Chain Of Pleasure

Chapter 7

Its over there not being enough meatballs in the supper.

Piper was twelve, had spent the past hour and a half cooking because her mom had been at work all day. Things had been going good, so she figured she could sweeten it some more and make a good supper for her mother. Its a box meal that comes with a can of soup and seasoning, a meal she can't really control the contents of because that's just how it comes.

But her mother is still screaming at her.

Its hard to get friction on the floor, but Piper manages before the plate can slam into her head. Instead, it swoops further and shatters against the kitchen cabinet. Piper screams when her mother starts towards her, slinging insults in that high pitched voice; how big of a pig she was, how she was ungrateful.

Piper slams her bedroom door shut and her mother doesn't follow, just continues to berate her as she stomps around the living room. Piper grabs her phone and headphones from the bed, sliding into the space between the foot of her bed and television before she smiles at the familiar faces that light up on her phones screen.

Sam. Edward.

They always calmed her when nights like this came along, her attention mostly focused on Edward. She studied him, smiled like a giggly schoolgirl even though Edward was just a character. But she felt safe, with just his image to comfort her. Maybe it was manic, a little crazy, but she didn't care; whatever it took.

She chuckled softly at their childish snipping at each other, but her face ironed out into a smooth slate, like usual when she watched Supernatural. She was never one for praying or wishing, but she had to pray to Castiel, Edward, Sam or even Lucifer to take her away, bring her to their world. Even for a day. . .anywhere would be better than here.

Better than this place, this home.

Piper is startled awake by the sound of a door slamming closed, her immediate reaction is to panic when she finds herself cuffed to the bed rail. She jerks on the cuff, only able to see the shine of the curved steel thanks to the moonlight coming through the curtains across the room. She whimpers and inhales a sharp breath when a firm hand wraps around her mouth, pulling her back against a strong chest.

"Shut up," it was Edward, but Piper still struggled a little. "f*****g sit still," her eyes widened when she saw the glint of a handgun stretch out in front of her.

She did as he said then, curling up, wanting to bury herself in him but he slid out from his place behind her. She bit her lip and then began to breathe shallowly, watching him stalk through the dark towards the stairs. He kept back from the opening, keeping against the wall and keeping into the shadows. There were soft pats downstairs, the sound of the refrigerator opening and Edward looked over at her. He held a finger over his mouth to be quiet and Piper lurched forward when he started down the stairs. He was leaving her alone? What if something -

Piper shook her head and relaxed against the pillow, but her heart was still thrumming like a hummingbirds wings. He was Edward-Freaking-Winchester, he got this. He could handle it, whatever it was; if he could fight Lucifer and win, he could do it. But he didn't know how capable he was, how much s**t he would go through. . .

Her mind was filling silence.

She didn't even hear the sound of a struggle, but light shot up from the stairs and Piper waited with bated breath. She heard muffled voices and could tell Edward's rumbling voice from the other; the other was gruff, but not intimidating, soothing. Piper was getting impatient, her stomach doing flips as she fidgeted; she held the cuffs firm so they didn't rattle. She jumped when there were loud, pounding steps on the stairs and then there was light. An oil lamp by the bed lit and Piper saw Edward, shaking his head with the gun in his hand. He looked down at Piper, his face a mixture of annoyed, calm and indecisive.

"I'm gonna uncuff you," he opened the bedside tables drawer, producing the cuff key. "And you're not suddenly gonna sprout all these new powers, right?"

Piper shook her head fiercely as he crouches beside her. "No," her words were mumbled.

She rubbed her wrists, blinking slowly as he helped her to her feet. Her rear hurt from where she had fallen and her head was beginning to ache, but otherwise she was intact. Edward watched her reach back and rub a gentle circle on the back of her head, arching an eyebrow when she furrowed her brow in confusion. She looked up at him and flushed when she saw he was staring at her, shuffling behind him though he didn't speak.

There was a man facing the table downstairs, back to she and Edward. His fingers were picking at the maps spread out on the table, his head perking up when Edward rudely swept off to the side, reaching the fridge for the whiskey he had tried to get earlier. Piper could see the sky beginning to lighten outside the windows now, wondering just how early it was. She felt so incredibly awkward, she didn't know what to do, what to say. . .

"Castiel," she murmured, taking a small, subconscious step towards the angel.

He smiled softly at her, just as much wonder in his eyes as she was sure were in hers. "Piper," he murmured. "This must seem like quite the shock, hmm?"

Piper let out a hysterical bubble of laughter. "A little bit," she hesitated, looking over at Edward. "One minute I'm in my bed. . .with my grandfathers shotgun and. . ." She shrugged, looking at Castiel. "And then I'm here," she paused. "This isn't supposed to be real. I mean, wherever I come from. . .you're possibly one of the most insane, hilarious actors I've ever seen before."

He arched an eyebrow and Edward snorted. "Yeah, my reaction exactly. . ."

"You are definitely something special," Castiel continued to stare at Piper. "The angels know about you," her breath hitches and Edward pushes off the counter. "They know what happened to you and they want you home."

"Wait what," she shook her head. "N-No, no, no, no," she waved her hands in front of herself and backed into the wall. "What do you mean they want me home? They don't want to send me back to my mother, do they? Please - please," her voice died at the end, her head spinning.

Castiel gave her a sympathetic look but Edward grumbled, stomping towards Piper and grabbing her before she fell. She craned her neck to look up at him, her fingers squeezing his bicep, her head shaking when she squeezed her eyes shut. They couldn't do that to her, they couldn't send her back to her mother! She would do it all over again, be sucked back into being afraid every day of her life, fearing arguments that sprouted from nowhere, fearing every living moment --

"Your body is dying," Castiel murmured. "Something drug you here, to this plane from somewhere we are not sure. You are not supposed to be here though, you are an anomaly and they want to send you back."

"I'm an asshole, but you see her right," Edward shook Piper a little for emphasis.

"Yes, Edward," Castiel's voice dropped. "I see her and I know the circumstances but --"

"No!" Piper wailed, causing Castiel to flinch; his eyes seemed to see something she didn't when she looked up at him, but she didn't register the look of shock. "No! No you can't do that! You can't send me back to her, you just can't! She'll kill me! Please, please don't send me back to her!"

"I have no control -"

"Cas," Edward barked, cutting off Piper's wailing and Cas' defense. "Just shut up, okay? Take her to Chuck, get her set up somewhere and we'll figure this out in a couple of hours. Come back here when you're done. . .I need to talk to you."

Castiel's eyes flickered above Piper's head and she sputtered when Edward pushed her towards the angel, her breath ceasing when she felt the way Castiel vibrated under her touch. He didn't even look like he was moving, even with her twitching in his arms; she looked back at Edward, seeing a slightly disturbed, dark look on his face. Castiel sighed and wrung Piper away from him a little, but kept an arm around her, leading her towards the door. She squeaked and craned her neck back to Edward again, fear in her eyes when she saw him watching her.

"This will be your hut, enjoy the solitude."

Piper wrung her hands nervously in front of her as she trailed behind Chuck, eyes darting around the close ceiling and walls. Not as big as Edward's, but pretty close, with minimal moldy furniture and stairs leading up to what she assumed was a bed. The place smelt of whiskey, meaning she wasn't getting a cabin that hadn't had a previous owner. The kitchen was empty, save for a pathetic little fridge that hummed when she had helped Chuck hook up the generator; ran on some kind of oil, for which the idea Chuck was the proud owner of.

He was shocked to hear she wasn't from this world, wasn't some scraggler they had picked up on a run. She hadn't told him much about what she knew, just told him that she had never laughed so hard at anything other than the covers to his books. He had been flustered and blushed, saying he was glad that the apocalypse had happened in a way; those books needed to die.

"So, that's the tour," he smiled widely at Piper, who jumped; she had been staring at him. "If you need anything, find me, Cas or Edward. You'll get to know some of the people around here soon enough that you won't be so dependant on the three of us."

"And I'm definitely gonna be a little dependant," Piper sighed, licking her lips. "I feel so. . .unnatural here."

Chuck shook his head, his smile infectious as Piper felt the corners of her mouth twitching. "Don't we all," he chuckled in time with Piper. "Don't be a stranger, my cabin is next to Edward's. You know where to find Cas. . ."

Piper nodded and tucked her hands into her pockets. "Thanks, Chuck," she paused. "You know, for not freaking out and stuff."

He chuckled again and pat her shoulder as he walked towards the door. "I've experienced stranger things, kid," he winked at her, which made her lips curve even more. "Get some rest, I'm sure Edward will be over here as soon as possible. Or he'll send for you."

Piper nodded, waving at Chuck until the door clicked shut. She waited a moment before she sighed and looked around, licking her lips as she started upstairs. There was the bed she was expecting, a shower that worked when she tried it, though the water smelt like sulfur and was cold. She stepped slowly out into the middle of the bedroom, slapping her hands softly on her thighs; her stomach was full of butterflies. Her head jerked up at the sound of knocking on the door, hurrying downstairs to the front door.

There was a twinge of giggle in her throat, a sense of satisfaction, when her jumpy hand jerked open that front door and she saw she had managed to surprise Edward Winchester. His eyes were slightly wide and his hand was raised to knock again, but he lowered it with a quick cough to clear his throat and he held out his hand. Piper's eyebrows shot into her hair at the clear plastic bundle he held out to her, taking it slowly.

"What uh. . ." She looked up at him.

He gestured to it, face receding to gruff and annoyed. "Clothes," was all he said.

"Oh," it came out squeakier than she intended and he actually chuckled. "Thank you," she bobbed her head. "You didn't have to. . ."

He shrugged. "We didn't get to go on a thorough run yesterday. . .anyone available is busy," he waved a hand. "It was on my way."

Piper smiled softly at him. "Then thank you again," there's those butterflies again, her eyes flicker around his face. "You know, Edward," he perked up a little. "It gets better."

He stared at her blankly for a long time, looking like he wanted to ask her something. "I'm guessing you can't tell me anything."

Piper shook her head. "Just like in anything else you've seen where you go to the past or the future. . .same principals apply," she paused, disappointment rising on his face. "Trust me, I want to tell you everything. . .help you make better choices. But that really wouldn't change the course of the Endverse."

His brow furrowed. "Endverse?"

Piper peeked out the door. "Judging by the way things look around here," her mouth went a little dry when she saw the very man Edward would shoot soon; would it be this run? "Something's coming," she pulled back. "This is the Endverse, end of the world and all that. But things change. I can't say anything, I don't want to mess the line up too much. Me being here. . .its already a mess."

He sighed, in both disappointment and annoyance. "I get it," he raised a hand and lowered it. "I just. . .was thinking maybe there's something you knew that could. . ."

"I can't get Sam back," his eyes darkened a little. "There's nothing I can do. I've seen how this ends and you do your thing," he arched an eyebrow. "Kicking ass, if you wanted me to clarify."

And she stops breathing at the sight of the broad smile he gives her. It highlights the crinkles in his face and lights up his dim eyes, but only for a moment, then its just a plain grin. Well, plain to anyone, it means the world to Piper. She blushes and looks down, hearing him chuckle and it makes her feel even more queasy. Even through a screen, he made her feel so damn ridiculous with overly laughing at his everything. Now, in real life - or whatever this was supposed to be - she felt those emotions and reactions ten fold.

"Damn, I haven't seen a blush in awhile," Piper looked up sideways through her soft auburn curls. "All the women around here are as soft as a cactus. They don't get flustered anymore," she sputtered for a minute. "Calm down, kid. Its cute."

She smiled, it was lopsided and hesitant; unused. "Ya know. . .you're supposed to be all mean and ruthless here."

He winked. "And whose to say I'm not?"

Her smile faltered but her stomach erupted again, her lips opening to speak but he was gone, someone calling his name. He looked back at her from a distance, this strange look to him that had Piper very confused and reeling. One minute he's violent, then he's charming Edward Winchester, then he's hinting at. . .

"Suddenly a lot of fan theories make sense," she murmured with slight dread in her stomach, shutting the door with a soft click.

Piper sighed as she walked up the stairs again, setting the wrapped clothes at the foot of the bed before flopping on top of the sheets herself. She sighed as several aching muscles in her body uncoiled and stretched, stinging and pulling a yawn from her lips. She hadn't slept good cuffed to the bed earlier, so a little nap couldn't hurt. If she kept paranoid about waking up long enough, she'd wake instead of wasting the whole day.

"Stop over thinking things, Piper," she muttered sleepily into the sheets.

If only it was that easy.

Edward thought hard on what he was doing, and also on what he would most definitely try doing when he had gotten back to camp.

"Yo," he arched an eyebrow and looked back over his shoulder. It was Marcus, an annoying twit of a man three times Edward's size, but they had already figured out who was the stronger man. "Think we should take in the dud rounds?"

"Can Olivia work with them," Marcus shrugged and Edward sighed, waving a hand violently at him. "Yeah, fuckin put em in the back of the Jeep."

Marcus nodded and Edward huffed, readjusting his stance as he continued to guard, right foot braced on the edge of the bench in front of him. He'd been lazily day dreaming about the girl back at camp: Soft and very touchable Piper. He didn't really trust her, but Cas had went to a length promising she was just an innocent girl that was just wrapped up in a game orchestrates by some higher power -- which had given her their own taste of magic.

Banshee.

"The way she wailed," Cas murmured once he had sent Piper off with Chuck. "It was so strong, so powerful. I could feel every ounce of it. . ."

"I know," Edward murmured. "But what the Hell can she be? She thinks she's just human."

Castiel sighed. "She is most likely a Banshee," he leaned over the table. "Which can only mean one thing."

"Something bad is going to happen soon," Edward sighed. "Or maybe this Goddess or whatever is just f*****g with us. Could have heard the kids crying, decided she would be a good ploy -- bam! Free ticket to where she wanted to go and we run around like morons trying to figure out what this means."

Castiel shook his head. "No, no she is symbolic of something, I can feel it," Edward snorted. "With the growing tension around camp at the mention of hunting the Colt again. . .it would only make sense she appear at this moment, tampering or not."

"Well," Edward started as he set down the bottle of amber he had been working on. "We have a heads up, even if this turns out to be s**t," he scrubbed a hand over his face. "f**k, there's not enough alcohol left in this world for me to deal with this right now."

Edward shook off the memory, eyes scanning the buildings surrounding them, looking into shattered windows to make sure they weren't being watched. They had decided to be ballsy today and travel into bandit territory; he could hear them hollering and praising over their engines as they ran course in the inner parts of the cities, probably using Croats as target practice. Bandits didn't scavenge, they raised caravans, other groups, took what they wanted instead of hunting.

Fucking savages.

So the kid was an unsuspecting victim to a higher powers' plan, a red flag of warning. And what happened to her when the plan unraveled? She didn't even know she was anything but human, and Cas forbid Edward from telling her until the time was right. He didn't want to throw too much on her at once, which was understandable, but that didn't mean Edward couldn't have a little fun. She obviously had a thing for him with those looks she gave, the incessant grinning and the way she tried not to giggle at inappropriate moments. He wondered how much he could ask of her and not hurt her too much; keywords too much.

"f**k I can't wait to get home," Edward murmured.