Burnt toast. That's all Selina could smell when she awoke from her restless slumber. She hadn't gotten much sleep last night. A couple of hours at most as she couldn't seem to forget what happened with Crowley long enough to allow her mind to get any proper rest.

She had almost kissed him. Crowley. The King of Hell. The very demon who had once been their enemy.

Twice, actually.

Two times they'd tried to put a stop to him. The first? Opening Purgatory. And the second? Well, the second was them trying to stop him from killing their friends, Jody included. Which was part of the reason why Selina couldn't seem to wrap her head around how she'd almost kissed him. Right outside Jody's house... Talk about distasteful.

The thing is though, she wanted to kiss him. Badly. And part of her thought that he did too. That he hadn't leaned in close enough so she could feel his stubble against her skin just for the fun of it. That he actually wanted to kiss her. Hold her. Love her, even. But the other part of her, the stronger part, thought that she was crazy. Delusional. Seeing signs that weren't there as there was no way in Hell, quite literally, that Crowley, the demon, would ever want to kiss her. Let alone love her.

Crowley may have begged for love that day in the church, not from Selina specifically just in general, but that didn't mean he was capable of it. Or that he ever would be capable of it as last she checked, and no matter how different he may seem, Crowley was still a demon. And that's exactly why Selina decided to stop thinking about him, and his inability to love, entirely and instead headed downstairs in search of whatever the smell was that had woken her up.

"Is someone burning the house down?" Selina called out humorously as she made her way through the living room, the smell only growing in intensity the closer she got to the kitchen and for a second she thought someone actually was burning the house down.

"Claire burnt the toast." Alex replied bluntly, earning a babble of protest from the accused in response. A babble that Selina was far too tired to even try and decipher but she got the gist of it.

"Are you two even allowed in the kitchen unsupervised?" Selina said playfully, ducking just in time to avoid being hit in the head by a slice of the aforementioned burnt toast. She chuckled, leaning down to pick it up before tossing it onto the counter. "You're gonna have to be quicker than that if you want to take me by surprise."

"Like that's ever gonna happen." Claire grumbled, slumping against the counter with her arms folded over her chest. "We don't have a grandfather who came from the past to teach us neat tricks."

"You think I learned what I know just from Henry?" Selina huffed out in minor amusement, biting into a piece of the less burnt toast the girls had prepared. "Please, you don't survive a year in Purgatory without picking up a few things."

"Yeah, things you won't teach us." Claire scoffed, annoyed.

Before Selina could reply, something witty probably. Or worse, with a lecture about how Claire should be patient and enjoy her youth, Jody came strolling into the room, grim faced and clad in her sheriff's uniform.

Selina straightened, eyebrow raised as she asked curiously, "Is everything okay? I thought you had the weekend off?"

"So did I." Jody exhaled, appearing stressed already as she grabbed her keys from the counter. "There was a triple homicide not far from here. A mother and two kids."

"Do you think it's a case?" Claire piped up, much to giddily in response to the news.

"I don't know yet, and until I do... You're staying put." Jody replied firmly, casting a warning look Claire's way. One that had the young girl sink back down against the counter and frown to herself, mumbling about how it was never a case anymore. "Cat, you mind tagging along with me? If it is a case, you'll know quicker than I would."

"Yeah, no problem."

"And if it is a case, you"ll call right?" Claire inquired, eyes widening as though Selina being there meant it would be.

"If there's a case... Then yes, we will call you. But until then..." Jody sighed, gesturing to the disaster that was Claire and Alex's attempts at cooking. "Clean up this mess."

All Selina heard on her way upstairs was a rather loud, and deep, groan of annoyance from both girls, making her smile fondly as she couldn't help but be reminded of all the times she'd been the exact same when Dean had complained about her messing up the kitchen. Like seriously, ever since they moved into the bunker he'd become a neat freak and God forbid you leave a wrapper lying where it wasn't supposed to.

Anyway, working a case wasn't exactly something Selina wanted, let alone expected, to do this weekend. She'd actually come all this way just so she wouldn't have to end up working so soon after Appalachia but when it came down to it she couldn't exactly say no, which is why she quickly found herself pulling up to the crime scene alongside Jody. And what a scene it was.

Selina hadn't seen something this bad since... God knows when. There was so much blood spilled in the house that she actually hesitated before walking inside, her eyes stinging from the smell the second she did. Disgusted, she surveyed the scene, the floor and walls painted a deep shade of red with what had once been three quarters of an otherwise happy family.

The deputy had given them the rundown of what happened outside, whilst they prepared themselves for what they were about to witness. The victims were Brenda Hopkins, a thirty-four year old mother and her two kids, six year old Lily and three year old Jake. The father, Gary, was in the wind. His car missing and a set of men's bloody footprints leading all the way from the kitchen to the garage, leading Selina to believe that this might not be her type of case, and instead was just the work of a different kind of monster.

That was until she saw it. The pile of yellow dust sitting on the windowsill.

"Sulfur." Selina whispered, exhaustedly. She straightened from where she'd crouched, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes for a brief second as she could have really done without this right now.

Not only were demons a pain in her ass and fairly hard to track once they were in the wind, but because she really didn't want to have to think about Crowley anymore than she already had done as something tells her she might be seeing him today. And if she did, she wasn't sure she would be able to control herself and it's not like Alex would always be around to disrupt them.

"What do we do now?" Jody asked, pulling Selina from what was basically her mid life crisis and she was only thirty-two.

"We don't do anything." Selina replied, knowing this answer wasn't going to go over well with one specific member of the household. "I'll handle this. Alone."

"Claire's not gonna be too happy about that." Jody exhaled, not envying Selina one bit as that conversation would not be fun.

And it wasn't. It was far from fun. But Selina would rather have Claire hate her for a few hours than have to see her get killed by a demon, especially if it meant witnessing, firsthand, what happened to that poor family, which is exactly what she was trying to explain once they eventually got home and broke the bad news. Only, Claire didn't seem intent on listening properly. All she cared about was not being allowed to help out and she was making her feelings about it pretty vocal.

"Claire, listen to me." Selina said, surprisingly softly given Claire's attitude towards her. She stepped closer, watching the way the blonde's chest began moving rapidly as she worked herself up quite a bit in such a short time. "I know you think that you can handle yourself, and if it were any other type of case I would be more than happy to let you prove that... But this is a demon, Claire. It's not a werewolf. Or a vampire. It is a demon, and trust me when I tell you that you do not want to get mixed up with demons."

"Says the woman who's friends with one." Claire muttered, bitterly.

"You're right." Selina replied, before Jody had the chance to tell Claire off. "I am friends with one, but those circumstances are different. Demons are different. Every single one of them is, which is exactly why I need you to let me handle this because I will not... I cannot see you get killed when you didn't have to be involved, okay? I won't. So you either stand down, or I will call Castiel to come and get you."

That's when the girl's knew Selina was serious, when she used Castiel as a threat. And that's exactly why Claire simply groaned in frustration before storming up to her room and slamming the door behind her.

"That went well." Alex breathed out, earning a huff of agreement from Selina in response as she slumped down onto the sofa beside her.

"She'll cool off soon." Jody replied, hopeful before casting her eyes towards Selina. "For now, what do you plan to do about this demon?"

"Honestly? I have no idea."

"Why not ask this Crowley guy?" Alex suggested, unable to see the slight grimace that flashed over Selina's face. She'd been hoping they wouldn't mention that. "Didn't you say he runs Hell? Wouldn't he know what the demons are up to?"

"Not necessarily." Selina exhaled, running a hand through her hair and wishing last night never happened as maybe she would have been able to call Crowley to help speed things along before Claire got bored and snuck out of the house to search for the demon herself. "Crowley's still trying to wrangle Hell back into shape after Abaddon stirred things up. Not to mention there are still demons out there who are opposed to the King and would do anything to stir up trouble. No, it's best we handle this ourselves."

"Well, we may have a lead." Jody piped up, glancing up from her phone before turning the screen to face the others. "Patrol found the missing car from the crime scene, abandoned on the outskirts of town... Maybe the demon's leaving."

"Doubtful." Selina muttered, like it was ever that easy. "Chances are he's hitched a new ride. But we should go check it out, see if he might have left behind any signs as to where he's going next." She stood up, taking a deep breath as she glanced over at Alex. "No matter what happens, don't let Claire out of your sight."

"I won't." Alex said assuringly, getting to her feet.

"That's my girl." Selina smiled softly, her hand landing on the side of Alex's face, pulling it gently towards her to place a thankful kiss on her forehead. "If anything happens, you call me immediately."

"I will." Alex nodded, watching as Selina rounded the couch and made her way to the front door, lingering for a moment as she glanced up the stairs before inevitably leaving the house and making sure to lock the door after her.

The abandoned car was nothing but a dead end. Nothing but a faint smell of sulfur and a few drops of blood, not a single lead as to where the demon might be going next. Selina almost caved. She almost called Crowley for help as, after all, he had a way of finding demons and he'd surely be able to track this one down quicker than she could. Her thumb hovered over the call button, itching to press it as she really wanted to see him right now, not just for his help.

Only, before she could make up her mind her phone rang, and it wasn't Crowley and his strange ability to sense when she longed for him. It was Alex.

"Alex? Everything okay?" Selina asked, already worried and with her heart beating furiously inside her chest. She didn't get a response, at least, not a proper one as all she could hear on the other line was a ruckus, followed by what sounded like Claire yelling before things went silent. Eerily silent. Enough to have her stomach drop to the floor. "We need to get back. Now."

Siren's blaring, they rolled up to the house quicker than ever, no surprise with Selina behind the wheel this time as she hadn't waited for confirmation from Jody that she'd heard her before she climbed into the car. They barreled into the house, relatively easily as the front door had already been kicked in, small pieces of wood from the frame scattered about the place.

Alex was on the floor, half out of it and with what would end up being a pretty nasty bruise on her head. She told them what happened, how the demon came barging into the house just minutes after Selina and Jody left. How he'd knocked her to the ground, dragged Claire kicking and screaming from her room before leaving with her, Alex having barely been able to call Selina for help before she passed out.

Selina barely absorbed what Alex was saying before she was pulling up the location of Claire's phone, from the GPS she had to hide behind a firewall so she wouldn't be able to find it and turn it off. Thank God she'd gotten Charlie to install it otherwise... Selina didn't even want to think about what might have happened if she hadn't, and she wouldn't have been able to forgive herself either, not when it was becoming plainly obvious that the demon was here for her.

She left everything she had in her car with Jody and Alex. Angel blade, holy water, a devil's trap sketch and some spray paint. Just in case there were others lurking around then they were prepared, as Selina didn't need the extra worry piled up on top of everything else. Unarmed wasn't exactly the best way to go after a demon, she knew that, but right now her only concern was getting Claire back safe, so killing whoever took her would have to wait. For now.

The house Selina tracked Claire to was old, clearly abandoned for years if the rotting wood was any indication. It looked like the exact rundown, rat infested place the Winchesters would have squatted in after their brief run in with their Leviathan doppelgängers.

Part of Selina was still worried someone would recognise her after that crime spree, and that's exactly why she'd dyed her hair from blue to purple. That and the blue just wasn't cutting it anymore and frankly, she'd been getting bored of it.

Making her way through the overgrown grass of the house's yard, and praying nothing with four legs ran by her feet, Selina soon came upon the porch steps. The splintered wood stuck up in all directions, making walking up them that much more tricky if she didn't want to end up with the world's biggest splinter.

Slowly, she reached the door, using her sleeve to turn the handle and it was no surprise that she found it unlocked. It creaked open, barely inches but enough for Selina to slip through without making too much noise, the interior of the house looking just as run down, if not more, than the exterior.

There was broken furniture scattered around the place, used needles piled up in the corner, squashed beer cans littering the floor and even empty condom wrappers which had Selina a tad bit worried about whoever thought it would be a good idea to have sex in here. That was just an infection waiting to happen.

Creeping further into the house, Selina made her way through the world's nastiest kitchen and out into the hallway. The silence was worrying. Very worrying. She knew demons and most of the time, they never shut the hell up so to hear nothing but her own footsteps? Well that didn't instil her with much confidence that Claire was still alive.

Only, when she turned the corner into what was once the living room, relief coursed over her body at the sight of Claire. She was bound to a chair and gagged. But she was awake. Alive. And that's all Selina really cared about.

A shaky breath left Selina's parted lips, alerting Claire to her presence and the second they locked eyes, the young girl began to mumble beneath her gag, fighting furiously at her restraints in a way that had Selina's brows knit together curiously. That was, until the floorboards creaked behind her and she realised she'd walked right into a trap.

Of course she had. No demon, smart demon, would have willingly left the door unlocked if they hadn't wanted her to waltz right in. And waltz she did. Right into the lion's den without so much as a vial of holy water. Perhaps leaving everything behind wasn't the smartest move after all.

The next thing Selina knew, she'd been tackled onto the ground, the demon straddling her body as she fought against him, her wrists pinned to the dirty floor below her. She could hear Claire fighting too, the chair beneath her creaking furiously in her attempts to free herself.

But she wasn't a Winchester. Not biologically anyway. She wasn't blessed with the ability to somehow manage to escape from every chair, pillar or pipe they'd been tied, chained or cuffed to, therefore she had no choice but to watch the demon get a few good punches in.

Selina's head clouded over, eyes watering with each hit of the demon's knuckles against her cheek, which throbbed furiously under her skin. After the third he let up, instead grabbing her by the collar of her favourite jacket before she'd even had a chance to breathe.

"You shouldn't have come alone." The demon hissed, lifting her torso up and grinning smugly to himself before slamming her back down onto the floor.

Once. Twice. Three times, Selina felt the rough impact of her shoulder blades against the wood floor, pain shooting down her spine. Until thankfully, on the fourth go around when she didn't think she could take anymore, darkness took over and she was out cold.

When Selina awoke she was bound to a chair, the rope tied so tightly around her wrists and ankles she thought it would chop them off. She groaned softly at the throbbing in her head, her eyes needing a few seconds longer than normal to adjust, blinking rapidly to sharpen up the blur that had clouded over them.

"Look who's awake." The demon grinned, crouching down in front of her. His finger hooked beneath her chin, lifting her face to look at him whilst also admiring the damage he'd inflicted. "Nice of you to join the party, Selina. It was getting boring, just me and the girl."

At that, Selina's head shot up on its own accord, eyes finding Claire as for a split second she'd forgotten where she was and why she was here. Thankfully, Claire looked to be in one piece, aside from a bloody lip and a small cut on her forehead, which only had Selina's blood begin to boil at the mere thought of this demon dirtbag putting his hands on her.

"What did you do to her?" Selina spat, clear demand in her voice which had the demon sneer to himself, his own gaze casting over the young girl.

"What I had to." He breathed out as he turned his attention back to who he really wanted, pulling a familiar silver knife out of the waistband of his pants.

Claire's knife. The one Selina had gotten her for her birthday last year and the one she never went anywhere without.

The demon ran the tip lightly down Selina's chest, drawing across the anti-possession tattoo sitting on her chest amongst the rest of the black ink riddling her body.

"You see..." He began, trailing the knife back up her chest and across her throat, feeling Selina's harsh gulp travel all the way down the blade and to the end of the handle. "Just like you, Selina, blondie over there has got quite the mouth on her. And well, I had to shut her up somehow, didn't I sweetheart?"

"And the gag wasn't enough?" Selina grumbled, attempting to pull herself away from the eerie closeness of the demon.

There was only one demon who she wanted to be this close with and he hadn't possessed someone dressed like they owned a well used country club membership.

"I didn't mean to hit her..." The demon began, straightening himself to begin pacing towards Claire, picking under his nails with the tip of the blade. "But then again, she did try to stab me with this little knife of hers so really, it was in self defence."

Crouching down in front of her, the demon pulled the gag from between Claire's teeth, a semi-relieved breath leaving her bloodied lips. He leaned forwards, taking a ragged, deep breath at the scent of fresh blood, making Claire shudder at just how close he was to touching her.

That was probably why she did it. Why she decided to headbutt him before he could say anything. She didn't even know what she was doing until it was too late. Until the demon stumbled backwards, seething, anger boiling in his veins and the second he regained his balance his fist collided with her face. And much harder than it had done before.

"Claire!" Selina struggled against her restraints, so hard that she could feel the warmth of blood seep into them. She heard the demon laugh, an eerie laugh, one that sent a shudder rippling over her skin. "You touch her again and I swear..."

"You'll do what?" The demon questioned, his tilted head and raised eyebrow meeting her wrathful gaze. "Kill me? Because I hate to break it to you sweetheart, but you came here unarmed, which I gotta say... Is a real rookie move."

"So is kidnapping a Winchester." Claire mumbled, attempting to wiggle out of her own restraints. But it was no use, they were too tight.

"Is that so?" The demon chuckled, inching his way back over to her. He crouched down in front of her once again, taking a fistful of her blonde hair in an attempt to keep her from head butting him again. "See normally, I'd be right there with you in thinking that kidnapping a Winchester was a suicide attempt. But little kitty over there, well she came here unarmed and last I checked... She's the one tied to a chair, so why don't you keep your mouth shut otherwise you'll join the rest of her friends in the eternal afterlife."

"Screw you." Claire spat, and quite literally too, making the demon groan in disgust and throw her head back as he let go of her.

"You humans are such animals." He griped, wiping the spit from his face with the sleeve of the jumper that covered his vessel. His fist collided with Claire's face again. Once. Twice. Three times. Doing his best to ignore the yells and threats that came from behind him as Selina fought with all her strength to free herself. "You know... The boss is only interested in the Winchester and now that she's here... I don't think I need you anymore, princess."

"Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus..." Selina began, causing the demon to twitch minutely, his hand suspended in mid air before he could even touch the now unconscious Claire again. "Omni satanica potestas..."

"An exorcism." The demon laughed, sleazing his way over to Selina and taking her chin between his fingers, digging them deep into cheeks. "Did you really think that would work?"

"...Omnis incursio infernalis adversarii..." Selina spluttered, catching the twitch of the demon's eye as he silently warned her to stop by increasing his grip. "Omnis legio..."

"You wanna exorcise me? Fine. But I can still kill her before you get a chance to finish." The demon hissed, angling Selina's face to look at him properly. "You wanna see who the quicker draw is?"

Gritting her teeth, Selina shook her head, opting not to carry on as he was right. He'd have plenty of time to kill Claire before she completed the exorcism and she wasn't about to go and lose anyone else.

"That's what I thought." The demon threw her head aside as he let go, straightening himself before digging into his pocket for his phone. "Now, best not waste anymore time. You see, the boss has put a hit out on you... and your brothers. But he's mainly interested in you, little kitty as he likes to call you..."

Kitty? Selina thought to herself. Only Crowley called her kitty. Or kitten, rather. But why would he want her dead when not even twenty four hours ago he'd almost kissed her?

"...and the last time he gave me a job I didn't do as well as I should have. Earned me a hefty stint hell because of it. But now that I have you..." Spinning on his heels, he pointed to her, his eyes far more happy than Selina was comfortable with. "Hell's most wanted? He has no choice but to give me that promotion."

"Who's your boss?" Selina asked, unsure whether she wanted to hear the answer as she didn't want to think that Crowley was just playing her. Making her believe he cared about her. Having her lower her guard around him so he could kill her quick and easy. Or worse, slow and painful.

Selina's biggest worry was that Crowley hadn't truly forgiven her for what she did to him. Killing his hound. Invading hell. Double crossing him in the sense that instead of standing down on the third trial, she turned him into it.

That entire time they spent together in the church he'd gone on and on about killing her slowly once he got out of there and part of her couldn't help but think that his sudden change in behaviour towards her... The trip to Paris. Saving her life. Almost kissing her... Might just be part of his plan to seek his revenge for almost turning him human.

And when the demon replied, Crowley's name falling proudly off his tongue, Selina's stomach, and heart, fell with it.

"He's gonna reward me big time for capturing you."

"Or he'll kill you." Selina muttered under her breath, just loud enough for him to hear her. His motion halted, Crowley's contact open on his screen but not yet called as he glanced over at her, brows deeply furrowed. "Oh, you didn't know?" She carried on, masking the true worry beneath her witty tone. "Yeah, Crowley and I are friends now. Besties actually. But you go ahead and call him, save me the trouble of doing it myself once I get out of here."

Cursing quietly to himself, the demon carried on with the call, not quite believing the taunting and arrogant words that left Selina's lips. And to tell the truth, Selina herself wasn't overly sure if she believed them either but she guessed she'd find out sooner or later. When Crowley turned up and either killed her, or the irritating demon holding her.

"Sir, it's Damien. I have the Winchester girl." Was all that was said before he hung up, a smug smile plastered over his face as he turned back towards her.

"Your name is Damien?" Selina huffed out, shaking her head a little. "I gotta say, you don't quite live up to your expectations. Tell me, did you leave your flat cap at home? Did nanny not let you wear it?"

All Selina got in response was a punch to the face. Totally worth it though.

In a matter of seconds, Crowley appeared. He was already seething with rage at the mere thought of Selina being hurt, so the moment his eyes landed on her, blood dripping from her lips and the bruising along her jaw already forming, he might as well have started foaming at the mouth and if Selina cared, she might have felt worried for Damien.

"What the hell is this?" Crowley demanded, nostrils flaring in a way Selina had never seen before. Not even when Dean had handcuffed him and informed him of his role in the third trial.

"A Winchester, sir." Damien replied, confused and partially scared. "Like... Like you requested."

"That was months ago." Crowley hissed, causing Damien to back away when he stalked his way further into the room. "Didn't you get the memo? Honestly, I don't know why I bother sending them out if you pathetic little insects aren't going to read them."

"I'm sorry, sir. I thought..."

"You thought?" Crowley scoffed, amused. And then with an abrupt, rage driven, click of his fingers, Damien became nothing but a cloud of black smoke. Dead. And without the mess too.

Crowley was making his way towards Selina before the dust even cleared from the air, crouching down in front of her and surprising her a great deal when he began to fuss over her wounds. He ran his fingers along her wrists, undoing the rope from around her and grimacing at just how tightly it had been tied.

Seriously, he was amazed she had any feeling left in her hands at all as he couldn't imagine her blood had had an easy go of it in trying to reach her fingertips.

"I should have killed that bastard slowly." Crowley grumbled to himself, beginning to free Selina's ankles from where they'd been tied to the legs of the chair. Again so tightly that there was a deep indent in her skin from the ridge of the wood. "Or better yet, thrown him in the cage with Lucifer."

Selina said nothing. Didn't even listen properly either as she was too concerned about Claire, who still hadn't woken yet and had blood dripping down the front of her shirt. The second she was free, Selina pulled from the gentle hold Crowley had on her hands, practically skittering across the floor before falling to her knees in front of Claire, carefully lifting her head up. Her stomach dropped at the redness of her teeth, the swollenness of her lips and the already darkening bruise beginning to form along her cheekbone.

Maybe Crowley was right. Maybe Damien's death had been a little too quick and painless.

"Claire." Selina pleaded, only it came out as nothing but a trembling breath. She lifted her other hand, gently wiping the blood from around the young girl's mouth as the worry began to overflow within her. "Come on sweetheart, wake up. You gotta wake up for me."

Light footsteps behind her went unheard, Crowley slowly approaching her with what he assumed was sympathy blossoming in his chest for the first time in... forever. But Selina paid no attention to him, not even when he entered her peripheral vision as she was too busy attempting to get Claire to wake up to bother looking at him. And for once, Crowley found himself praying that Claire would wake up because not only would Selina likely never speak to him again if she didn't, but because he couldn't see her go through the loss of someone she loved. Not again.

"Claire, honey, come on." Selina croaked out, carefully shaking Claire's shoulders in an attempt to wake her up. And to her relief, Crowley's too, it worked.

Claire's eyelids fluttered open, a snort-like breath leaving her blood stained lips as she came to. For a second there was nothing but fear in her eyes. Panic. That was, until she saw Selina and immediately fell forwards into her arms, burying her face in her head of purple curls to try and mask the light sobs that she couldn't help but allow into the air.

"You're okay." Selina soothed, stroking Claire's hair as she held her tightly. Comfortingly. "You're safe now."

"Selina, I..."

"Don't." Selina gritted, silencing Crowley instantly as he was the last person she wanted to hear from right now. If only he'd controlled his demons a little better then maybe none of this would have ever happened. "Just don't, okay. I have nothing to say to you."

Crowley sighed, understanding, before asking softly. "Will you at least let me take you both home?"

"I'm not letting you take her anywhere." Selina spat intentionally, rising to her feet and carefully bringing Claire with her. "This is your fault... And to think that I ever trusted you."

"Selina..."

"Come on, Claire." Selina began, ignoring the way her chest ached at the somewhat heartbroken tone in which he said her name. Or breathed her name, she should say. "Let's get you home."

Knowing it was useless to try and talk to her now, Crowley let her go, reluctantly. For the first time in his miserable life he wanted to beg. To plead. Anything he could to get her to just listen to him. To allow him to explain himself and to swear on his throne that he never meant for this to happen. But it was pointless. Selina was stubborn at the best of times and when you added someone she cared about into the mix? It was like the angels trying to get God's attention.

Impossible.

So, he let her go. He let her walk away, doing nothing but watch as she lengthened the distance between them. She didn't even glance back over her shoulder towards him like she usually did, so it was safe to say that she was well and truly pissed.

And Crowley was right, Selina was pissed. Not just at him or Damien, but at herself. She should have realised that this whole thing, the murders and the abandoned car, had been nothing more than a way to draw her out, to have her leave the confines, and safety, of the house so that way Damien could get leverage for what he really wanted. Her. He had wanted her and she'd walked right into his trap, and even though everyone was okay, she didn't think she would ever truly be able to forgive herself for what happened.

Or if she would ever be able to forgive Crowley for not having better control over his demons. It didn't matter that he'd been trying to call her all day. Leaving her voicemails that she refused to listen to. Texts that she refused to read. She was still pissed at him, and that didn't change when she walked downstairs that night after showering the events of the day off her body to find him standing in the living room waiting for her.

Too bad he hadn't ended up in one of the devil's traps Alex had painted, it might have felt good to make him stand there all night. Like a demonic time out.

"Selina, will you just hear me out?" Crowley said the second her feet left the final step, not giving a damn about how desperate he came across. His mouth seemed to twitch from anger at the bruises on her face, around her wrists and ankles, making him feel as though he'd been punched in the gut.

And it didn't help when Selina said absolutely nothing to him in response. Didn't even look at him as she strolled, almost casually past him and into the kitchen, as though he wasn't even there. As though he wasn't practically begging her to listen to him, just a few seconds away from uttering the word please. He hurried after her, sighing softly to himself as he tried to think of a way to get through to her. To break through that stubborn exterior and into the reasonable, almost soft, Selina he knew was in there somewhere.

"Will you just give me a second to explain?" Crowley tried again, only growing more frustrated when Selina once again paid no attention to him and went about making herself a cup of tea.

But just because she was choosing not to acknowledge him, didn't mean she wasn't listening to him.

"Fine, you want to give me the silent treatment, go ahead." He said softly, sighing quietly to himself and hoping this would be good enough to get through to her. "But I need you to know that I'm sorry, Selina. For the first time in my miserable life, I am truly sorry. I never meant for any of this to happen... I thought I made it perfectly clear to my demons that you and your brothers were not to be harmed, but I guess they're just as stubborn as you are."

Selina did twitch a little at that, her shoulders tensing in a way that showed Crowley she was listening to him, and that she didn't overly appreciate being called stubborn just hours after what happened. Still, she said nothing, allowing him to carry on.

"You asked me last night if I was the same demon I once was and I told you no. Now, I don't know for sure but you seemed pretty inclined to believe that given what almost happened afterwards."

So there was almost a kiss, Selina thought to herself, her body stiffening and her stomach tying itself together even more than it had done when she saw him standing there. But once again, she remained quiet and distant, not allowing herself to give in that easily.

"But I need you to know that I didn't lie... I'm not the same demon you once knew and I know you know that." Crowley took one step closer to her, hope sparking in his chest when she didn't move away and continued to absently stir her tea. "Deep down, I know you know you believe me. And I know you trust me, even if you don't feel it right now, I know you had to otherwise you'd never have agreed to meet me that night."

Paris, he means, Selina thought to herself. And he was right.

"So please, I'm asking you to find it again." Crowley didn't care that he was literally begging, he just couldn't take her silence any longer. "I'm asking you to trust me, Selina. Trust me when I say that I would never hurt you or the people you care about. Not anymore."

Selina hesitated, drawing in a breath as her eyes darted around the counter in front of her, looking anywhere but where she really wanted to look. She wanted to trust him, she did. More than anything. Especially now that he'd admitted that there almost had been a kiss. But she just didn't know if she could, at least not yet, which is exactly why instead of answering Crowley like he hoped she would, she left the room via the kitchen's second exit, leaving him to stew in the silence of his unanswered prayer.

"Great." Crowley muttered to himself, running a hand down his tired face. His face which shouldn't get tired given what he was. "Pour my friggin' heart out and for what?"

"I thought you did quite well in explaining yourself." Came a voice from behind him, causing Crowley to spin on his heels, his narrowed eyes landing on Alex who appeared to have been standing there the entire time. Meaning she heard every word out of his pathetic mouth.

"Maybe you can tell Selina that, perhaps she'll listen to you." He said wittily.

"Doubtful." Alex scoffed, humorously as she carried on into the kitchen, not sensing a threat from Crowley given what she'd just heard. "She doesn't listen to anyone, not about stuff like this anyway."

"And the silent treatment? Is that common or is she that angry with me?" Crowley asked curiously, not caring if he was having a gossip session with a teenage girl.

"Oh, that's very common." Alex told him, to his minor relief. 'Yeah, she didn't speak to Sam for like two weeks when she found out he didn't even try looking for her and Dean in Purgatory."

"Really?" Crowley hummed, more to himself as he ran his tongue over his inner lip.

"Yep." Alex nodded, grabbing the water she came down for, from the fridge. "Just give her a couple of weeks and you'll see." She added, before pulling a Selina and disappearing from the room.

Not that Crowley noticed as he was too busy thinking to himself. Would this situation be classed worse than Sam not looking for her in Purgatory? Maybe. But he was willing to wait and find out. After all, he had waited three hundred years to meet her, so what was two weeks if not nothing?