So You Think You Can Destiel

So I was thinking to myself, self, you haven't written very many just sweet happy things lately, I've been all cruel and death and doom and gloom. So I was like, self, you should somehow someday write something that will just make people happy. Just to prove you are capable of that. And then I was like, well self, I should do that, and when I think of a good one I will. And then I was in the car and this song came on the radio and it was so slow and pretty and because I used to watch a lot of So You Think You Can Dance, an image of people dancing came to me, and then I was like hmmmm AU? Since I haven't really done many, I think I've done maybe one. So I was like, self, that is a fantastic idea. And this was born. I haven't watched SYTYCD in a while, so I'm going old school with the style of the show, I know they keep changing it, but I liked it best like this. And I'm obviously not a dancer, so don't expect much fancy talk. ALSO, this story is rated T for now, that is subject to change as I may decide on an M, we'll just see how it goes. Comment and let me know what ya want. I'm sorry for the ramble, enjoy. And don't forget to review, it makes my heart sing almost as much as Destiel.

Chapter One: Lost in Just One Yesterday

Castiel-

Castiel stood on the wings of the stage, his heart pounding all throughout him. He felt like it was going to pound out of his feet and leave him, marching away through the ground he stood on. His feet were bare, his shirt was gone, he wore only loose fitting pants and a nervous grimace. His hands were loose by his side but the clenched and unclenched randomly, he wiped his hands on his pants and jittered around, switching from foot to foot. They called him on stage, and a woman with a headset gestured him forward.

"Castiel Novak" A British voice sounded. The floor felt slightly grimy and cold on his feet, the lights were blinding, and the temperature suddenly climbed one thousand degrees and roasted him alive.

"Umm . . . hi." he said nervously, wringing his hands in front of him a bit, and then realizing that made him look even more nervous and he forced himself to lower his hands.

"Well aren't you just a cutie!" Mary exclaimed in her shrill voice, earning an uproar from the audience. He felt like he blushed from head to toe.

"Thank you." He said politely.

"So, Castiel, why do you want to be on this show?"

"D-dancing is my passion sir. I've been dancing since I could walk, and I'm going to keep dancing until I can't walk anymore. It's what I'm good at." Nigel grunted and gestured towards the center of the stage.

"Very well, go on." Now was his moment. Castiel felt like the world was on fire around him. He took a shaky breath to steady himself, and then another, and another. He closed his eyes and tried his hardest to cancel out the audience, to cancel out everything. The lights, the judges, the cameras. It was just him and the song now, the music would carry him, as it always did.

Castiel always thought of it this way, he could fly. Castiel could fly. But only when the right song was on. A song that had meaning, a song that he could feel. It was his super power. He waited for his song to come on. Choosing the song had been difficult. He wanted a song that could showcase his ability, but more than anything his personality. He wanted a song that told who he was to everyone, leaving him like a book that had just been opened. He felt like it was worse than stripping naked. He was literally telling the world who he was. He clenched his fists one last time. It was time to show the world himself.

The slow melody of the song came on, he fell into it, breezing across the stage and losing himself in the music. Lost by Katy Perry. He was dubious about choosing a Katy Perry song, but out of all his options he felt like it fit him right at this moment. He felt lost, he always felt lost, but he felt lost now more than ever. He felt like he didn't know where he was going, or what he was doing with his life. He felt like after his father had left, part of Castiel had been taken with him. He felt like when his brothers left a few years later, even more of Castiel was taken. Then, when he eventually left, it shattered him. The thing about leaving home, for most people, is that there is always a home to go back to. For Castiel, there never would be. This was it, he was out on his own, and he was lost.

The music came to a stop, and he stood on the stage, breathing heavily. It was only as the crowd erupted into a cacophony of cheers that he was brought back to earth, he realized he was crying. He wiped the tears from his face, embarrassed and gasping for air. He stepped forward towards the mic, smiling at the applause. If nothing else happened in his life, this was enough. He would always remember this moment, the lights shining down on him, everyone in the room clapping and whooping and cheering him on, cheering for who he was,because that's what he had shown them.

"Castiel, do you feel lost?" Nigel asked. His chest constricted. This is where they wanted him to spill his guts on the stage, and he didn't want to do it, he could do it through dance, but actually speaking the words was so much more painful.

"I . . . I always feel lost sir. I feel like all of life is us stumbling from one safe house to the next, trying not to be lost, but being lost all along." Mary and Mia nodded along in empathy, but Nigel just smiled.

"Well, I guess we'd better get someone help you find the way to Vegas then! COME GET YOUR TICKET!" Castiel's face split into a grin and he rushed forward to snatch that oh so coveted piece of paper, he couldn't help the laugh that bubbled forth from his lips as he clutched his next safe house in his hands. Maybe now, he wouldn't have to be as lost.

Dean-

As the little man stepped on stage Dean nudged his buddy, Ash.

"He's tiny dude. No way his legs are long enough for some of the crap they're going to put us through." Ash laughed and nodded. The music started and Dean screwed his face up. "What kind of shit is this?"

"Ugh I think it's that . . . that Katy Perry chick."

"Gross." Dean retorted. But as the man started to move on stage, Dean found he was lost too. He was swallowed up by the song and was right there with the man, feeling all the pain he felt. The way he moved somehow translated emotions better than any words ever could. He was a contemporary dancer, the fact was already made obvious by his lack of clothing or shoes, but Dean felt like he shouldn't be categorized like that, the style of contemporary dance had too many rules for this man, the way he danced was so much more than just contemporary. When Dean noticed the man starting to cry, he felt his eyes burn, and had to blink several times to bring himself back down to earth. When the man was through and the applause exploded around him, Dean couldn't help but joining in. Everyone stared at the man, awe-struck. "Damn. Okay, I take it back. That was incredible." He said, his voice coming out a bit more groggy than he would like to admit, he cleared his throat.

"It was amazing." Sammy chimed in, mouth open in awe.

"There are no words for it. I feel gay for loving it as much as I did." Ash exclaimed, staring at the stage in a dazed sort of way. Dean shook his head.

"Nah man, it's not gay. He was showcasing human emotion in the best way possible." Ash gave him a look.

"Maybe you're the gay one." Dean punched him lightly in the arm.

"So what if I was?" He asked, only half serious. Ash just laughed and shrugged.

"Guess you'd beat me up if I said anything anyway, so I won't say shit. Dude I think you're going soon, you should probably get up there." Dean nodded, jogging towards the stage.

Some people would probably be nervous at this moment. Some people would be shaking a bit, sweating, feeling their heart beat faster. Dean was not those people. Dean was confident, in a way that could be seen as arrogance, but he didn't really care. Dean knew he was a good dancer, and relished the chance to share his immense skills with everyone around him. He wondered briefly if that other guy had been nervous, he hadn't gotten his name when he'd gone up. Something like Cats? He wasn't too sure, the names of the contestants were flying in one ear and out the other, only a few truly remarkable dancers had stuck in his mind, Cats (or whatever his name was) was the best so far. Well, Dean himself had yet to dance, and that's probably why.

"Dean Winchester!" Nigel called. Dean took a deep breath, bounced on the balls of his feet, and walked- no, strutted onto the stage.

"Hi!" He said, smiling his most charming of smiles.

"What's your story Dean?" Nigel asked him, waiting for his "sob" story that would win him points with the audience. Dean had spent a lot of time thinking about how he was going to do this. Did he want to reveal his entire life to these people? To strangers? He wasn't the kind of person to talk about his feelings, and he certainly didn't like going over his painful history. He felt like it was as if he had gotten a tooth pulled, and he kept running over the empty space with his tongue. But he knew how to win, he had watched So You Think You Can Dance enough times to know, the winner was always a fantastic dancer- with a sob story. It wins sympathy from the audience. So, he decided he'd do what had to be done.

"I grew up with a dead beat dad, he beat me and my little brother, Sammy." The audience gasped, and leaned forward, hungry for juicy details. "Well I came home one day and Sammy was half dead on the floor, I did what I had to do and made him leave, I took care of Sammy, and unfortunately that meant falling in with the wrong people. I joined a gang that was supposed to keep the neighborhood safe, keep Sammy safe, but instead it just landed me in jail. In jail and on the streets I learned how to break dance and krump, and then when I got out and cleaned up I became a janitor for a dance studio and got free lessons on the weekends." He paused and licked his lips, feeling like he was confessing his sins. "Dancing is so much more than just a hobby to me. Dancing is an escape, it pulled me out of the darkest part of my life and pushed me to where I need to be, which is here."

The audience clapped, cheering him on.

"Very well then, show us why you're here." Dean went back to the middle of the stage, and waited. After a few seconds his music came on. He had picked a hip hop remix of "Just One Yesterday" by Fall Out Boy that Ash had remixed for him. His musical taste was odd, he liked rock music, but he danced hip hop, so he was always finding new ways to combine the two. This song had special meaning to him. If he could go back and change the mistakes he'd made in the past, leaving Sammy by himself because of his stupid choices, he would. He would trade all his tomorrows for a day before he had chosen to join that gang. He let the beat move him across the stage, popping, doing all his tricks that wowed everyone, combining hip hop, break dancing, and krumping in one dazzling show of skill. He had mastered all three styles, the judges had to be convinced that he could master anything he set his mind to by the end of this one. He didn't get absorbed in the song, per say, he was too busy focusing on the technique. He planted his feet on the ground and did that move that always made people shout, the one where he twisted around and put his head through his legs and started crawling back and forth like a crab. He grinned a goofy grin, and untwisted himself as the song came to an end. Break dancing was all about putting on a show.

He stepped up to the middle of the stage, breathing heavily.

"Dean where is your brother now?" Nigel asked him.

"He's here, with my buddy Ash."

"Can you call him up to the stage please? I'd like to meet him!" Dean made eye contact with Sammy in the audience, apologizing in advance. He had been cool with selling his story to the public, but he was trying to avoid selling Sammy's.

"Sammy come on buddy!" Sam gave him his worst bitchface as he climbed the stairs to the stage, and stood nervously in front of everyone. The audience cheered again and Dean grinned, clapping his brother on his back. Sam towered over him but that didn't stop Dean from feeling protective.

"Whoa I thought he was your little brother Dean!" Mary announced, looking around for the audience's reaction. Everyone laughed. Dean smiled.

"He is, I just accidentally fed him miracle grow once when we were kids." More laughter.

"Young man, what do you think of your brother's dancing?" Nigel asked Sam. Sam stepped up to the microphone and mumbled,

"I think he's incredible." There was a pause.

"We think so too! COME GET YOUR GOLDEN TICKET!" Sammy actually whooped and cheered and hugged Dean, laughing in joy with him as Dean rushed forward to grab the coveted piece of paper. This was it, he was in.