Dean closed his eyes. His throat felt tight. “Ask,” he growled. The blade of the axe felt sharp and cold against his neck.

The Green Knight bent close to whisper in his ear, “You, Dean Winchester, are a righteous man. That’s what they tell me. That’s what they say.” He bent closer. “But I ask you, Dean. Are you in fact a righteous man?”

Dean closed his eyes and whispered, “No.”

“Dean!” Sam exclaimed.

Dean felt the blade press closer to his neck and he inhaled. “I’m the reason why we’re all in this mess. I shed blood in hell, I tortured souls — I tortured souls for ten years. And somehow I’m supposed to save the world and I don’t know how.” His voice broke and he felt tears prick his eyelids.

The Green Knight removed the axe from his throat. “He tells the truth and yet he still is wrong. Are you sure this is our champion?”

“I am sure,” Maya said gently. “I’m quite sure. Are you satisfied?”

“Yes,” the Green Knight said and Dean opened his eyes, confused. The Green Knight picked up the sword and held it out to him. “You are worthy, Dean Winchester.”

Dean looked at him, still confused, and then took the sword and held it, careful of the blade. The gems sparkled and the blade glowed, and though Dean knew little about swords he knew this was a rare and beautiful piece. “Thank you,” he said quietly. “Um, I’m not sure how we’ll get this back to the motel.”

“It’ll fit into the briefcase,” Maya assured him. “It’s kind of a bag of holding.”

Dean chuckled dryly and put the briefcase on the table. He opened it and laid the sword inside. His eyes told him it shouldn’t fit, but it did, snug between the cup and the dish. “Just the spear left,” he said and looked at the Green Knight. “How do we find that? Do you know where the next castle was?”

“Let’s see what chance says,” the Green Knight said and took the top card from the Tarot deck. He showed it to all of them — it was the Wheel of Fortune.

“A TV studio?” Dean said hopelessly.

“Deeper meaning than that,” Maya said. “Think about it for a while — you’ll figure it out.”

“So are we done?” the Trickster said. “I don’t know about you guys, but I’d like to get back to the real world. The other world,” he added at the Green Knight’s growl. “Where they have candy. If everything’s going to fall apart in a week, I want to enjoy myself as much as possible.”

“Go on, Trickster,” Maya said. “I’ll take them home.”

He stood and, much to Dean’s surprise, bowed to her. “If we don’t meet again,” he began, and then couldn’t continue and just swallowed hard.

“Fare thee well,” Maya said, and the Trickster nodded and left the little room. Maya gathered up her cards and tied them back into the silk scarf, and then stood herself and curtseyed a little to the Green Knight. “Thank you.”

“Lady,” he answered, bowing deep, and stood aside as she led Sam and Dean out of the room.

“Okay,” Dean said, once they were out of the pub, “really. Who are you?”

“I’m Maya,” she said in a mild tone.

“You keep saying that,” Dean said and stopped walking. It was darker out than when they’d gone into the pub — the stalls were closed and their torches doused, the tree god and his dryads were gone from the fountain, and there was hardly a sound except for scurrying in the alleys. “But really. Who are you? Why are you helping us? How can you do all of this? How can you get those guys,” he gestured back to the pub, “to respect you? You’re just a kid!”

“I’m a little older than most kids,” Maya said. Sam crossed his arms, waiting for both of them to finish. “Dean, is it really that important?”

“Yes! I like to know who I’m dealing with! What is with you supernatural beings never answering a fucking question!”

Maya sighed and sat at the edge of the fountain. “Boys,” she said and patted the stone at her sides. Sam came and sat beside her and after a moment Dean did too, the briefcase on his knees. “I am very old,” she said quietly. “And I never thought we would face this day. Not really — no matter how much we talked about it, I never thought anyone would actually break the first seal.”

“I’m sorry,” Dean said.

“Stop that. I know you’re sorry. Sam knows you’re sorry. Everybody who knows you knows you’re sorry. It’s time for you stop being sorry and start being a hero.” He looked at her, and she smiled and then reached over to take Sam’s hand. “How are you doing, big guy?”

“I don’t know,” Sam said. “I kind of feel like I’ve had my foundations shaken.”

“Oh, honey,” Maya said gently. “That’s what the Tower does.”

“Yeah,” Sam muttered and wouldn’t look at Dean.