Here's a new fic! I hope everyone enjoys it! (And I hope we all survive the hiatus!)
Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural.
Let it be known that Dean doesn't like this thinks it's a bad idea. Leaving Castiel on his own? It doesn't seem all that smart to him. But both Castiel and Sam say it'll be fine, so he's outnumbered.
"What other option do we have, Dean?" Sam asks, and Dean's caught there. But he doesn't say that or anything, because that would be admitting defeat. Which is something Dean Winchester never does.
"Come on, Sam. This is stupid. We can't just leave Cas here. These demons obviously know what they're doing with kidnapping angels and shit."
"Dean, I am an angel of the Lord," Castiel puts in dryly. "I believe I can deal with a demon or two on my own."
"I still don't like it," Dean argues, setting his jaw. Sam rolls his eyes.
"You don't have to like it. You just have to go with the plan, Dean." Dean sighs, but accepts it. And anyway, if something goes wrong, this means he'll be able to say "I told you so."
"So what does the sigil look like?" he asks in a long-suffering voice. Castiel grabs Sam's hand and draws out a sigil quickly.
"It looks like that. You have to destroy all of them before I can enter. And hurry, please." Castiel is trying hard not to show his discomfort, but it's still fairly obvious that the sigils are hurting him.
"Well, we have the knife, so demons shouldn't be that big a problem," Sam says. Dean nods, but he's still a little worried. There's only one knife and there's two of them to be armed. Castiel solves that problem.
"Here. Take this," he says, handing his angel blade over to Dean. "It works on demons as well as angels."
"What about you, Cas?" Dean asks, worried. "We can't just leave you here without a weapon." Castiel sighs, sounding like he's losing what little faith in humanity he has left.
"Dean, against demons, I am a weapon in my own right. I can use my Grace to 'fry' them, as you would say. Trust me. I'll be fine."
"If you say so," Dean replies. He's not buying it, not completely, but he really doesn't have time to argue. Because every second that they delay, he knows that Crowley is just torturing Samandriel more and more, and the kid seemed pretty nice, you know, for one of the dicks with wings.
Dean and Sam enter the factory and instantly get started killing the demons and destroying the sigils. It's surprisingly easy; it almost seems like Crowley's not really trying. Either that or he never thought anyone would go after Samandriel, so he didn't need all that much security. Dean hopes it's the second; if it's the first, then this is probably a trap. He tries to rush through killing the demons and destroying the sigils as much as he can. Sam's going at an annoyingly slow pace - or he is to Dean's mind, at least; Sam doesn't think he's going all that slowly. When they get the last one broken, Castiel appears, half doubled over. Dean grabs him.
"Cas, you okay?" he asks. Castiel nods shakily.
"It must just be from the wards," he replies quietly. "They can still affect me, it seems."
Dean feels almost guilty; that's probably his fault, since he rushed it so much. He lets go of Castiel, who's able to stand upright on his own now, and goes over to the door with Sam. He tries to open it by yanking on the handle harshly, but there's no give. Then he hears a little whimper from behind him and turns around.
"Cas?" he asks, seeing his friend clutch his blade and back into a corner. "Hey, you okay?" There's no answer, which makes sense; Castiel quite obviously is not okay.
When Dean sees Castiel start having a mental breakdown or whatever, he leaves the door instantly. Sam watches him in confusion as, without a thought, Dean crouches down next to Castiel and holds him. "I've got you, Cas," Dean whispers. Castiel trembles in his embrace. Sam watches them for a moment, then starts trying to ram the door open with his shoulder. Castiel doesn't seem to notice the noise and just folds in on himself a little more. Dean just holds him comfortingly - or as comfortingly as Dean Winchester can do anything - and waits for the shaking to die down. It happens to match up with when Sam gets the door open, luckily enough, and Dean helps Castiel to his feet.
"You ready?" he asks Castiel. The angel gives him a look that's partially grateful, partially almost expectant, and partially something else that Dean can't read.
"Yes."
Even though a minute ago, Castiel was in a ball on the floor, he enters the room ready to fight. Sam's already fighting a demon and Dean tosses him the knife, which Sam smoothly slides into the demon's chest. Dean's only weaponless for a moment before Castiel presses his angel blade into his hands for a second time and rushes over to Samandriel. A creepy looking demon wearing a lab coat and a bowtie goes over to Dean, who stabs him without a second thought. By this point, Castiel's freed Samandriel and is helping the obviously-weakened angel - not that Dean's surprised; the demons had stuck what looked like freaking skewers or something into the poor kid's head - to the door. Sam's already killed the third and final demon, so the four leave the room together. This is starting to look more and more like a trap; surely Crowley would have more demons guarding the angel. And Dean knows that they're in no shape to be fighting off a big group of demons, so he really hopes they can go fast enough to avoid the upcoming ambush.
"Castiel," Samandriel pants as he clutches Castiel's coat "I…I need to tell you…"
"Hush, Samandriel," Castiel says soothingly, and Dean's shocked by the tenderness in the angel's voice. Samandriel is Castiel's brother, but Dean's never seen Castiel show this much affection towards one of his siblings before. Normally they were too busy trying to kill each other. "I'm sure that whatever you have to tell me can wait until you heal."
"No, Castiel," Samandriel gasps. "I have to tell you. I didn't mean to, but I told Crowley things. Things I didn't even know I knew."
"No one blames you for it," Castiel says soothingly, struggling to support Samandriel's weight. Dean goes over to help him, but it seems odd; Castiel is an angel and has that super-strength thing going for him. Dean's experienced that first-hand. Surely he shouldn't need help from Dean in supporting one person.
"Castiel, I told him about the angel tablet," Samandriel says urgently. Castiel frowns slightly.
"There's an angel tablet?" Dean asks. He's ignored.
"It's alright, Samandriel. It's-" Suddenly, Castiel's voice cuts off abruptly and he puts a hand to his temple with a frown.
"Cas?" Dean asks. Castiel's eyes are closed and his brow is furrowed.
"No," he mutters. "No, I won't."
"Cas, what's wrong?" Dean asks. Castiel ignores him and closes his eyes even more tightly. He tips his head to the side a bit, but the familiar gesture isn't as comforting as Dean normally finds it (not that anyone knows he finds it comforting, because that's far too girly for Dean Winchester). It seems more like Castiel is listening to something far away. Considering the situation they're in, the last thing they need is for something to be communicating with Castiel. Dean considers that it could just be the normal Angel Radio, but considering what Castiel previously did to Heaven, Dean doubts any message from the other angels would be good.
Suddenly, Castiel's eyes jerk open and he yanks himself away from Dean and Samandriel without warning. "Go," he says, his voice urgent. Dean frowns.
"What do you mean?" he asks. Castiel closes his eyes for a moment and sucks in a quick, pained breath, then looks at Dean again. His eyes are desperate.
"Leave. Run! All of you!"
"Cas, what the hell is going on?" Dean demands. Samandriel looks at Castiel in confusion.
"Castiel, what is wrong?" he asks. Castiel's angel blade slides into his hand, then he throws it away harshly. It clatters to the floor a few yards away. Dean frowns. Whatever's going on, it's very strange and definitely worrying him.
"Go, Samandriel! Run! You have to get away from me."
"Cas, what's going on?" Dean demands. Sam moves in to support Samandriel as Dean takes a step towards Castiel.
"Dean, please, run!" Castiel begs, which is weird in and of itself, because Castiel never begs. A second later he's doubled over in pain, clutching his head, and Dean's by his side and struggling to keep him upright.
"Cas, tell me what's going on!" Dean half-begs (and Dean normally doesn't beg either, but this is an extreme situation, so it's alright). Seeing the angel like this is scaring him, to be perfectly honest; he doesn't like seeing family in pain, especially when he can't do anything about it.
"No, I won't do it!" Castiel says firmly, talking to someone Dean can't see. Dean's stomach twists as he wonders if Castiel has truly gotten over his insanity or if he just thought he had. Then again, he could have angels in his head, which is almost as bad, if Dean thinks about it. "You can't make me do that!"
"Cas, what the hell?" Dean demands loudly. Then Castiel goes completely limp in his arms and he starts bleeding everywhere and cuts are appearing randomly and Dean has no idea where they're coming from, he just knows that Castiel's losing a lot of blood and he's covered in cuts and he's as still as a corpse. Which, to be honest, is freaking Dean out. A lot.
"Cas!" Dean half-yells. There's no response. "Cas, what's wrong?"
"Dean, we need to get out of here," Sam says urgently, looking over his shoulder. The faint sound of footsteps is audible. "Sounds like there's some company on their way."
"Dean, we can better care for Castiel if we have a bed for him," Samandriel adds. Dean nods.
"Yeah. Right. Um…Rufus's cabin?"
"Sounds good to me," Sam replies, still worriedly looking behind him. "Now let's go!"
Sam helps Samandriel walk out of the factory and Dean follows, carrying Castiel's limp body in a fireman's carry. The angel is completely unresponsive and it's scaring the crap out of Dean. Castiel is never like this. It's almost like Castiel isn't even in there, as if this is just an empty vessel. But if that's the case, then Dean would be even more panicked, so he forces that thought away.
"Dean, hurry up!" Sam calls. Dean starts to move faster, but he's got to support all of Castiel's weight, which makes it difficult. "Dean, there's more demons coming!"
"I know, Sammy!" Dean snaps back. He can hear them. This is definitely a trap. Normally, this is the time when Castiel would fly them out of the danger, but considering Castiel is currently slung over Dean's shoulder, that's not going to happen this time.
By the time Dean's left the building, Sam's already at the car. Dean tosses him the keys. "You drive," he says firmly. "Alfie, you get shotgun."
"What?" Samandriel asks. If Dean took a moment to think about it, he would realize that there's no way the angel could know what "shotgun" means in this context, but Dean doesn't take a moment to think about it. There are more important things to worry about. Sam ignores Samandriel and frowns at Dean.
"Dean, what about you?"
"I'm going in the back with Cas," Dean replies, already opening the door. Sam's frown only deepens.
"Dean, don't you think having a beat-up, bloody angel in a uniform for a fast food shop in the front seat will make the car a little conspicuous? No offense, Samandriel."
"None taken," Samandriel replies, still looking a little lost.
"I don't care," Dean replies, putting Castiel in a sitting position in the back seat. "I'm staying with Cas."
"Wouldn't it be best if you drove, I went in the passengers seat, and the angels went in the back?" Sam offers. Dean ignores the suggestion as he pulls the seatbelt across Castiel's lap.
"Dean, I swear to you that I will watch over Castiel," Samandriel adds, seeming to get a grip on the conversation again. "If there is any change in his condition, I will alert you immediately."
"I want to be with him," Dean protests, and he would normally never say such a thing, but the truth spills out from his lips. He can't bring himself to be embarrassed; it's really not important at the moment. Sam sighs.
"You'll do him more good if you drive. Samandriel will take care of him," he replies. Dean sets his jaw. He doesn't like this, he really doesn't, but Sam's right; they don't have much of a choice.
"Alright. Alfie, get in the back." Samandriel makes face at the name, but Dean ignores it. Samandriel is far too long a name to say on even a semi-regular basis. Alfie is much easier.
Dean goes into the driver's seat and Sam slides into the passenger's seat after helping Samandriel into the back. "You better step on it," Sam advises grimly. "There's a group of demons coming for us." Dean turns on the car and floors the gas pedal. He hears a yelp from Samandriel.
"Sorry," he calls.
"It's alright," Samandriel replies in an almost grumpy voice. Dean makes a mental note to drive more carefully.
"Alright. Next stop, Whitefish," Dean says in a fake-optimistic voice. In truth, he's still panicking about what's happening to Castiel and he's not feeling even remotely optimistic. He's pretty sure that his tone isn't fooling anyone, but he keeps up the façade anyway. It's what Dean Winchester does, because God forbid John Winchester's son ever show emotion. Especially not worry or panic.
Hang on, Cas, Dean thinks to himself. We'll get you through this.
By the time they've gotten to Whitefish, Castiel has a few new cuts on his chest and one across his forehead. Samandriel's trying to stop the bleeding in the back, but considering he's also bleeding copiously - Dean hopes he can get those stains out of the back seat - it's difficult.
"Alright, Sam, you get Alfie and I'll get Cas," Dean says as they pull up to the cabin. Sam nods.
"Dean," Samandriel says sharply. Dean turns around in his seat immediately. That tone of voice can mean nothing good. "A human arm is not meant to look this way, is it?" Dean's stomach twists as he sees a bulge in Castiel's left arm that clearly indicates a broken bone and a bad one at that. He'll definitely have to reset the break, which will hurt like hell for Castiel.
"No," Sam answers when Dean makes no move to answer. "Cas's arm is broken."
"It seems as if he's fighting someone," Samandriel muses. Dean frowns.
"His body is right here," he counters. Samandriel looks exasperated and Dean feels a little insulted.
"That doesn't mean he's not fighting. His Grace might have left his body. Perhaps he's fighting in Heaven."
"Okay, awesome," Dean replies sarcastically. "What do we do?" Samandriel looks down.
"We wait for him to wake up," he replies in a small voice. Dean's eyes narrow.
"No. No freaking way. We're not just waiting and letting some angel douche beat the shit out of Cas! Can't you go after him, Alfie?"
"Whoever Castiel is fighting must be a very powerful angel," Samandriel explains. "Castiel is far better at combat than I am. If whoever is attacking him is able to do this amount if damage to him, I would not have a chance."
"Any idea who it is?" Dean asks. Samandriel shrugs, then winces.
"No." Something about that doesn't seem quite true, but Dean dismisses it. He'll get the information out of the angel later. For now, he wants to get Castiel into the cabin and, once both he and Samandriel are inside, angel-proof the shit out of it. Maybe that'll get Castiel's Grace back out of Heaven. Dean figures it's a long shot, but at the moment, he's willing to try anything.
Sam helps Samandriel into the cabin as Dean picks up Castiel (he has to do it bridal style, which is embarrassing but the only way; a fireman's carry no longer seems like a good idea, considering the even worse shape Castiel's in) and brings him in as well. Samandriel is sitting on the couch, leaning against the back with his eyes closed, and Sam's grabbing bandages to start fixing up the angel. Dean brings Castiel into one of the bedrooms and lies him down on the bed. Helping him is a priority, obviously, but first Dean needs to angel-proof the place.
"What are you doing?" Sam asks as Dean grabs a knife and goes to slice his forearm.
"Angel-proofing the cabin," he replies. Samandriel's eyes go wide.
"You can't," he replies, looking horrified. Dean frowns.
"Why not?"
"If you do, Castiel's Grace will be stuck in Heaven. The connection between his Grace and his vessel is what's keeping him alive at the moment. If you break that, you could kill him." Dean grits his teeth and puts down the knife. He wants to do something. He doesn't know what he can do, but he knows that he can't just sit around doing nothing or he'll go crazy.
"Is there anything we can do to help Cas, Samandriel?" Sam asks as he cautiously wraps a bandage around the angel's head. Samandriel sighs.
"Tend to his wounds," he suggests. "I don't know what else we could do. Perhaps another angel could enter his mind and help him fight."
"Any idea who that other angel could be?" Dean demands. Samandriel frowns slightly, thinking.
"Well, most of the angels in Heaven are rather angry with him." Dean rolls his eyes.
"Tell me something I don't already know, Alfie," he snaps. Sam sends Dean a bitchface as he starts cleaning another one of Samandriel's wounds. The look clearly says that Dean should be nicer to the angel, considering the shape he's in. Dean pointedly ignores it.
"Perhaps we could ask Gabriel," Samandriel suggests. And of course, that suggestion makes the proverbial shit hit the fan.
The next chapter will be up tomorrow, so watch for that! I hope you enjoyed it!