the magician//d.winchester

8.

Pizza and wings at Jack's request arrived in 20 minutes the way Dean drove. I guess death makes someone hungry, because he ate almost an entire pizza by himself. " I missed it." Jack mumbled between bites.

I smiled, " Eat whatever you want. We've got plenty."

Dean and Sam found Jack and I funny. They thought it was ironic, a witch and the son of an archangel getting along, especially considering who Jack's father was. People I know have had run ins with Lucifer, but I never did. I assume Jack was different, considering how innocent he seemed. Peoples parents didn't make them who they were. Sam and Dean barely spoke, but I knew they were happy. I could tell Jack was like a little brother to them, which was my biggest surprise. Dean was a very cut and dry hunter, I knew that. The fact he took in the Devil's son was certainly character development. Jack suddenly sat up, " Something is wrong!"

The flash of light was sudden and violent. Jack basically threw me to the floor, shielding me until the light faded. " Sam, Dean!" A deep voice said.

" Cas! Stop!" Dean said.

I peeked from behind Jack, seeing a man with a long silver knife raised over Jack. His hair was dark, and absolutely a mess. He wore a long ran coat, and a dress shirt and pants underneath. His face fell from anger to sadness, " Jack?"

Jack lowered his hands, standing up straight, " Castiel. It's me."

" I-I'm sorry." He said, " I sensed a powerful presence on earth, and tracked it to here. I thought they were in trouble."

" I'm sorry." Jack said, " It must be me, we should have contacted-"

" No, it isn't you." Castiel peered behind him, " It's radiating from her."

" Me?" I said quietly.

Dean helped me off the ground, staying close to me, " Harper is a witch, Cas. There's no way the dangerous force you felt is her. Jack probably sent a shockwave and freaked you out."

" No, Dean. It's her."

Castiel tried to touch my head, both Jack and Dean holding their hands up to stop him, " No zapping the girl you just met." Dean said.

" No, it's fine. What kind of power are you talking about?"

" The same as Jack," He said, " But it's darker. Lucifer isn't pure by any means, but whatever you have is worse than Jack."

" Great," I sighed, " Okay. Do your... zappy thing."

Cas raised his hand, Dean tensing up next to me. " It's okay." I said to him.

Castiel touched the top of my head, and my eyes went white for a moment, but his reaction was scariest to me. " We need to hide her, very quickly."

" What? Why?" Sam said.

Jack looked at Castiel, his eyes widened, " Sister?"

Dean and Sam looked at me in confusion, " Who's sister?"

Castiel looked pained, " Jack's. Technically Jack's sister."

" Which parent?" Dean said quietly, " Cas, which parent? Kelly?"

" Paternally related." He said gravelly, " We have a lot to talk about, Harper."

***

Confusion was the general feeling right now. " I guess I should introduce myself properly," I said as Castiel was... scanning? I guess we can say that. He had his hands on my shoulders, trying to figure out how the hell I was hidden from my... dad, " I'm Harper."

" Dean left a voicemail. Hunters daughter... witch. I am Castiel."

" The angel, Dean said you were MIA."

He nodded, " Trying to keep humans safe. Before he was... killed. Jack created many new angels. So we're trying to close hell. It's not as easy as it once was for us, considering God's actions. Luckily, there are voices of reason in heaven. And we chose not to listen to him."

" So what now, I'm on the angel kill list?"

" And demon." He said flatly, " And God's apparently. But your mother... she did a very good job hiding you. The symbols carved into your bones, the inside of your body. These are older than angels. These would hide you from, well. Everything. That's why I couldn't see you, until Jack was near you. His power near yours... it's incredible. Just, 30 years. I can't believe Jim hid you all of this time. Your mother just have had very specific instructions. Were you allowed to practice the craft?"

I nodded, " I did a ritual from my mothers journal every night. They were labeled as cleansing and focusing."

" I supposed they updated the runes, kept them strong. Angels and demons would never be able to see you with witchcraft this old. These are from the Black Grimoire itself. Your mother... she must have been very strong to his you from your father."

" Lucifer. Don't call him my father." I said, " Do, my mother got down with Lucifer, got pregnant, and somehow did a ritual to hide me from every nasty thing, including God and Satan himself."

Castiel nodded, " God doesn't have many blind spots. But your mother somehow put you into one of them. You were just an average witch to him, these dulled your power. I'm afraid they're slowly being healed by your Arcangel half, and when they're healed, not only will you be fully powered, but visible to the things you were hide from."

" So fix them!" I pushed him away from me, " This isn't exactly something I want! I don't want this part of me out in the open. I'm not like Jack! Jack is... strong and good and in control. I'm not like him. I can't be. I'm a hunter and a witch. That's all I want to be."

" I don't have the power, nor do I know how to preform a spell as your mother did. This isn't something I can just angel zap into existence. I know you're scared, and this isn't a good thing in your mind. But look at Jack." Castiel said, " He's amazing. He's strong and kind and like his mother."

" I don't wanna be like my mother," My voice cracked, " I don't want to be like either of my parents. I don't want that."

" You are the shining example of nature vs nurture. You defied everything about nephilim we knew. You aged like a human, you pushed down the evilest parts of yourself. You became a hunter, nearly human. That's not normal."

" I'm not a human! I'm not normal!" I sat down, shaking my head, " My mother was a full witch, born that way. Those hardly exist! And Lucifer... Jesus Christ!"

I buried my head in my hands, not wanting to cry. I couldn't stop it. Footsteps came into the parlor, " Cas, I think she needs... not this talk right now." Sam said softly.

" I'm sorry." He said, " Where's Jack?"

" He's a little upset." Dean said, " By a little I mean a lot. He locked himself in the armory so he didn't do anything bad. Can I have a minute?"

The last thing I wanted was the angry lecture. But that was all I was gonna get. I couldn't get a break.