Epilogue

Bobby Singer couldn't pace anymore since the possession incident last spring that had left him paralyzed, so he'd managed to clear a circle from the living room into the kitchen and back that he could wheel around whenever he got anxious. And that cryptic phone call from Dean just after midnight the night before? That had definitely made him anxious, and though Bobby had managed to get some sleep because they were coming in from Colorado Springs and wouldn't arrive until lunchtime, this morning the caffeine from his coffee seemed to serve only to make him jittery. He was liable to wear a hole in the floor if he did many more laps.

Something had happened, that much was plain. The boys were supposed to be headed to Chuck Shurley's place in Ohio, had called him from Indiana to say they were caught in a freak thunderstorm and were looking for a motel; how they and the Impala had gotten to Colorado Springs in the space of five hours was anyone's guess, even considering the way Dean drove when lives were at stake. It might have been Cas, but Dean would have said....

Further ruminations were cut off by the familiar sound of the Impala's engine. By the time Bobby had made it to the door with the holy water, the boys and the guest Dean had mentioned (guest, singular, though there had been at least two voices besides Sam's in the background when he'd called, one tenor and one bass) were coming up the steps. From what Bobby could see, the third man was about a match for Sam in height, of African-American descent, and had a knit cap pulled almost to his eyebrows.

"Hey, Bobby," Dean called as he opened the door.

"C'mon in, son," Bobby nodded, staying far enough back that all three would have to cross the salt lines and pass under the Key of Solomon that was painted on the ceiling.

"Bobby, this is Teal'c," Sam stated, coming over for his hug and his shot of holy water. "He's on loan to us for a few days. Teal'c, this is Bobby Singer, the friend we were telling you about."

"It is an honor to meet you, Mr. Singer," the black man said with a slight bow, his enunciation a shade too crisp for a native English speaker. His had been the bass rumble Bobby had heard on the phone. "Sam and Dean speak very highly of you."

"Teal'c," Bobby nodded. "Care for a glass of water?"

Teal'c raised an eyebrow but caught the nods Sam and Dean sent him and accepted the cup with another slight bow. He then drank the holy water in one gulp, as if it were a shot of whisky, and bowed again. "That was most refreshing, thank you."

"Thought I'd heard someone else talkin' to you when you called, Dean," Bobby noted, accepting the cups back from all three.

"Yeah, that was Gabriel," Dean nodded. "Got kinda banged up, so he stuck with us until he was good to fly again. He's gone to find Cas."

"So where'd you pick up Teal'c? Colorado Springs?"

"Yeah." Dean paused and looked over at Sam, who nodded. "Look, Bobby... before we explain what Teal'c's doin' here, there's somebody else you need to meet. Two somebodies, actually."

Bobby's stomach clenched. "What have you idjits done now?"

Sam put a hand on Bobby's shoulder. "It's a good thing. Promise."

The boys exchanged glances again, and then their heads dipped in unison.

"Greetings, Bobby," said... something in Dean. The voice was distorted so badly that it had almost dropped another octave. "I am Dishon."

"And I am Salim, his brother," added... whatever was in Sam that did the same thing to his voice. "We are Tok'ra. Sam and Dean requested our help in their fight against the being known as Lucifer."

Dishon blinked and suddenly looked faintly amused. "Dean says we should say 'We come in peace.'"

And Teal'c looked highly amused at that. "The Tau'ri have a strange sense of humor at times. I do not doubt that you will both learn many inappropriate jokes from the Winchesters."

"HEY!" And that was all Dean.

Salim grinned. "I do not think I should tell you what your brother said to that, Dean."

Dean muttered something under his breath, then yelled, "Stay out of this, Dishon! It's between me and the Sasquatch."

Teal'c burst out laughing. Salim bowed Sam's head, and Sam's laughter--clear, sane laughter--rang out at well. Dean kept grumbling in what was plainly mock annoyance.

"What the hell?" Bobby finally exploded.

"We're not possessed, Bobby," Sam replied, still chuckling. "It's different, honest. They're alien symbiotes. We're two souls sharing one body."

"Well, one soul sticks with the snake," Dean clarified. "But it really is shared space. And Gabriel confirmed that they're just as hidden as we are by the sigils."

"Look, we'll tell you all about it over lunch. But there's one thing we gotta do first. And we need you to lie down for it." Sam nodded toward the couch, then dug into his duffle and pulled out some funky Egyptian-looking artifact.

Bobby looked at Dean dubiously.

"We can do this in the panic room, if you're that worried about us," Dean shrugged. "It's alien technology, not magic."

Bobby was too far from any of his guns to defend himself even if he had to, so he sighed and wheeled himself over to the couch. Dean and Teal'c gently helped him out of the chair and laid him down on his stomach.

"This doesn't hurt, does it, Teal'c?" Sam asked as he walked over to them.

"No, it does not," Teal'c assured him. "He may feel warmth, but it will cause no pain."

"Maybe you should let Salim do it," Dean suggested.

"Yeah, okay." Sam bowed his head again, and Salim activated the artifact in his hand and held it over Bobby's back.

And Bobby hissed as sensation returned to his feet.

"Bobby?" Dean frowned, worried.

"It's okay," Bobby replied. "M'feet."

"Do not try to move yet," Salim cautioned. He held the device in place a moment longer, then shut it off. "Now."

Bobby moved his foot experimentally, and the boys grinned at each other when it worked. Then Teal'c stepped out of the way to let them help Bobby up. He was shaky for a moment, standing on legs wasted by months of paralysis, but stand he could.

He looked up, unsure whether he was addressing Sam or Salim, and said, "Thank you."

The tilted head bow he received in return was Salim. "It was my pleasure, Bobby." Then a deeper head bow, and Sam was pulling him into a relieved hug.

And when Sam released him, Dean spun him around and pulled him into another hug. "Told you this was a good thing," he whispered.

"You're still idjits," Bobby replied gruffly. "But I s'pose this time it's okay."

Dean huffed a laugh, pounded Bobby's back, and drew back. "C'mon. Let's get some lunch and we'll tell you Gabriel's plan."

Bobby turned to Teal'c. "You like BLTs, Teal'c?"

"Indeed," Teal'c replied with a hint of a smile.

"Well, take your hat off and come on in the kitchen."

Teal'c pulled off his stocking cap to reveal a large gold tattoo in the middle of his forehead--the sign of Apophis, if memory served--and followed Sam into the kitchen without another word.

"He ain't from Earth, either, is he?" Bobby asked Dean quietly.

"Nope." Dean looked around furtively. "Bobby, this is insanely top secret stuff. You can't tell anybody."

Bobby snorted. "Hell, boy, nobody believes me about werewolves. Who'd believe me about alien snakes?"

Dean grinned and slapped him on the back, and together they walked into the kitchen to fix lunch and talk strategy.

A/N: Thanks to all who've read and reviewed and favorited and whatnot! Alas, Part 2 (working title: "If Wishes Were Horsemen") is not nearly so far along, so it may be a bit before I start posting it. I do hope to have the whole Tok'ra Apocalypse trilogy posted by the end of the summer, however.