Castiel waited a week before he heard another phone call from the Angels. In that time, he barely saw Dean, except for dinner, as he spent all of his free time in the study with Sam, searching for the Angels hideout. It was a lonely time, but both of them knew that there would be a time for grieving, after their revenge had been finished.

When Castiel got the call, he made sure that he was out of hearing range from Dean or Sam before he answered, his knuckles turning white as he squeezed the phone in his anger.

"What do I need to do?" Castiel said determinedly, making sure he had no hesitation in his voice.

It was quiet for a moment. "The first trial to become part of the Angels is always different for each person. Yours is to be more difficult than most." The man paused, his distorted voice making Castiel's palms sweat with nerves. "You have to kill a Nephilim."

"A Nephilim?" Castiel echoed, his eyebrows furrowing. The man made a grunt of agreement, doing the same familiar pause that he has always done.

"A Nephilim is a person who is undergoing the trials. You are an example of a Nephilim. The person we want you to kill, she could not complete her second task, therefore she must be removed. Any hesitation or trickery to get out of the trial will get you killed. Understood?" The man waited until Castiel slowly agreed before continuing.

"The Nephilim's name is Jane Shirley. You have two days to find and kill her." The man answered before the line clicked dead a moment later. Castiel let the phone drop from his hand and onto the chair he was sitting on, letting out a shaky breath as he let the wall around his emotions fall.

Castiel sat there for a minute, rubbing at his eyes as he tried to think of how to do this. He slowly stood, staring around the room before sighing and exiting, moving down into the hallway. He heard the soft incoherent of Sam and Dean's voices as he walked past the study, his heart stinging with need to see his husband. He refrained though, knowing that Dean was only doing what he thought what was right, and continued on, grabbing his laptop.

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It was wearing on two when Sam came out of the study, circles around his eyes and a stiff movement in his joints. He approached Castiel, who was barely able to keep his eyes open from the research he had done. Nothing could be found, or nothing that Castiel was smart enough to find anyways.

"Cas? Can you do me a favor?" Sam asked, rubbing the back of his neck as he stood beside the black-haired Novak. Castiel nodded, glad to being able to take a break and stood, stretching and allowing himself to wake.

"Anything." Castiel replied when he finished, studying Sam carefully. The man shuffled his feet, letting out a soft sigh before speaking.

"Could you go pick up Jake and Carrie? Dean and I have found a possible member, and Dean wants to go check it out. I can't let him go alone." Sam asked, seeming desperate and a little bit guilty. Castiel nodded, placing his hand on Sam's shoulder comfortingly.

"It's not a problem, Sam. Just, both of you be careful." Castiel said before grabbing his trench coat and throwing it on. It wasn't cold outside, but he just felt better without it. He bid farewell to the grateful Sam before leaving, slipping into his car and heading to the school.

All the while, he thought about his deadline and how he was going to find this Jane Shirley. He had no clue where to look without asking help from Sam, and that would arouse suspicion from the Winchesters. By the time he got to the school parking lot, he still had no idea.

He got out of his car and signed in, waiting patiently with the other parents for the kids to get out of the classrooms. His eyes wandered over the different couples and single parents, some of them smiling, some of them not. He almost scowled when he saw the couple from the twins birthday party, the ones that said that their family was too strange to remain in contact with.

The kids came flooding out all at once, and the waiting area was filled with happy and loud kids, making Castiel wince slightly at the noise. He looked over the tiny heads, trying to find Carrie and Jake. When he found them, they were in the very back, talking to a little boy about their age.

He made his way over to them, tapping on the twins shoulders gently. They turned around, both their faces brightening when they saw who it was. They hugged him tightly while their friend watched with curiosity.

"Uncle Cas! What are you doing here?" Carrie asked in her sweet, giggly voice. Castiel was unable to stop himself from smiling, his heart filling with a longing for Mike. Jake didn't say anything, but rather gave him a sad smile, hugging his leg tightly.

"I came to pick you up. Sam had to go somewhere with Uncle Dean." Castiel explained, his voice softening. He looked at the boy standing there watching them, tipping his head slightly. "Who's this?"

"This is Gadreel Shirley, Jake's best friend." Carrie explained, pointing at the boy as she spoke. Castiel smiled at Gadreel in response, earning a small smile back. "He doesn't talk much, but Jake likes him."

"I see." Castiel replied, looking around before returning his gaze to the twins. "We better get going. Sam will probably be waiting for us when we get back."

"Okay!" Carrie replied. Jake nodded and turned to his friend, waving bye. The boy waved back, before he flinched as a woman walked over, a stern look on her face as she barked his name. Castiel realized it was the wife of that blasted couple.

"Gadreel! What did I tell you about talking to them?" She asked in a clipped voice, her eyes narrowed. Her husband followed behind her, his face emotionless.

"Ma'am, please don't disrespect us in front of the children." Castiel interrupted calmly, moving Jake and Carrie away from the livid woman. She glared at Castiel, opening her mouth to give him a good few choice words before her husband laid a hand on her shoulder, getting her attention.

"Jane, he's right. Not in front of the children." The husband answered, much calmer than his wife was. Castiel didn't hear much past that though, as he was focused on her name, his brain making connections that had him feeling light-headed.

Jane Shirley was standing right in front of him.

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Night had fallen, and Castiel was completely nervous. After he had dropped the kids off, he headed back to the local library, getting Jane Shirley's records from the archive - which he may or may not have broken into - and finding her home in less than hour. Now, he sat outside her home on a park bench, fingering the gun in his trenchcoat, having been smart and left his car in a parking lot a few blocks out.

It was now or never, as he could not let his family die now, even if that meant killing this woman. He stood, studying the house as he saw a single light on in the kitchen. As he crept under the window, he heard the running of water, followed by the soft clank of dishes bumping against each other. He figured she was doing dishes.

He moved onto the front door, where he tested the doorknob with a gloved hand and found it unlocked. He figured she must not lock the doors until she went to bed. Slowly, he slipped into the house, letting the door remain slightly open so he could make a quick escape. Moving along the shadows, he reached the room that had a light shining from it, the water running much clearer now that it wasn't muffled by the walls.

He glanced into the room, seeing Jane standing there, running a rag over the dish. He grimaced, knowing that he had to do this quickly, and took aim, pausing for only a minute to even his breath before pulling the trigger.

Even though he had a silencer on the gun, there was still a clatter as she fell lifeless to the floor, the dishes falling from her hands and ringing against other dishes as it immersed into the water below. He heard the husband call for his wife, and swore when he realized the man had been in the living room with the lights off, probably napping.

He turned just in time to see the man coming out of the living room, pulling the trigger before he could even think about it and watching a bullet lodge into the man's skull. He, too, fell, and Castiel glanced at both of them, feeling sick to his stomach as he fled from the house.

He got a call halfway down the block and when he answered it, he only got a few words from the distorted voice before it hung up.

"You've completed your first trial."