocalypse," he explained. "To your original level."

"What!?" she exclaimed, horrified. "Why?"

"You are no longer pregnant with a half-angel, half-demon child," he reminded her. "And Lucifer is shut in the alternate reality. At least I assume, because I can't sense him."

"But what about after I became a demon?" Ember said. "When I – when I almost went dark side, and afterward I was able to teleport-…"

Castiel shook his head. "You don't seem to have retained the residual power from the Demon Blood Bonds. This is a clean slate, in all respects, I suppose," he said. "You no longer bear the marks of pregnancy, either. My guess is that your old scars are healed, too."

"Shit, shit, shit, shit, SHIT," she said.

Castiel smiled at her. "We should be happy," he reminded her. "If this is indeed a clean slate, the angels will allow you to enter Heaven now. You may have to earn your way back again, but this won't take you long."

"I am happy," Ember said, sighing. "I just… I liked being able to teleport."

"I liked being able to fly, too," Castiel reminded her. "But it seems I was not as lucky with the clean slate."

Ember sighed. "Well, walking it is, then," she said. She went invisible, then reappeared. "Thank God," she said. "At least I still have that. I can grab some money when we get back to town, and we can be back in Kansas by tomorrow evening."

~ANGELS WILL FALL~

It had been a long day. They had spent an hour or so walking back to civilization. Ember had walked into a bank, invisible, and grabbed about $600, which would be enough money until they returned to Kansas. Afterward, Ember had grabbed a meal from Wendy's, and then bought a new cell phone from the local AT&T.

Dean and Sam were excited to hear from them, of course, but Castiel could tell that Dean in particular was skeptical at best.

"Look, I don't know who you are and what you're playing at, but-…"

There was a clatter, and Castiel suspected that Sam had intercepted the phone call. Sure enough, Sam's voice said, "Look, Ember, if you really are back, we'd be… I mean…" He stopped, his voice full of emotion. "But you can understand our skepticism," he finished finally.

The rocks in the parking lot outside of the AT&T store began to shake, and Castiel realized that it was Ember venting her frustration. He put a calming hand on her shoulder, and the rocks clattered to the ground. "Jack. My – our son," she said, looking over at Castiel. "Sam, please. Is he… is he okay? Is he with you guys? And Krissy…"

Castiel could hear Dean yelling, "Don't tell her anything!"

Sam sighed. "Ember, you have to understand, until we can…"

"I know, Sam," she snapped into the receiver. "Just tell me… tell me if they're okay. If they're hurt, or… and Jack…"

"Everyone's alive," Sam said. "No one is hurt."

There was more to the story, Castiel could tell, but he could also sense that Sam was telling the truth – everyone was alive, and no one was hurt. Finally, Ember gave a sigh of relief and made arrangements to meet them at the halfway point between their locations, somewhere in southern Illinois, the following afternoon.

It wasn't until they had finally stopped at a hotel for the night that a new feeling began to creep its way into Castiel's mind. Ember had said she was going to take a shower, and left the bathroom door open.

It was what she used to do… before. Before their break-up, before his war against Metatron, before Lucifer, before Amara, before Jack. Before the Winchester brothers even knew about their relationship, back when it was just the two of them, and he was human and working at that stupid gas station in Rhode Island.

He wanted… things that he had wanted every day, ever since that last time, a few days before she had become a demon. He had never believed he could have that with her again, though - not even during the nearly two weeks they had been together before their death, when she was nearly nine months pregnant. It had been discussed, of course, and perhaps sex would have occurred had she not been about to give birth…

Still, even that conversation had occurred nearly 3 months ago, now. Being with Ember in that way seemed like it was a lifetime ago, and Lucifer had forced his way between them since then. Castiel knew that Ember had forgiven him for letting Lucifer into his vessel, and everything that had happened as a result, but this was a new step entirely.

And yet the door was left open.

Castiel paced just out of eyeshot of the bathroom. Perhaps he could look in and see – no, that wouldn't work.

What would Dean do?

Fine. Just… fine. Life was too short, even for an angel – especially for an angel in love with a half-demon.

The moment he entered the bathroom, he felt her, her eyes met his, and the look she gave him shook him, settling somewhere south of his waistline.

She had been drying herself when he entered, but as he watched she tossed aside the towel. She looked just like he remembered her, from before the pregnancy. Not that she didn't look beautiful during the pregnancy – he had wanted her just as badly then, of course. A fully sentient nephilim son had made that impossible at the time, however, so he hadn't even attempted it. He had settled for the sheer pleasure of access to her mind on a few occasions, which had been truly amazing, and far more than he deserved.

Now, however, she was naked, and she was alone, and she was his, and there was nothing between them but his clothes. His trenchcoat was off halfway across the bathroom floor, and she met him shortly after that, her hands tearing at his dress shirt and his hands cupping her naked bottom and forcing her against the wall.

She struggled again with his dress shirt and he became frustrated and simply vanished it, along with his pants. Then he was inside her, and he had barely touched her when she arched against him in her first orgasm of many (he would make sure of that).

It had been a very long time, and it was going to be a very long night.

March 29

The plan had been for Ember to sleep at the motel room, but that hadn't exactly happened, and neither of them were particularly upset about it. Their nighttime activites had left Ember more exhausted than ever, so Castiel drove for most of the day while Ember slept in the car, her hand resting lightly on his thigh.

Finally, they reached the assigned meeting place for ditching their stolen car and hooking up with the Winchesters, a cross-street in southern Illinois. Ember held her silver knife at the ready, along with holy water cut with salt. The couple knew the boys hadn't believed her over the phone, and would need proof.

"Cas, is that really you?" asked Dean, stepping away from the Impala once Ember had finished the "salt-silver-holy water" process. "Em… Ember?"

Ember smiled, running to hug first Dean, and then Sam.

"You – you died," said Sam. "Both of you. We-…"

"We were dead," said Castiel. "But then I… annoyed an ancient cosmic being so much that he sent us back."

"I don't even know what to say," Sam said, his large body still draped around Ember's.

"I do," said Dean, embracing Castiel. "Welcome home, pal." Dean smiled at his friend, and Castiel knew then that all was forgiven. He offered a large smile in return, a rarity for him.

"Where were you?" Sam asked. "In Heaven?"

"No," Castiel answered as Sam disentangled himself from Ember to hug Castiel. "No, I was in the Empty."

"Really?" Dean asked, helping Ember into the back of the Impala.

"Apparently, it's where angels and demons go when they die. And Ember… you know they wouldn't let her go to Heaven after…" He shrugged apologetically.

"What was it like?"

"Well, it's dark and...nothing," Castiel answered. "It's like...nothing. I was sleeping, and then I heard a voice that said my name, and I woke up. I thought you… had done something."

"No, we… we didn't even think we could bring you back," said Dean in surprise. Castiel and Ember shared a significant look.

"So who was it?" asked Sam. "Chuck – uh, God?"

"No," said Ember.

"No, he has no power in the Empty," confirmed Castiel.

"Well, then, who does?" asked Dean.

Jack.

~ANGELS WILL FALL~

Sam and Dean spent the next several hours explaining to Ember and Castiel everything that had happened since they had died. Ember looked as relieved as Castiel felt upon learning that Sam and Dean had taken in Jack. He felt a very human sense of pride as they described Jack's adventures so far. Jack was turning into a good person, even though Ember and Castiel hadn't been there for the first three months of his life.

So much had happened, though. Castiel was used to the whirlwind of emotions and events that had assaulted him during the times that he had been nearly human, but he wasn't used to feeling like this as an angel. He felt as though he had been on a rollercoaster. He wanted to settle down with Jack, and Ember, and perhaps Ember's other children, and be a family. On the one hand it felt like a wholly new desire, but somehow Castiel realized that he had always wanted this.

Finally, the four of them crossed the threshold of the bunker. Ember grabbed Castiel's hand. He smiled at her, and she giggled out loud, which only made his smile bigger.

Jack was typing at a computer in the living room when they walked in. He was engaged, and didn't look at them. "How'd your case go?" he asked distractedly.

He was tall, and lanky. His wings were stunning, though Castiel realized he was the only one that could see them. They were large and golden-brown, and Castiel looked forward to being able to teach him how to fly properly.

"Well…" said Dean.

"Jack, um…"

"What's wrong?" asked Jack, swiveling around, his eyes wide. Castiel squeezed Ember's hand as they stepped out of the shadows. Castiel noticed that Jack's grace shined similar to his – the same hue and shape and feeling. They were more similar than any two angels alive, and it erased any doubt as to the boy's father. Castiel felt another sharp swoop of pride.

"Hello, Jack," Castiel said.

Jack's eyes had shot wide. "F-father? Mother?"

Ember nodded and smiled.

"No," Jack said wonderously. "We burned your body, and what's burned stays dead. How..."

"Well, that's the question we've been askin'," said Dean.

"Jack… did you, uh… Did you bring Cas back?"

Jack considered. "I don't know. I wanted you back. I… begged for you to come back, but..."

"Well, here they are," said Dean.

"Because of me?" Jack said, looking at Sam. Castiel understood that Sam had been like Jack's father these past few months. He wished he could've been there. He wanted to make up time with his son. He would teach him everything – about angels, about Enochian, and Heaven, and Hell, and how to fly.

"We don't know," Sam admitted. "We don't know, Jack. But we– we– we think maybe."

"Thank you, Jack," said Castiel solemnly, amazed. They stared at each other for a second, and then Jack came over and embraced the two of them, without preamble. Castiel lost herself in the hug – finally, his son.

"I missed you so much," Jack said.

"Sam and Dean tell me you're doing well," Castiel said, but he couldn't keep his affection out of his voice.

"I am," Jack said grinning. "I… Watch this."

Jack walked back to the table with the computer, and used his finger to levitate a pencil for a few seconds, then laughed.

"Wow," said Sam, with a small smile toward Ember.

"I can move the pencil," he said, looking at both of his parents for approval.

It was perfect.

Castiel smiled at the people around him – the love of his life, his two best friends, and his son. He didn't know what would happen next. He was sure there would be monsters, because there were always monsters. If he was lucky, perhaps there would be more nights like the previous one.

What he did know was at that moment, he felt that with the love of all of the people in that room, he could survive anything. And, for the first time, he was truly happy to be a Fallen angel.