Just the Two of Us
"I wish I could forget about him! After what he did? And you know what he can do. This is our only play."
Castiel had enough.
"Where. Is. Jack?" he ground out, looking between Sam and Dean for an answer. Dean clenched his jaw and said nothing. Sam looked nervously to Dean then looked away guiltily, unable to meet his eyes, and said nothing, too. Castiel shook his head in disappointment and disbelief; a part of him was still shocked that they could stoop so low.
"Fine, I'll find him myself." He turned to leave but Dean grabbed his arm to stop him. Castiel didn't hesitate. He whirled around, breaking the hold Dean had on his arm, and pressed two fingers against Dean's forehead, eyes glowing blue with grace; Dean fell to the floor, unconscious. Before Sam could react, he did the same thing and Sam slumped forward on the table.
He was getting Jack out of here—now—and no one was going to stop him.
Castiel left the kitchen and headed to where the Ma'lak box had been last. As he drew closer to the room, he started hearing the sounds of banging and Jack's pleading voice calling out for Sam and Dean; asking if they were still there, where they went, when they would come back for him. Castiel's heart broke and hardened all at once at the sheer cruelty of leaving Jack trapped there all alone.
"Jack? Jack!" Castiel called out as he opened the door to the room, eyes immediately landing on the box; he hurried over to it.
"Cas?" He heard Jack's muffled voice ask in response, frantic and panicked. "Can you let me out, please? I don't like it in here. I don't want to be in here anymore."
"Just hold on, Jack." Castiel undid the locks and opened the box. Jack sat up at once and Castiel instantly enveloped him in a hug; Jack returned it shakily, burying his face in Castiel's neck. Finally, they pulled away from each other, though; Castiel still held onto one of Jack's shoulders.
"They..." Jack looked so confused; unable to comprehend what just happened. "They locked me in there. They said it was to help me. That they were going to fix my soul. But..." Jack's look of confusion grew deeper and he frowned, looking to Castiel helplessly. "I don't think they were."
"No, Jack," Castiel said, his voice shaky as he wondered how he could possibly explain all of this to Jack—that the Winchesters, that people who were supposed to be his family, their family, had tricked him into this box and that they were going to keep him locked in it forever—let alone explain all of it without hurting him even more. "They weren't. They..."
"They aren't ever going to forgive me, are they?" Jack interrupted in a soft whisper, voice trembling.
Castiel swallowed; he honestly didn't know himself. "Maybe... Maybe they won't." Jack looked stricken, so Castiel continued on quickly. "But maybe they will. It might just take time. But for now..." Castiel gently grabbed Jack by both shoulders and looked him firmly but kindly in the eye, trying to convey just how sincere he was. "I love you, Jack, and I forgive you, and I am still your family, no matter what. I will always be."
Castiel could see his words starting to break through to Jack, though; uncertainty still showed on his face. "Do you trust me, Jack?" Castiel knew it was a lot to ask of Jack after everything he'd just been through; lied to and manipulated by both Heaven and the Winchesters—a position that, sadly, Castiel was all too familiar with himself. And Jack didn't even know about the former yet; Castiel dreaded to tell him of Dumah's deception, too. But he hoped—he had faith—that Jack would be able to see into him and know that what he was telling him was the truth and that it wasn't just another lie and manipulation.
Jack studied his face intently. Eventually, Jack's posture relaxed and his expression softened; he nodded his head slowly. "I trust you."
"Good." Castiel offered Jack a small smile of reassurance and squeezed his shoulders lightly. Then, he released his grip on Jack's shoulders to offer him a hand out of the box; Jack took the proffered hand and climbed out.
"Why don't we go somewhere else, somewhere safe? Just the two of us?" Castiel asked.
Jack smiled. "I'd like that."
Castiel smiled back.
There was still so much to worry about: Sam and Dean, Bobby and his hunters, Heaven and its angels, Jack's soul and the lack thereof, but... They had each other and that was all that mattered.