Disclaimer: This is a fiction by a foolish little dabbler who doesn't own anything Supernatural—well, dvd sets, copies of novels and graphic novels. I don't have anything close to that kind of talent! HA! Spoilers up to and including Season 6. Some language. No slash or sexual content.

A/N: Did you know that while I was researching "Walking the Edge", I found a great many things about faeries? It seems that when Lucifer began his little uprising, Heaven's Gates were locked. All the crazy little Angels on either side of the conflict not IN Heaven or Hell at the time were locked out. In tribute to the Devil, those fallen angels (Faeries) were to pay a tithe of souls every seven years. Now, Crowley being Crowley, I can imagine he utilized this little bit of information with interest. I hope you have fun with this. R&R, plz.

Blood Tithe

He looked into the deep blue eyes of the woman before him. He was pissed. How dare she invade his home?

"I don't owe your mother anything!" He growled.

"You struck a bargain with the Queen of the Seelie. She requires your assistance." The young woman stated with a flat emotionless voice.

Seth grumbled and paced. The evergreen needles under his feet crushed and sent the scent of pine to linger in the air between them.

"I paid my debt." He said ominously in a whisper.

"Yes, well…" she hedged, "The terms of that bargain have been… expanded. Apparently, this sort of thing is all the rage nowadays."

Seth tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?"

The woman stood completely still. Her blonde hair tumbled in curls around her face and down her back to her waist. Her luminous blue eyes shone brightly in the moonlight. She had pale skin and delicate features. She wasn't all that tall, but she wasn't tiny. The fact that Seth was nearly seven foot tall only made her appear diminutive. She looked up at Seth's face, into his eyes. She sighed.

"Mother met with… the seven year teine is about to become due… and Mother met with… him. He said he wants 10, 000 this time." She lowered her eyes when she saw his blue eyes go wide in shock.

"That's…" He paused to calculate in his head. "That's 500 percent more than the original treaty asks for!" He was astounded by the sheer audacity.

The woman nodded. "Mother needs her most fearsome warriors. She needs..."

Seth held up his hand to stop her. "I am NOT her warrior. She SOLD me to those… those GIANTS as a draft horse! I do NOT work for HER!" Seth was mad that the Queen of the Seelie would presume to order him.

"Please, Seth." The small woman pleaded. Her eyes, her body, her voice all betrayed the fear she felt. "She wants to meet with her sister. He gave the Unseelie the same… alteration in the treaty as he gave Mother. Mother hopes that her sister will join her against him."

Seth stopped his fidgeting and agitation. He stopped and stared at the Princess. His eyes bored into the fairy. His voice was low and gravelly. "What does the King of Hell want with 20,000 souls from the Fae?"

******SPN SPN SPN SPN ******

Sam watched his brother stare into the night. They were hell and gone from any nearby town… truly in the middle of nowhere. He watched from the passenger seat as his brother sat on the hood of the Impala staring at flat nothing span in front of them.

Dean hadn't spoken about much the last few weeks. He didn't say more than a few words together at all. He pretty much shut his emotions down more than was typical for even him. The volume on the Impala's radio never went above a whisper and when radio stations cut out, he didn't change over to one of his tapes. He turned the radio off. Sam was beginning to wonder if this was more than his brother was able to handle. Sam knew that Dean used bravado and his smart snark to cover emotional wounds or vulnerability. Sam worried that maybe having yet another person in his life fail him… well, Dean gave himself completely to his family. We don't always return the favor, do we, big brother?

Dad had failed him. Dad sold his soul to save Dean, but Dean thought that it was just another way Dad tried to leave him. Sam failed Dean. Dean raised him, and Sam failed him over and over again. Sam chose a demon over his brother—even after going to Hell for Sam, to keep Sam alive, safe. Ellen, Jo, Adam, Jim, Caleb, Bobby, Lisa, Ben… Dean continued to be faithful to every one of the people in their lives whom he saw as family. Maybe, the only one in their lives who hadn't failed or tried to leave them was Bobby.

Now, Cas had failed Dean. Sam was afraid it was just too much.

Dean sat on the hood of his Impala, staring off into space. Sam sighed. He reached for the handle to the door. He wondered if he should open the door when his phone rang.

"Hey, Bobby… no, we're in the middle of nowhere, Kansas… I guess, but I have to get him back into the car first… no, he just pulled over and is sitting on the hood… how am I supposed to know? He doesn't say more than three words… sigh yes, I'll tell him." Sam clicked the phone shut and opened the door. He walked to sit next to his brother.

Dean looked at Sam with a sidelong glance but said nothing. Sam waited but his brother sat and continued to remain silent. Sam huffed in agitation. "Dean, we have to go. Bobby just called. He needs us to check something out in the Rocky Mountains."

Dean didn't question or look like he wanted to argue. He just looked down at the ground in front of them. Sam wanted him to say something, anything. He wanted his big brother to be there and Dean was so very far away. "Dean. Please." Sam whispered. Dean jerked his head up quickly at hearing Sam's voice, so quiet and sad. He was always tuned into "Sam radio". Dean's eyes softened and watched his brother through concerned green orbs.

"I'm fine, Sammy." He said. "I'm always fine." He whispered.

Dean pushed off the Impala and walked to the driver's side of the car. He looked expectantly toward his brother. He heard the hitching in Sam's breath as he also pushed off to move. Dean slid in to sit and wait. Sam took a moment to collect his self before also entering the car. The lights from the billions of stars blinked ahead of them. Dean turned the ignition on but didn't put the car in gear. Sam looked askance at Dean but waited for his brother. Dean appeared like he would say something to Sam. Dean, please. You can't keep going like this. Talk to me, Brother. Dean didn't say a thing. He put the car in drive and pulled onto the lonely two-lane highway.

******SPN SPN SPN SPN ******

There were three demons quaking in front of the King of Hell. One little demon stood near the door and didn't quake. That was dangerous. He figured it was necessary to either bring her to heel or to destroy her utterly. Crowley growled deep within.

"I sent a dozen of you and you couldn't bring me one Alpha? I even told you where he was! How is it that only four of you return to me… without my Alpha?"

The demons in front of him said nothing but continued to quake. The little one near the door started to saunter forward.

"My king," She began, "We could have had an army and not been able to overpower him. This creature is not going to be taken by demons. Surely, you know the lore?"

Part of him wanted to rip her apart. But, he knew she was right. He walked up to the three in front of him. He was fury. The King of Hell approached the nearest demon and stood raging in front of him. He imagined the demon possessed another's face and it just ratcheted his anger. He growled. He crooked his finger to the moron to bring him down, closer to Crowley's face. Crowley reached up and used his might to smite the demon, twisting the neck of his meat-suit with a sickening crack. He allowed the dead meat to fall to the floor. He rushed to face off with the little female. Her eyes widened slightly, but she hurried to mask it.

He stood before her staring. Her head bowed. She averted her gaze from her king. She knew she would end like the dead demon there if she antagonized him even as innocuously as looking at him with the wrong expression. She swallowed a lump in her throat. She started to shake when her king didn't break off his scrutiny. He took another step toward her. She found herself cowering before him. His voice grew low and raspy.

"I want that Alpha."

"You will have it, my king." She confirmed.

He stepped back. He hears a flutter of wings in the corner. He turned and waved them to leave.

"Hello, Angel-face." He coos when his demons depart.

"Have you found it yet?" Castiel inquires. Crowley growls again.

"Only a matter of time…" He responded. He stifled a grin as he approached the blue-eyed angel. He inhaled deeply. "If I knew you were such a masochist, I would offer you the services of a very sadistic demon to… fulfill your every want." He began to turn when the angel grabbed the demon's arm and growled at his face.

"What do you mean?" Castiel hissed.

"Dean. Winchester." He enunciated each word.

Castiel released his hold on the demon and looked away.

"Oh, Sweetheart. You have it bad for that human. He trapped you in a ring of Holy Fire and basically told you to piss off! And still… you rush off to try and explain yourself? That is all you did, isn't it, Cassie?" He was looking deeply into the angel's eyes, watching for any tic that would reveal a hit. Castiel turned away from the demonlord and walked to the dead demon on the floor. He stood staring at the corpse. Crowley followed discretely and outside of the angel's reach. "Why aren't you angry, Cas? It would be so easy. I could…"

"I said NO!" Castiel bristled at Crowley, raising his voice menacingly, meeting the demon's gaze with steel in his eyes.

Crowley retreated, hands raised in supplication.

Crowley watched as Castiel returned to his scrutiny of the dead thing at his feet. He could see minute tension in the angel's jawline and hardening in his eyes.

Ah. You say "no" now, Cassie, but soon… yeah, I think soon those disasters are going to push you too hard. That will be the day that I get to collect the souls of the last remaining Winchesters! Crowley could feel the corners of his lips raise in anticipation.

TBC

A/N: Well, what do you think? Enough BAMF Cas and moody Dean for you? Seth is going to show up again, too. Do you know who or what he is? More hints next chap!