Dean shook Rose's hand with the one not holding the bat, giving her a surprisingly warm smile before returning it to his side. Grim was more than a little astonished; the man seemed like a perpetually angry guy, with a terrifying attitude to match.
Grim's gaze traveled to the rest of the group. Schadel was glancing between the two of them with increasingly wide eyes, nudging Edward with her elbow as she stared at the two. His heart skipped a beat, and he eagerly ducked his head back down.
They were slowing again. James kept back his annoyance as the others were introduced and exchanged formal greetings, but as soon as there was a pause, he seized it.
"Welcome to our band of misfits," he said in monotone. "Now, let us keep moving. Keep an eye out for anything - anything at all that could lead to answers for our purpose here and how to get back to normal."
With a distracted gaze, Damascus glanced over the newcomer, Dean, and then once again cast his eyes forward. Now was a good chance as any to talk to James. He glanced to his side again, briefly, and conjured what he hoped was a reassuring smile for Boris.
Without any more hesitation, he made his way casually once again to the head of the group, walking in step with James once more.
"When you have the opportunity, Boris would like a private word." He murmured, doing his very best to remain inconspicuous.
Dean raised an eyebrow as he slipped his bat into his bag, a feat that would be impossible if not for the spell his brother had cast on it. It functioned a lot like Hermione Granger's bag in the Deathly Hallows; it extended for an indeterminable distance, and he could house many things in it.
"You're not much of a talker, are you?" he asked, trying to ignore how Schadel was giving him a curious look behind his back.
(He vaguely remembered hearing the name before: Schadel H. Kueper, leader of an agency that dealt with ghosts and the supernatural, though it mainly involved helping than anything else.)
The trees suddenly began to thin out, and Dean could make out the shape of a building in the distance. There was a plethora of old, beat-up cars parked outside of it, with people exiting and entering. No matter their age, all had the same hardened look to their faces: they had been through metaphorical hell, and all it took was to be bombarded with the smell of salt for him to figure out why.
There was salt lining the area around the building, and he was sure the sprinklers were shooting out holy water. These two little facts made the rundown place seem like an impenetrable fortress.
Zephyrus and Aquarius went to exit the line of trees, but Dean yanked them back before any of the people at the restaurant could notice the two demons. Zephyrus tried to protest, but fell silent when he saw the look on Dean's face.
"We can't go out there," an angel - Maahes, right? - quietly said. "They'd be terrified of us."
"They'd also try exorcising every demon here," Dean added. "Even though we all look incredibly cliche."
Zephyrus raised an eyebrow. "Exorcising?"
Dean groaned. "They'd try throwing holy water on you and chanting an exorcism spell," he said. "It never works on demons, but they're stupid, so they'll try stabbing us with sharp weapons instead."
Aquarius gave a terrified whimper and clung to Zephyrus.
Griffith, Schadel and Edward all turned noticeably paler when they heard what he said. It was a different sort of expression than what Zephyrus and Aquarius had on right now; they weren't just terrified of a fight.
They were terrified of the fighters.
"Hunters," Griffith whispered, eyes widening in horror as he backed up into a nearby tree.
"It's a hunter hangout," Schadel realized. "The moment they see any of us, they'll think we're a threat. Even if we look like angels, they won't trust us!"
"Angels do have a nasty habit of keeping to themselves," Dean agreed. "I doubt most of those hunters even know angels exist."
"This is bad," Edward said.
"You're telling me," Dean said. "I'm probably friends with half of them, but they'll be stupid and think I'm possessed or something-"
Griffith made a terrified noise. "You're a hunter?" he whispered.
Schadel and Edward also stared at him.
"It's complicated," Dean hurriedly said, though he knew his suspicions had been confirmed. Schadel wasn't normal. Edward wasn't, either. And Griffith was most certainly like him, though he couldn't figure out why he'd be so terrified of hunters when they should have been worshiping the ground he walked on.
"All the angels need to do is hide their wings," Boomslang pointed out. "We don't have horns and tails and claws. Or..." She looked to Cornyx. "You could shift for us, couldn't you? You're a blueblood. The holy water shouldn't be terribly problematic."
Cornyx frowned, disliking the notion of walking in through the sprinklers, but he nodded. It'd be unpleasant but it'd hardly be deadly or even truly harmful. "Theoretically. But it already changed my form. I don't know if I can do so again." Even as he spoke, his eyes took on a silvery hue, his pupils elongating and becoming vertical. Despite the change in his gaze, however, everything else stayed very much the same - no scales, no batlike wings, no talons, no anything. "It seems we should move to Plan B." Cornyx paused, looking over at Dean. He was their best bet in. He was a hunter, after all. He studied the deity for several moments before speaking.
"You need to walk in there with one of us as your prisoner," he says. "An angel, preferably, and one that has magic they can still use. You blame the transformation not on possession but on an aura spell that was placed by a supernatural individual. You were hunting said angel when that happened, and, if they need to verify that you aren't truly demonic, they can feel free to say their latin or use their holy water. Once we're in, we can figure out where we are and what's going on, since information is really our first priority. The fewer that go in, the better, and whoever goes needs to be a very skilled liar and actor. We don't want to bring any of the vampires, because the holy water will burn them, despite their current angelic nature, and Boomslang had best stay back for obvious reasons." His gaze turned to Griffith, Schadel, and Maahes. The former two smelled very strongly of fear - they probably knew hunters better than they liked. "I think Griffith and Schadel would probably prefer to stay back, which leaves the only other angels being Maahes and myself. Maahes is unused to this physical form which may lead to further...complications in reflexes, et cetera, if combat or the need to flee were to arise." Cornyx looked down at Dean, ebon gaze calculating. If this plan went the way it was supposed to, it should leave an opening for Engel to get the needed information, and then things could sort themselves out. "Which would seem to leave you and I as the only option."
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
Rose started at Dean. She knew what he was talking about, she was used to being hunted. In her realm, in her world, she had served faithfully, still been cursed and cast out, and hunted. Her brand sent a spiteful throb up her arm as if it knew what she was thinking.
"How do we know that you won't everyone of us down, in spite of your new...shape?" She asked, her voice low. "How do I...we...know you didn't set this up?"
She wasn't trying to be rude, but she hadn't survived all these years by being careless. The trees nearest her rustled.
"Those moments when your in so deep, it feels easier to just swim down"
"I'm erasing myself from the narrative. Let future historians wonder how Eliza reacted when you broke her heart
Dean thought for a moment, glancing between Cornyx and Rose. He was still debating the merits of the plan, but Rose had brought up a crucial point: they had no reason to trust him. He was likely the most qualified here to deal with pretty much everything that was occurring, but even the few who knew him had little reason to trust in his abilities and moral standing.
"You don't," he admitted. "I don't abuse my powers, and I wouldn't have been stupid enough to get myself into this mess even if I did. But you have no reason to trust me on that, so you'll just have to believe in me for now."
He turned his attention to Cornyx. He was almost entirely certain that something was going to go horribly wrong with the plan, but it did have its merits. He could find out their location, figure out the easiest way to get in touch with his brother, and get to make Cornyx miserable while he was at it.
Honestly, it was one of the most enjoyable parts of this whole little adventure so far.
He reached into his bag and pulled out a thing of rope. Giving Cornyx an absolutely demonic smile, he held up the rope. "Well, we better make you look the part of a prisoner."
"Of course," he said, dipping his head and extending his wrists to Dean. The smile that danced across his lips told Dean that he knew something his so-called 'captor' didn't. "Couldn't let something so important such as that slip, could we?" He paused for a moment, assessing what information he had - and what information he didn't. "I'm unfamiliar with the angels from your reality. What means are they likely to use to attempt to validate what I am or to prove that I'm demonic?"
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
