A/N: This is my first Supernatural fic. I had to write one after the season finale, so if you haven't seen it, don't read this. Enjoy.
Disclaimer: I disclaim any ties to this show and in no way seek to gain anything from it.
Adelphos
There is a specific memory Dean thinks of often, in relation to Sam, which defines for him brotherhood. He had the opportunity to relive it on one of his jaunts to heaven, observing Sam in miniature, running up to him in rapture, in delight, absolute faith lighting up his eyes. All because of some stolen fireworks and a surprise trip to a field. His younger self didn't appreciate it then, and his pre-apocalypse self didn't get the full import of it then either, until this moment.
This moment. To describe it is to describe a joke gone horribly wrong. Dean has told a few of those, where the punchline got lost somewhere in the middle and the last words are swallowed with bitter beer. But he's never truly witnessed it, until now, when it stands there cool as a cucumber, scary as all hell, commanding him to kneel and say I love you or he'll accompany Raphael's liver bits on the walls.
The joke proclaims himself God, the new and improved version. This would have been impressive if it wasn't prefaced by the kind of speech that reminded Dean of all the times Sam finally one-upped him, starting from age six and up. It's always some kind of triumph when the guy everyone's been pushing around, shoving into walls, blowing up, trying to kill, second guessing, always calling, always demanding something from, always asking to do that very hard, very slippery thing (the right thing) finally, finally, beats out all the naysayers. The smile is always beatific.
It is the first time in a long time Dean has seen Castiel smile. It is how he knows Castiel is gone, replaced by Bizarro. He looks upon his friend/savior many times over/other figuratively speaking little bro bro turned possible worst nightmare and thinks, "Shit, what the hell happened here?"
What happened here?
What did he do?
Dean glances to the ground and sees Sam rushing up to him, eyes bright, lights exploding in the sky. He was a kid then, the world was huge, spectacular, miraculous and that night it shimmered and became a kaleidoscope of colors and patterns because of his brother. Brother. Blind faith given all because of blood.
Castiel looks upon him with chilling pragmatism. They share no blood between them, only that through sacrifice. And yet...that blind faith was as fervid in Castiel as it was in Sam. This faith business is Dean's Achilles' Heel. Believe in me, do as I say, trust me. Kneel to me. You are my brother. Believe in me.
Had Castiel immersed himself in humanity for maybe a decade, then the acting out would have probably played out in a different way. Maybe there would have been a shove. Dean thinks they might have fought, like Sam fought him. It doesn't matter now. Hindsight is a particularly cruel son of a bitch when an angel with the emotional capacity of a seven year-old gets the keys to the universal nukes.
The original question then. What happened here? Dean stares at Castiel, who waits patiently for someone to kneel or for someone to say, "Kiss my ass," while shit stains their pants. Bobby glances at him, then at Sam. Sam has his eyes on Dean, ready to follow his lead. And Dean knows. Dean knows the answer and the solution and the damn rabbit hole that led everyone here, this long, long, long way down.
God is in the Brother.