Title: Need Some Light [17/17]

Author: Ailendolin

Rating: PG-13 … just to be sure.

Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural and do not make any money with this story. I also don't own Aziraphale. I own Myra, though.

Summary: Tag to Jump The Shark. What if Adam hadn't been dead when Dean found him? His survival changes everything for his family and maybe even humanity in general by disrupting Heaven and Hell's plans for the Apocalypse.

Word count: 1417

Total word count: 58088

Characters/Pairing: Adam, Dean, Sam, Castiel, Bobby, Gabriel, Rumsfeld, Milo, Missouri/God and Myra (OC)

Warnings/Spoilers: Spoilers for Jump The Shark. Story goes AU in the middle of the episode. There's also a lot of religious themes in this chapter.

Author's Notes: Hey guys! After 58088 words this story has finally come to an end. Unbelievable.

As of today, 'Need Some Light' got 174 reviews for its 16 chapters. 78 people have marked it as a favorite story and 116 people have it on story alert. While this in itself shows me that a lot of people enjoy this story, I'd now like to take the chance to address all those silent readers out there. I'm glad you like this story and it would be nice of those who have never reviewed so far to leave me a small comment. It doesn't have to be much, but reviews are important for writers and show them that you appreciate their work.

Which brings me to all the lovely people who have written me reviews. Thank you, thank you so, so much, guys! I can't stress this enough but you are the reason this story got finished in the first place. Reading your comments always made me want to write the next chapter just a little bit faster, and some of your comments even inspired me. I am glad so many of you have enjoyed this story and like the decisions I made, like making Missouri God. As I've said numerous times already, your reviews totally make my day. Thank you for that!

And because some of you have already told me that they're sad to see this story end, well, I'm planning other ones. There's one that's been sitting on my drive for ages which I can't seem to get finished but hopefully will someday. And, of course, there's the already announced one-shot that I promised you guys. It is called 'Delta' and you can find it on my Author's page. Maybe the summary will get some of you curious and I hope to see some familiar faces (or names, in this case *g*) popping up in the reviews. ;-)
'Delta' is an AU story set after 6x11. "When a newly resurrected Gabriel rescues Adam from the Cage and drops him off to live with Sam and Dean forgiveness for past mistakes seems almost impossible - until a small blue creature turns their lives upside down."

So, with everything said, there's nothing left but to thank all of you again for your support. I wish you all a very happy new year and I hope you enjoy this last installment of 'Need Some Light' as much as the previous ones.
Love,
Ailendolin

Chapter 17 / Epilogue

The meteorologists had been going crazy since God had decided to clean up in Heaven. No one could explain the massive storm that had raged around the whole world and lasted for three days, or the following drop in temperature that had caused heavy snowfall and blizzards in otherwise tropical places. The weather anomalies lasted for a week prompting reporters to make the wildest suggestions concerning their origin. Dean had a particularly good laugh when one declared that, "The end is near! The Apocalypse is upon us!"

The first sign that God's mission had been a success came one morning when Dean woke up and sunlight streamed in through the window. Adam was grinning at him and pointing outside where instead of storm clouds now little wisps of fog were the only barrier between the sun and Earth. After a week of living in almost darkness it felt good to be able to see the sun again at last.

The second sign of God's success came later that day when they had lunch. Castiel was sitting with them at the table, finally feeling well enough to walk around. He still tired easily but Dean was glad that the Angel was not exhausted all the time anymore. Gabriel had told him that Castiel's feathers were starting to regrow and that the worst was over. Castiel was getting his Grace back, inch by inch, and with his Grace came his strength.

So, when something gently pecked against the window it was Castiel who stood up and let it in. A white dove flew into Bobby's kitchen and landed on Adam's shoulder, an olive branch in its beak. Castiel looked positively happy about this sign, the others, not so much. Even Gabriel grimaced.

"Really, Father?" he asked.

"It is a little corny, isn't it?" Sam added, still staring skeptically at the dove.

Adam shrugged and gently petted the dove under its chin. It instantly started to coo.

"Maybe your Mom should have called you Noah instead of Adam," Dean remarked with a grin.

Adam rolled his eyes. "You're just jealous it didn't come to you," he stated.

Dean snorted. "Sure I am."

The dove stayed. They tried to bring it back outside but it always came back to the kitchen window, looking at them with the saddest eyes a dove could possibly make. So in the end they just let it back inside where it immediately flew back onto Adam's shoulder.

"You should name her," Gabriel suggested when it became clear that the dove would stay.

Adam looked thoughtfully at the dove.

"How do you like Myra?" he asked.

Dean almost choked on his beer when the dove nodded fervently.

SPN

God came to visit them in the evening of that day and actually used the door, much to Dean's surprise. He had expected Missouri to just appear out of nowhere like her children were so fond of doing but no, she even rang the doorbell.

"Yes?" Bobby questioned when he opened the door. "How may I help you?"

Missouri raised an eyebrow at him.

"I'm God," she said bluntly. "I'm here to see the boys."

Flabbergasted, Bobby stood aside. Missouri smiled at him.

"Thank you, Robert," Missouri said pleasantly and handed him her coat before she walked past him.

"Ah," she smiled once she entered the living room and spotted Myra on Adam's shoulder, "I see my little message has reached you."

Adam nodded shyly, still not feeling comfortable around Missouri.

"Hello," he mumbled quietly.

"Hello, Adam," she replied before she turned around and greeted Sam, Dean and Gabriel. Finally, her eyes came to rest on Castiel.

"So," she said, "You must be Castiel, Gabriel's little fledgling."

Castiel stared at her with a mix of awe and confusion.

"Father." He bowed his head. "You," he added hesitantly, "Are not how I imagined you."

"Yeah, well," Missouri shrugged. "I kind of like this form. At least I don't look like a holy tax accountant." When Castiel looked at her in shock she grinned. "Just kidding. It's good to meet you, son."

With that she sat down next to him on the couch.

"A little birdie told me you've wanted to meet me for quite some time," Missouri went on.

Castiel's eyes shifted to Myra and Dean laughed.

"She means Gabriel, Cas," he explained. "It's just a figure of speech."

"Oh," Castiel said. He looked embarrassed and Dean could not blame him. You did not meet your Father, or Creator or whatever, every day and when you did you wanted to make a good first impression.

"I've heard what happened to you, Castiel," Missouri said, all the humor now gone from her voice. "I can assure you that your superiors have been thoroughly dealt with."

Castiel nodded. "I never meant to disobey you, Father," he tried to explain. "But they wanted to hurt Dean and his family and I couldn't let that happen. I hope you understand that."

Missouri smiled at him gently. "I do, Castiel," she reassured. "You did nothing wrong. In fact, I'm glad you have found such good friends here on Earth and were willing to protect them. You did well, my son."

"Thank you," Castiel replied quietly and Dean laid a comforting hand on his shoulder, knowing how much that meant to the Angel.

"You know," Missouri said after a moment, "I've thought about assigning you to a new post once you're healed fully. Important positions are now vacant and I need Angels I can trust to fill them."

"What position would that be?" Castiel asked, now looking intrigued.

Missouri grinned at him. "One equal to Gabriel's," she explained. "I've been thinking about making you an Archangel."

Castiel looked shocked, as did the rest of them. Even Dean knew what an honor that must be and even though he was glad for Castiel he also felt sad. It would mean saying goodbye.

"I-" Castiel hesitated and looked at Dean.

"You do not want to leave," Missouri said knowingly. "That's alright. I've decided to put you and Gabriel in charge of all matters concerning Earth."

Dean stared at her. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"That means," she said, smiling smugly and looking a lot like Gabriel at that moment, "That your beloved Angel can stay here and only has to report back to Heaven now and then, telling me how things are going down here. I've got enough work cut out for me upstairs without having to bother checking up on you guys all the time."

She turned to face Gabriel.

"I'm afraid I can't station you on Earth permanently as well, Gabriel," she said with a sigh. "I'd like you to be my Messenger again. The younger Angels need someone with your authority to look up to."

Gabriel nodded, his face not betraying his emotions.

"But," Missouri went on, "I grant you permission to leave Heaven whenever I have no tasks for you, so you can come and visit Earth and your brother regularly."

"And Milo," Gabriel added. He grinned when Milo barked her assent.

"Yes," Missouri amended, "And your little dog, of course. I am sure young Adam here won't mind taking care of her in your absence. He is quite good with animals."

Sam ruffled Adam's hair when their brother once more smiled shyly.

"Of course I don't mind," he said.

"Good!" Missouri said happily. "I'm glad that's settled. Everyone okay with this arrangement?

They all nodded.

"Alright, then it's time for me to go," she declared. "I'm afraid I can't leave Heaven alone for longer periods of time as of yet. It's still a mess up there."

Missouri turned to go but turned around once more at the door.

"Oh, and Castiel?" she said. "You should probably contact Aziraphale some time soon, letting him know you're now in charge of Earth. I'll hold you personally responsible for everything he gets up to with that Demon of his."

And then she was gone.

SPN

So it came to be that they got their happy end – or at least the Winchester's equivalent of one. A week after God's visit they left Bobby's on their first road trip to the Grand Canyon, the space in the Impala now even more cramped than Dean had initially expected. Milo and Myra were accompanying them, of course, and when Gabriel suddenly appeared in the backseat halfway to Arizona, nobody was really surprised. After all, this was how it was supposed to be.

The End.

Or, more accurately -

The Beginning.