Then and now, a tale of two hunters.

[Gildarts]

"And soon? We will kill you."

"It's a race then." She concluded as the bubbles danced on her lips and she took a single sip from her crystal rimmed glass. "And we're both veterans of the game."

Before Thaal could return, Mary Lou made an observational comment about the mysterious deputy, "But what do you know about him?"

Everything began with a little doubt.

Not that it would be immediate, or persuading, from her own person, but mind games were part of the rules, when it came to Reapers.

...

A raise of her eyebrows. Two could play at that game.

And by that game she meant the one where Dean and the other one had seemed to alert the other guests of Rick's Café Americain, "As a Reaper, it's in the job description to keep track of every person killed, no matter the world I'm on. Though I can't always bring them to heaven, as you can imagine, that's harder for me to access here. Anyway darlin' I think it's hypocritical for YOU to call ME a murderer. Just because you don't believe in my cause, doesn't make my deaths any cheaper than those that you have caused. The fact of the matter is, death follows you everywhere."

The angel carefully selected her words. "For all you know, you could be dead right now. Fallen under my hallucination, seeing exactly what I want you to see. You even picked up a friend along the way." More doubt was gestured over to Sinestro. "But then, I suppose, you would go straight back to..." She let the hint of the word trickle into his mind, "Well, you know."

A triumphant smirk, as time continued to bend around her words, so that only Dean could hear them. From their perspective, around them were the slow, groggy sands of time as the people slowly shuffled around the bar.

"Dean, sweetie, did you forget you are in the Endless Dunes? Here, in this world, this is my favorite verse because you can kill AND get away with it. Look around to everyone's belts." Her gaze swept the room as her arm extended outward, toward the atmosphere.

Dean didn't want to, but soon she forced his hand. "Holsters with loaded pistols, almost every one of the humans in this room is wearing one. Even the woman in the black dress in the far corner." She paused again. "Should I tell you, how many know me? Or just how many owe me. I've done most of them a favor, in... One way or another." She winked playfully. "Right now, the words you have spouted may have brought suspicion upon me. But, I really doubt it will have the effect you expected. Because now, they know exactly whose side you are on. Demon or not, Winchester. You're against me."

Dean had chugged his beer in the brief duration she had spoken and another had been delivered in the slowed gargle of time that had passed. His eyes were fierce as flint and suddenly flashed blacker than the infinite hole that was the hell which Dean himself had endured.


Mary Lou continued her soliloquy while Dean was warped and frozen still in his place in time. "Honestly, you're probably wondering why I don't kill you and your friend right now. The thing is, I could kill you right now, but that- killing you- would ruin the game. And that would be no fun, now would it? And then there is the question that looms over this place. This question is:"

"How do I kill an immortal? Better yet, how do I kill a Winchester?"

Dean looked at her, confirming his Prime status, while she let time flip as though it were an animation notebook, quickly the scene swarmed with people coming and going. Dean only realized her implied threat to his brother after Mary Lou vanished from sight the way all angels do- without a trace- and Dean was left hearing her whisper in his ears as he exited through the door.

"Till death do us part, sweetheart."