Home Truths
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Dean leaned back in the chair savoring the moment.
His gaze wandered around the library, and to his surprise he felt a subtle sense of possessiveness creep over him towards this building that Henry had so unexpectedly presented to him and Sam.
Dean had never owned anything outside of the Impala, his weapons and the small heap of clothes he carried around in his duffel but now he and Sam found themselves heirs to all of this and to the knowledge contained herein; knowledge, Dean smiled fondly, that Sam was ecstatically waddling in, not too dissimilarly to a pig rolling in the stickiest wettest mud!
It had been a long time since he had seen his little brother quite so happy!
Yes all this belonged to the Winchesters now and Dean was freakin' sure he wasn't going to share with anyone who wasn't called Sam Winchester!
No one would ever know about this place, not if he could help it!
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He studied the sigils spaced surreptitiously around the room, some were carved into the very wood of the shelves, doubling as a discreet decorative border, others were traced delicately around the perimeters of the floor and ceiling. He recognized most of them but some were completely unknown, though he was sure that Sam would delight in finding out just what they were for!
The angel banishing ones were familiar enough, and he was happy that the place was off-limits to the those beings as well as to the run of the mill demons.
X
X
Sam studied his brother from under his eyelashes. Dean was leaning back in his chair, booted legs unrepentantly crossed on top of the precious oak table, a little pile of early editions of 'Busty Asian Beauties' at arm's reach.
Dean had been like a little kid when he had discovered the first edition of his favorite porn mag but he could hardly contain his delight when he found a whole stash of them. Some former member of the MoL must have had the same tastes as his brother, Sam thought amused.
He could see the serenity on his big brother's face and a small spark of hope flared up in his heart. Maybe this time their luck had changed; just maybe this bunker would bring them to a place where they could find some kind of peace.
He lowered his eyes to the obscure text he had been studying, the inquisitive part of his brain relishing the puzzle that the words were setting him.
x
They both sat in comfortable silence until Dean's booted feet were brusquely swung down to the floor with a thump, causing Sam's head to pop up in alarm.
"Dean?"
"S'okay, Sammy. A man of action like me can't spend all his time lying around doing nothing. Duty calls," he smirked. "Duty to my stomach that is. I'm off for supplies and when I get back I'm gonna rustle up a meal that'll have your hair standing on edge. Now that would be something to see!"
Sam looked at him as if he was an idiot, an expression that Dean was more that familiar with having had it bestowed on him countless times by his younger brother.
"I m gonna make you the hottest curry on the planet," he boasted as he made his way up the staircase to the exit.
"Strictly for adults, Sammy, so get your game together!"
x
Sam's bitch-face followed him up the steps making Dean's heart feel light and care-free. There was nothing so satisfying as baiting his ginormous little brother, he thought happily.
He was a man of few needs, and long ago he had come to understand that having Sam at his side was all he wanted or required.
X
X
He parked the Impala in front of the small store which served the nearest town-ship to the bunker, and as he turned to enter he heard a voice at his shoulder.
"Dean."
Dean felt a mote of annoyance at the sound; his day had been going so well and he shied away from the thought of having it spoiled by the visitor.
"What do you want, Cas? " he asked none too sweetly turning on his heel to face the angel. "Whatever it is, this isn't a good moment."
"Dean, I've been searching for you everywhere, but you seemed to be off my radar."
"Maybe you've got a little glitch there, dude. Don't angels have to go in for a check up now and then or somethin'?"
"No, we don't need to do that. Our powers are always at their peak," was the serious reply.
x
Dean shook his head in disbelief.
Two thousand years observing humans, plus an assiduous frequentation with the Winchesters and yet the angel seemed as childishly naive as ever.
"I was joking Cas." Dean replied curtly turning towards the store. "Listen, I gotta buy some stuff for dinner, so if there's nothing important...?"
"Dean, wait, I need your help. There have been strange happenings with regards to Heaven. I've been hearing rumors of a plot by fringe fractions of the lower angels to take over control and..."
x
Dean held up a warning hand.
"Stop right there, Cas! I don't want to know. I'm so not interested in your little angel feuds, nor in what happens in Heaven. I would think that you have a lot of experience in that field seeing that the story of a lowly angel who wanted to rule heaven is one I believe you're familiar with."
Castiel looked away. This time he understood perfectly what Dean was saying. That lowly angel had been him. The ambition to take over heaven had been his.
x
"This is different Dean. The last time I thought I was doing the right thing by leaving you out of my plans. I didn't want to ruin your new life with Lisa and Ben but I've learned my lesson. I value your advice Dean. You have always been loyal to me, perhaps the only being who has," Castiel declared."Then we share a special bond," he continued. "I pulled you out of Hell, out of perdition..."
Dean felt a rush of resentment seep through his body. Enough was enough! Heaven could go to Hell for all he cared, and its inhabitants too; all of them!
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"That 'special bond' you keep mentioning Cas, happened only because you were the first angel to reach me in Hell. If it had been Uriel then he and I would have had the 'special bond' and I've a feeling that things would have gone down real bad there!"
"I can't believe that you are not interested in the well-being of Heaven; " the angel continued stubbornly, ignoring Dean's words. "You have had experience of Hell; where would you rather pass the rest of eternity?"
"Just so you know, Cas; by the time you pulled me out, I was enjoying myself hugely shredding souls to ribbons, so by that time Hell wasn't so bad at all."
"Dean this is blasphemy. Heaven is eternal salvation and Hell is eternal damnation!"
"If you say so Cas. Now, I gotta get my groceries. My stomach is feeling a little bit neglected, " he said patting his abdomen. "I know you don't need to eat so...you'll excuse me if I..."
"If you will not listen, I will go speak to Sam. He is always more amiable than you; he will listen to my plea," Castiel finished.
x
By now Dean's nerves were really frayed and he stepped up into the angel's personal space.
"Stay away from Sam. He doesn't need any crap right now. He's been through enough; he's done his bit for friggin' heaven; or does a hundred and eighty years being tortured in the Cage by Lucifer and Michael not count as enough?"
He pointed a finger at the angel's face.
"You pulled my little brother out of the Cage without his soul and I still don't know if it was through carelessness or if you did it on purpose for some sneaky little plan of your own. You broke his wall, with no more regard than if he was a fly to be swatted. Sam owes you nothing and neither do I. We've both paid for any 'favors' you might have done us.
By the way, I've been meaning to ask. Whatever happened to Balthazar? I tried praying to him a couple of times but nada."
x
Dean noticed the shifting of the angel's eyes at his words and if anyone could interpret an expression of guilt it was Dean Winchester, high-priest of guilty feelings.
He tilted his head in understanding.
"So you do know something, Cas. Here's what I think. Balthazar was spooked when he gave us your location to try to stop you from opening Purgatory; could it be that you and he had a little spat and maybe bad went down?"
Castiel's expression told Dean that he was on the right track.
"What happened? Did you fight, did you kill him? No! You didn't kill him in a fight, did you Cas? You did it treacherously. Did you take him down when his back was turned? Is that it?"
"No, you don't understand; I..."
"Don't try to deny it. I can see it in your eyes. You betrayed your brother and comrade, so who's to say you won't do the same to me, or worse, to Sam? I want no more of it Cas. Find someone else to give you a hand. I'm sure there are plenty of hunters out there who would love nothing better than a powerful angel by their side, but as far as helping you out for the affairs of Heaven, we're through!"
He took a step back as he cautioned.
"Keep away from Sam because if you try to hurt him again, I might be forced to do something I'd rather not."
x
Dean's green eyes morphed into two black coals as he delivered his warning. He had once promised Sam that as long as he was around nothing bad would happen to him. He had been unable to keep that promise but he would make up for it from this moment on. Whoever hurt Sam whether he be a supernatural being or a human was a dead man; no-one excluded, not even a once friend.
"This will not end here Dean. Perhaps this is a bad moment, as you say. I will return when you are of a better humor."
The angel disappeared with a whoosh of wings and Dean entered the store without a backward glance.
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"How was the curry, dude?" Dean asked as he leaned back in the chair, his stomach about to explode with the amount of rice he had shoveled down.
"It could have done with a touch more curry powder, " Sam groaned sarcastically, his face suffused with heat from the curry. " But it's a good effort."
"Good effort, Sammy! That's all you've got to say! No cordon bleu cook could have done better!"
"Yeah, Okay, Dean. It was a bomb, " Sam conceded graciously.
"Go make the coffee then, Sasquatch and we'll call it quits; oh and the dishes are all yours to wash," he called after his brother's retreating back, receiving an answering grunt from Sam.
x
Yeah, life was good, Dean mused. A roof over their heads, food and drink and Sam by his side. He could ask for nothing better, and what he had he would defend with tooth and nail.
He hadn't mentioned his encounter with Cas.
He knew Sam had a forgiving heart and would probably have felt sympathy for the angel even after what he had done to him, but that's where Dean came in. Sam was his to protect and look out for. That's what big brothers did.
X
The time back in the alley a few years ago when Sam had taken his revenge on Brady came to mind.
What was it he had said back then?
" All those angels, all those demons, all those sons of bitches. They just don't get it, do they, Sammy? "
"No, they don't, Dean. "
"You see, Brady...We're the ones you should be afraid of."
x
Those words were as relevant now as they had been back then.
Anyone who thought they could use or hurt the Winchesters again would be in for the biggest butt-kicking on the planet.
Word of Dean Winchester!
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