*Disclaimer* I do not own Supernatural (nor do I claim to), I just love it and happen to get alot of ideas for stories in my head.

(Anyways, this idea just came to me... I knew that I'd never write it after I saw the first episode of Supernatural {the whole 'why didn't I think of that/ that makes more sense' syndrome} I was bored and decided to start this. Got the prologue done pretty quickly, so I decided to upload it.)

Prologue

"Dean!" Castiel's powerful voice rang out over the noise. His blue eyes blazed with anger, and, for the moment, clarity, as the duo struggled to hold back the swarm of vile creatures that inhabited Purgatory. Castiel spread his wings, knowing well the evil creatures could see them and, because of the darkness inside themselves, tended to shy away from the blazing light, blazing goodness, that radiate off them. It didn't work this time, however, as the creatures had purpose, and their wickedness found strength in numbers. They no longer feared his light, his grace's pureness. "Close your eyes!" Castiel commanded, letting loose a flash of brilliant light the second Dean shield his face. He could feel the effort wipe him out, but he didn't care. He had to keep Dean safe, Dean had to make it out, Dean had to live. Castiel would never be able to find forgiveness for what he'd done, but it didn't mean he couldn't still try to find redemption. Getting Dean out of Purgatory was the only way Castiel could say I'm sorry…. words weren't enough.

"Come on, let's go! The door won't remain open for long!" Benny's irritated, and slightly frightened, voice reached their ears. Benny knew very well they couldn't fight such a mob, and that once the creatures of Purgatory got their fangs or claws into them, they'd be done for, ripped to shreds. It wasn't a pleasant way to die. It made sense that the vampire was frightened. "Hold on!" Dean growled, moving his axe onto his left hand and reaching out to Castiel with his right. "Whoa, hey, Cas, are you okay man?" he said, as if he could sense the angel was unsteady, as if he could see how much the battle was taking out of him. "I'm fine" Castiel said, his eyes hard. "Go!" he added, giving Dean a shove in Benny's direction. The air was filled with howls, growls, snarls and shrieks. The monsters were all very vocal tonight, or perhaps it was day. It was impossible to tell in Purgatory. Four hellhounds rushed forward, Castiel extended his wing and swat the demonic hounds away. They let out a pained whimper, the pureness of his grace burned as it came in contact with their twisted, black souls.

"Come. ON!" Benny snarled. Dean flashed him a hate filled look, and it wasn't so much because the vampire was impatient [that could be understood] as it was because it went against every instinct to work with a monster. Castiel watched his friend for a moment, the majority of his senses still stretched out, feeling outward. He kept his wings up and extended, hoping a few of the creatures still feared the light, he knew it burned them.

Castiel was in the fight of his life. No, not the one he, Dean, and Benny were smack in the middle of right then, but one inside his head. He could feel himself slipping. His mind was unstable. A shattered mess really. He'd taken all of Sam's pain, his wounds, his broken mind, into himself. He had been unable to heal him, and he'd been unable to repair the wall, as nothing but dust remained of it. He couldn't allow Sam to remain as he was, so he'd taken his broken mind, all the wounds of his soul, which felt as if it had been skinned by Lucifer himself [which it had] onto himself. The result was receiving the same broken mind, the same scars, on himself. He hadn't known it was possible, but Sam had been so broken, that that full weight of his wounds had broken Castiel was well. He'd gone insane. He was insane….and he was finding it very hard to remain focused on the task at hand. It was hard to get all the billions of pieces of his shattered mind [angels' minds were far more complex than humens'] to focus on any one thing. He couldn't put them together again; each piece tended to focus on whatever it gave importance to at the time. The full extent of his capabilities was so massive; all the pieces were able to think of something at the same time. He was trying so very hard to give this priority…. He had to get Dean out now, before he lost himself again. He'd already disappeared on Dean before; he was unable to help it.

"Cas!" Dean shouted, though Castiel had already felt the Wendigo's approach. Castiel smacked its body with his wing. Dean was busy hacking away at the line of creatures with his axe. None could be allowed to escape. Castiel knew Dean wouldn't cross the door to Purgatory until he was sure none of the 'citizens' would be able to follow him. He also knew Benny wouldn't open the door until Dean was at his side, the door only stayed open for a short amount of time.

This was taking too long. Most of the souls were staying back because of Castiel. He was stretching his grace as far as it would go; its essence acting like a force field. Still, the creatures kept advancing, slower, cautious, but they still advanced. Though tired from the strain of trying to keep his shattered mind together, and from the fighting, and from holding his wings up like a warning, Castiel lifted up his palm once more. "Shield your eyes!" he cried, before letting forth another blast of light. He could hear the pained shrieks of the creatures as the light burned them, burned though them, and left nothing but an empty shell. Purgatory was made up of monsters, evil creatures, souls which didn't belong in Heaven or Hell. There was nothing but darkness, evil, inside them. When Castiel's light seared away the darkness, nothing was left. Castiel's arm dropped to his side; he staggered a bit, wiped out after blasting at the relentless creatures twice. His already unsteady hold on his sanity [or the closest he came to it these days] collapsed. His already spread wings flapped, and he disappeared.

"Cas? Cas!" Dean cried in panic. Of course Castiel could still hear him; Castiel would hear that voice anywhere, he'd recognize it anywhere. At this moment, however, he was more interested in the malevolent presence he sensed. Dean's voice registered, then was pushed back. Castiel recognized this presence; it stood out amongst the rest. Castiel tilted his head. He'd landed nowhere, or rather, nowhere important. His unstable mind had most likely not even given a thought to where it commanded his wings to take him. He stared off in the distance and slowly unfurled his wings. He was going to take a closer look at the creature that he recognized personally. "Cas? Cas!" Dean's desperate voice reached him yet again, just as Castiel flapped his wings. A small part of his mind knew who he'd recognized; the rest of it was too fractured to care. Castiel was heading toward Dick Roman.