"As I'll ever be." And despite the tension rising in the room, Nim was a hunter to the core, just as Jo had always been, though Ellen had never seen it in Dean's original world. Instead of standing at the ready, she leaned herself nonchalantly against the wall, the angle perfectly calculated to show off the gun in her hand and hide the swell at her waist, giving off the impression that she was ready for anything but not particularly inclined to start it. She winked at Dean. "Go for it, princess."

"If things go south, you get the hell out of here. Got me?" he asked, with a pointed, sidelong look at her. As if her safety wasn't important enough, it wasn't just about her anymore.

She held his gaze, gentle and steady, and refusing to answer him. He worried too much about her, sometimes with good reason, sometimes not. "Just get on with it, Dean, I'm getting old over here."

"Keep your panties on. I'm getting to it," he replied, as he turned back and ran the knife blade across the palm of his hand. He was so used to doing it by now, he didn't even wince as he closed his hand into a fist and squeezed tightly, drawing the blood to the surface to drip into the bowl. Thankfully, his back was to Nim, which at least partially blocked her view of what he was doing. It was never very pleasant watching the one you loved bleed, even if it was self-induced. The incantation was one he knew well, and he enunciated it in Latin so perfect it would have made his father proud.

"Et ad congregandum..." The candles flickered a little as he started the incantation. "Eos coram me," he continued, striking a match and tossing it into the bowl, the flame flaring as it set the mixture of blood and herbs on fire.

The delay was long, almost too long. The room was silent for almost a full minute after the flames flared, both hunters on edge. Just as Nim opened her mouth to ask Dean what had gone wrong, however, there was a flat slap of wet sound, and in front of them appeared a disheveled, decidedly threadbare-looking man, his expensive black suit ripped and dusty, his expression immensely tired and pained. He shook out his hand as though he'd been burned, grimacing as he looked around. And as his eyes fell on Dean, his face fell. "Oh, bollocks."

"Crowley," Dean greeted the demon grimly. "Sorry, is this a bad time?" he asked sarcastically, upon seeing the demon's disheveled appearance, unsure what exactly he'd been doing when they'd so rudely interrupted. While they'd been waiting for the demon's arrival, Dean had loosely wrapped a cloth around his hand to stanch the blood.

Crowley sighed, obviously resigned and perhaps just a little relieved that it had been a hunter who had summoned him. His eyes swept the room, passing over Nim with a sardonic raise of his brows. "My, my ....Sam, how you've changed," he commented, infuriatingly calm despite his situation. A quick glance upward revealed to him that he had been summoned into a Devil's Trap, and he rolled his eyes. "Is this really necessary' I am on the run, somewhat."

"Sam's dead, as you well know," Dean pointed out. At least, as far as this universe was concerned, but Crowley didn't need to know that. "We have a proposition," he continued, waiting to see what Crowley's response to that might be, making no comment on what his personal situation might be.

"Point of fact, so are you," the King of Hell pointed out in return, wiping his hand on his jacket as he surveyed the table on which the ritual pieces had been put together. "That summoning isn't supposed to work. I believe I have a witch to kill," he mused thoughtfully, looking back to Dean as the magic word "proposition" was declared. "Darling, I don't know what to say. This is all so sudden."

"I'm not interested in your personal problems, Crowley. In point of fact, I could care less whether Hades toasts your *ss or not, but we have a common enemy, which makes us allies, as dirty as it makes me feel saying that. You want to regain your throne" Let's make a deal."

The demon narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, his curiosity piqued by the offer. "You think you can take down Hades" What with, your little magic gun?" He snorted, shaking his head. "Sorry, precious. Gods don't go down easily. And this one happens to be tracking me, so if you don't mind ..." He let out a whistle, and beside the trap, something horrifyingly familiar to both Dean and Nim began to take form. A monstrous hellhound, all dark fur and snarling fangs, with one vague difference - they could see it. Nim's gun rose, pointing at the creature with unerring accuracy. Crowley blinked, staring. "Have you made a deal I don't know about, sweetheart?"

"It feels really weird saying this, but you're safe here. The house is warded against the Olympians. He's not gonna find..." Dean broke off as Crowley summoned one of his pets, his heart thumping hard in his chest at the sight of the beast. He and Nim had both been killed by hellhounds once, and it was no secret he was terrified of them, but he held his ground, clenching his jaw as he reached for the Colt that was hidden beneath his flannel shirt. "You wanna blow your only shot at getting rid of Hades, go ahead, but Fido is going down." A click was heard as Dean pulled back the hammer on the Colt.

Neither one of the hunters was looking at the demon, both their gazes leveled on Crowley's pet hellhound, which seemed genuinely nonplussed by the attention. It wasn't a creature who was used to having its victims look it in the eye, much less level two weapons on it. Crowley, however surprised he was, didn't hesitate, dismissing the monster with a low command. He didn't have so many assets he could afford to lose one of his most loyal to a pair of pissed off hunters. Frowning as the hound faded from sight once again, the demon glared at Dean. "How the hell did you see him?"

"For me to know and you not to find out," Dean replied, relaxing a little now that the beast was gone and releasing the hammer on the Colt. "Things have changed, Crowley," he said, stating the obvious. If the demon wanted to know how they could see his precious pet, he could figure it out for himself. "You ready to talk, or do you wanna waste more time pissing in the wind?"

Crowley glowered at him, but like any good businessman, he knew how to talk from a position of no power at all. As Nim lowered her own gun, the demon relaxed, tucking his hands into the pockets of his pants. "Foreplay is fun, and all, but I sense you want to get right to the part where you shaft me," he said, his rough voice almost smug. "Do tell."

Dean didn't take Crowley's bait, knowing there was usually more than a little shafting going on from both ends. He could really care less about Crowley, but at least he knew what to expect from him. "It's very simple really. You have the means to kill Hades. You give it to me, and I'll give you control of Hell back on a silver platter."

"You, uh....you don't have to go if you don't want to, you know. I could take Ellen or Bobby along for the ride." They had already discussed this, and he knew she was going to balk at the idea of staying behind - pregnant or not - but he'd never be able to live with himself if something happened to her or their son and he hadn't at least attempted to try and talk her out of going.

Nim raised her head, meeting his eyes pointedly. She didn't really need to say anything for him to know that there was no way in hell she was letting him go without her. Her dark eyes were absolutely serious as she held his gaze. "I'm going," she told him simply. "And no amount of arguing is going to change my mind."

"I figured you'd say that. Hell of a way to get me to take you on a honeymoon." He smirked a little at that remark, though in truth, he wished that was the real reason they were going. What he wouldn't give for a few days on the beach to soak up the sun and surf. He couldn't remember the last time he'd taken a real vacation, if ever.

She laughed at that, leaning up to kiss him affectionately. "Oh, I think I'm saving the honeymoon for when I can wear a bikini and make you so over-protective you don't let me wear it anywhere but in the hotel room," she teased him, stroking her fingers against his cheek. "We can do this. I trust Hope's assessment of what?s going on - we've got an Olympian on our side, whether she wants to be or not."

He snugged an arm around her waist and drew her close, even closer than she already was. "When this is all over, I'm gonna take you on a real honeymoon. Anywhere you wanna go." So long as it was a road trip. He hated flying. It was a phobia he'd had for as long as he could remember, though he wasn't really sure why. It was going to be hard enough getting to Hawaii without drinking himself into oblivion.

"Mmm, somewhere warm and sunny," she mused dreamily, happy to play a long for a little while, not minding that they had essentially squished their unborn son between them for the time being. "With nothing to do all day, just being together. Sipping margaritas under the sun, skinny-dippin' under the moon. That sort of thing, baby?"

"Uh, sure....Actually, I was thinking about Disneyland." Okay, so most kids had gone with their parents at one time or another, but he'd never had much of a childhood, and could count the times on one hand that he'd been allowed to go to an amusement park, much less Disneyland. California or Florida, he didn't really care which, so long as there were palm trees, roller coasters, and cotton candy.

"You know, that sounds like fun, too," she agreed. With no memories beyond the painful entry she had made into this reality, Nim couldn't have said if she had ever been to an amusement park, but she had a feeling she hadn't. Something else to change as the years went by - their kids would experience what kids should experience, despite having hunters for parents. "C'mon, let's get tidied up before Ellen comes in a spanks you for messing up her living room."

"That sounds kinky, but I'd rather be spanked by you," he replied with a cheesy and rather cheeky grin, his hands finding their way to her rear and giving her a squeeze. He deposited a light kiss against her nose before breaking away to start clearing up the candles and the bowl of herbs, not to mention the hand that still needed proper bandaging. "You realize Crowley is gonna try to double-cross us at some point."

She giggled softly as he squeezed her ass, her nose scrunching under his kiss before he released her. "Of course he is," she agreed with a light nod, moving to fetch down the impressive med-kit from the kitchen. "Or he's gonna try, anyway. He gives us a fake, we'll know the second we get topside and nothing happens. He sides with Hades ....well, if Death's blade can kill a god, I'll bet it can do all kinds of wonderful things to a demon."

"He won't side with Hades," Dean reasoned. "Crowley isn't the sharing type. He didn't want to share with Lucifer, and he's not gonna share with Hades either. He wants Hell all to himself. He'll play along so long as everything is in his favor, but as soon as Hades gets the boot, all bets are off." He wiped his own blood from the knife and started scrubbing the chalk off Bobby's desk with a rag.

"It's just as well we're cheating then, isn't it?" his wife smirked, dark eyes glinting playfully as she crooked a finger at him. "Come here and let me bandage that hand before you get chalk and God knows what in the cut. Last thing we want right now is you all infected and delirious."

"Cheating a cheater," Dean remarked as he tossed the rag aside. They had plenty of time to clean the place up before Bobby and Ellen got back. "You can bet your *ss Crowley is chewing someone's *ss out for not telling him about me," he said as he unwrapped the bloodied cloth from around his hand and started toward his wife.

"I'm not bettin' my *ss on anything where Crowley's concerned," Nim commented mildly, digging out a few essentials from the kit as he came toward her. "My *ss is your property, and I'm still considering having your name tattooed on it someday." She smirked, winking up at him impishly. After the shock of finding out she could actually see hellhounds these days, it felt good to just be herself with Dean.

"Property of Dean," he said with a smirk, adding, "Only one thing....I'm the only one who's ever gonna see it!" In theory, anyway. He shared her feelings about hellhounds, but as horrific as they were, it was a lot easier to kill them if you could see them. "You realize he's gonna be trying to figure you out, too." This Dean still remembered what the Crowley he'd known back home did to Lisa, and though the circumstances were different, he wasn't going to let the same thing happen to Nim.

"He knows I'm not Sam, but he has no frame of reference for me," she pointed out, gently bathing the clean cut in Dean's palm with antiseptic. It was going to need suture tape - an example of her husband always going that little bit too far. "If he goes after Brian, he's in for one hell of a shock, and he's not stupid enough to try and hit Bobby or Ellen. I'm not like you in this reality, Dean. I really didn't exist until three years ago. He's got squat, and we are more than capable of looking after each other."

He growled in agitation and frustration as she pushed him away. It was the first time they'd been alone - really alone - since they'd gotten hitched, and he wanted to make the most of it. Now, not half an hour from now. "This better be good," he said, pulling the phone from his back pocket and answering without sparing a glance to see who it was. "What?" he impatiently asked whoever was on the other end.

"Don't you give me that, kid." Ellen's voice held the familiar ring of authority and minor irritation it always had when Dean wasn't exactly polite to her, but there was an undertone of amusement, too. She figured she'd interrupted something intimate. "Thought you should know we've got your leverage."

"Oh, sorry, Ellen. I didn't realize it was you," Dean told her sheepishly, wincing over at Nim when he heard Ellen's voice on the other end of the phone. Who was he expecting it to be, anyway' A telemarketer from Hell" He breathed a sigh of relief at her news. "Awesome, and we just made a deal."

Much to the amusement of the woman on the other end of the phone, the second Ellen's name was mentioned Nim burst out laughing, a proper belly laugh that relieved the last of the frightened tension from their encounter with Crowley. Giggling to herself, she patted Dean's rear end and slipped away from him to tidy up while he was on the phone, only just able to imagine what it was Ellen had just said to him.

"Nothin' too binding, I hope," Ellen commented, her grin audible. "We're just about packed up and ready to leave. Gotta get on that damned boat again before we hit the mainland - be back tomorrow night, your time."

Dean followed Nim with his eyes, turning to watch her as she moved away to start tidying up the mess they'd made. "No," he told Ellen. "But you know him. We can't be too careful. He's as slippery as an eel. He's gonna figure things out sooner or later." He didn't bother to say which things, as it kind of went without saying. They had the advantage for now. Crowley didn't know everything yet, but it was only a matter of time before he figured it out. "Okay, we're not going anywhere 'til you get back. Looks like we might be going to Hawaii." That seemingly innocent statement alone spoke volumes. Without actually saying it, it told Ellen that they'd made a deal with Crowley and had picked a meeting place, but it also told her he was going to have to suck it up and fly there.

To her credit, Ellen paused before reacting to that, the silence suggesting she was exchanging a particularly memorable look with Bobby, wherever they actually were. "You bet your *ss you're not goin' anywhere 'til we get back," she informed Dean pointedly. "Gotta rub the Buddha for luck, don't we?"

"Know anything about volcano gods" Something about Pele, isn't it?" Not that it mattered. He didn't really plan on playing pattycake with any Hawaiian deities, if he could help it. "This might interest you..." Dean broke in. "He said he was on the run, and he looked a little....rumpled."

"Volcano gods?" There was another pause as Ellen passed this on to Bobby, but no reply. "Nothin' that comes straight to mind. We'll do a little digging when we get back, unless you wanna make a head start on that. Might give you an excuse to wear clothes for the next twenty-four hours."

Dean rolled his eyes at Ellen's suggestion, though she couldn't see him and Nim would have no idea what he was rolling his eyes at. "Yeah, we'll get right on that. As soon as we get the pipes cleaned," he remarked, letting her make of that what she would. In all honesty, he'd probably end up staying up half the night doing research, but she knew his habits well enough by now.

"Just you make sure you eat proper," Ellen admonished him - yes, she did know his habits, far too well. "Meals, mind. Not potato chips and candy. Look after my grandson." She grinned at something Bobby said, snorting with laughter. "And yourself."

"Don't worry, I will," he replied, in all seriousness, pausing a moment when she mentioned the baby growing in Nimue's womb. "You hear anything from Ayden yet?" he asked, his thoughts turning to the other three members of their family, who were on a hunt of their own. Dean hadn't really liked the idea of using them as a decoy, but Ayden had insisted. At least, she had Gabriel there to keep an eye on her. He couldn't say the same for himself and Nimue, and suddenly he found himself missing Cas again.

"Nothin' yet," Ellen sighed, as worried as he was about the wayward trio who had been on the verge of packing and leaving in the middle of the night before Nim stopped being stupidly over-protective, mostly thanks to Dean's intervention. "Should be back at Stanford by now. Expect a call in the morning, if I were you."

"Okay," he replied, wishing he'd heard something, but they hadn't been gone that long. All he could do was wait and try to keep his mind busy so he wouldn't worry. "Be careful, okay' I don't think anyone suspects anything, but you can never be too careful."

"You know us," she reassured him, experience and confidence on her side. "We'll be back before you know it. You take care, too, sweetie." There was a rumble that could have been Bobby adding his own sentiment to the goodbye, before Ellen left a final farewell and hung up, never one for lingering on the phone.

Short and sweet was the order of the day, it seemed. Ellen had never been one for talking on the phone, and Bobby was usually only too happy to let her do the honors. He hung up and shoved the phone back in his pocket, his mood shifting a little after his talk with Ellen. "She wants me to make sure I feed you," he told Nim as he rejoined her.

"She called just to tell you that, huh?" Nim looked over her shoulder at him as she finished packing the candles away, the table scrubbed clean and the bowl set aside to be washed and cleansed for the next time it was needed. As much as she liked Ellen, Nim was still a little wary of the woman, a little jealous of the relationship she had with Dean.

"No, she called to tell us they have our leverage and that they should be back tomorrow night sometime." Us, not me. Whatever it was Nim thought about Ellen - or Bobby, for that matter - anything that involved Dean, involved Nim, too, and both Ellen and Bobby knew it. "I've been thinking....Think we could work a spell that would hide the fact that you're pregnant from Crowley, or am I reaching?"

"Uh ..." Whatever she might have said about their leverage was wiped away by his next suggestion, slowly turning to face him with a quizzical look on her face. "Baby, just let me repeat that for you," she said calmly. "You want to experiment with spells on your pregnant wife and unborn son. Yes?"

Dean frowned, when she pointed out the ridiculousness of his idea. "Yeah, you're right. Stupid idea. Maybe he'll think you're just getting fat?" he asked, not really meaning to call her fat, just hoping that Crowley would think so.

"Maybe, but it's a pretty distinctive shape," she shrugged. "Unless we can lay our hands on a fat suit in the next coupla days, we might just have to put up with him knowing the truth. It's not a secret we're gonna be able to keep for very long, no matter what we do. Maybe we should just let him know on our terms."

"I'm grasping at straws here, Nim. Sorry. I just don't like the idea of Crowley knowing you're pregnant." He frowned as he realized she was right - again and took a lean in the doorway, arms crossed against his chest. "We're just gonna have to stick with the plan, I guess." It was a good plan, too, except for the part about Crowley finding out about Nim. "Anyway, we've got about twenty-four hours before Bobby and Ellen get back with the goods. I've got a little research to do, but it can wait until later."

"We've got that leverage now, we have something to use if he doesn't hold up his end," she reminded him gently, brushing her hands off as she turned to face him. "I don't think he's stupid enough to threaten your child, though, not when he's relying on you to get rid of Hades for him." She eyed Dean as he laid out how long they had the house to themselves for, a small smile lighting up her face. "We could always try combining research with something else," she suggested mischievously. "You did say that Bobby's desk is very comfortable."

He smiled a little at her suggestion as she tried to lighten his mood. He unfolded his arms and closed the distance between them. "There's no time like the present," he replied, taking hold of her hips once again and rekindling the heat that had only recently cooled between them. Enough about work for one day. These moments alone were far too rare to waste with talk about Crowley and Hades.

Fade to black as loving laughter and tender touch is traded back and forth, and look to the future. A future that, for one Olympian in particular, was looking more and more bleak as the pieces began to fall into place. Hades really didn't know what was about to hit him.

((Look, we came back to it! And what?s more, we actually moved the story on a little bit. Still massively out of date, but we're getting there! Huge thanks to Dean's player, as always!))