Originally called: The Chase, but I was going to go with, "The Devil Made me do it" :D
This is for -wondersmith tumblr. It is for the word prompt contest. My word was "Chase"
Here we go...
Dean did not just have it all; he finally had everything he had ever wanted.
He was woken up the next morning by a firm hand shaking him. Dean opened one eye and looked in the direction of his lover.
"Good morning, Dean," Castiel held out his arm, and Dean took the invitation. "and Happy Birthday." Cas held Dean in his arms, and Dean sank into his welcoming body. Cas pushed Dean, and he got up to his feet. He awkwardly stood in the silence, scratched the back of his neck and took something out of his pocket.
"It isn't much of a present," He showed Dean a pair of necklaces, "I just thought that it would be a good match for the two of us. It isn't exactly easy to keep track of you, and I always want to be there for you." He hopped on the bed and crawled behind Dean. He then took the necklace and placed it around the older Winchester's neck.
"Thanks Cas," He placed a kiss on Castiel's lips, "But what do you mean, keeping track of me?" Dean looked at the necklace; it had an amulet in the shape of a beetle, which was an interesting shade of black, shinier than the amulet that was already hanging on his neck.
"A beetle symbolizes protection; I will always be able to be there for you. I am never going to leave you, and this is just something to show my eternal adoration."
"That means forever Cas," Dean looked at the angel, noticing a sparkle in his blue eyes.
"It means forever Dean." Castiel stared right into Dean's eyes, with pure certainty, simply to prove his point.
Dean had never been more sure of anything.
Castiel had never been more human than now, though he was still physically an angel. He stayed on earth, starting a new life with Dean. After spending years by Dean's side, Dean had given up hunting to settle down with Castiel.
No vampires, no ghosts, no demons, no distractions, and as far as this goes, Dean was living the perfect life.
"How do you want to spend your birthday today?" Cas asked, after a long moment of silence.
"I was just thinking about spending it with you. I don't really know if I want to leave the house today."
"Perfect, I'll get the popcorn." Cas jumped out of bed and started heading to the kitchen.
"Cas, Cas, Cas!" He grabbed the angels' arm, "I mean that the two of us can just lie here," he stared at the angel square in the face, "together."
Castiel had finally taken the hint which he took Dean in his arms, where Dean fell asleep, letting the day slip by.
Dean's dreams had started off the same way as the old dreams. He began walking around in his dreams, often ending up in a park to sit on the bench and just think. When he found his familiar bench, he then closed his eyes and listened to the wind.
"Dean Winchester, fancy meeting you here." Dean turned to his right side, and saw his brother, staring at him with eyes that judged him.
"Sam," he began breathlessly. "Wha—What are you doing here?"
"Good guess, Dean, but I'm not exactly your brother."
Dean stared gravely at the creature using his brother's body.
"I'm not going to let you stare at this gorgeous body that I have all the right to use, Dean. Don't worry; I'm not here to hurt you."
"Lucifer."
"Bingo kid. But hear me out."
"How are you out?"
"I'm not, but I'm not going to be trapped forever." He turned his body to face Dean, to look Dean in the eyes, "But I'm here as a warning. I'll just cut to the chase. I do not think it is fair for you to have this life, and it doesn't come with a price."
"I lost my brother, isn't that payment enough?"
"But it isn't just you being affect Dean. I stopped wreaking havoc on earth; angels and demons are calm and are placed back where they belong. Even creatures have stopped. It seems as though the world is in a standstill, and yet here you are. You stand still in your perfect life. I've given up, yet to me, it just doesn't seem fair."
"What?"
"I'm saying give it all up. You want the earth to not have a trace of hell and destruction, give up Castiel."
Dean stared. What else was he supposed to say? What could he say?
"No."
"Dean, I knew you wouldn't agree." Lucifer leaned in closer, "You've already lost so much." He stood back up and turned his back to the Winchester. "But you're staring at me right now, aren't you prepared to hear what I'm going to do?"
Dean watched as Lucifer turned around and smirked at him. "I can escape the cage. And what you have done to me and Michael, we're going to be stronger, and we are willing to wreak havoc on this planet. We don't need the apocalypse; we can do it with our own hands. The destruction on the earth will leave it destroyed beyond repair. Believe me Winchester you haven't seen anything we are capable of doing."
"You are asking me to give up the one person I have left."
"A person, no. Creature, belonging back to his rightful place, yes. Send him home, Dean." He walked behind the Winchester and leaned closer to his ear, "All we're asking is for you to get rid of any traces of the celestial creatures."
Dean shot up from his slumber and looked around the room, be as it may, he was still in Castiel's arms. Castiel was astounded to see Dean's face covered in sweat and worry. He reached over and wiped Dean's forehead with his sleeve.
Dean just closed his eyes to feel the caress on his face.
The following day, as Dean was heading to work, he could hear rustling in the bushes. Being paranoid, he decided to check was it was and looked into the bushes. As he suspected, nothing was there, but as soon as he turned around he was attacked to the ground by a man with dark eyes.
Dean opened his eyes, and he was standing next to his car, as he was before.
He sat at his desk, as it was a quiet, slow day at work today. He decided to rest his head on his right hand and tap his pen with his other hand.
"Dean," he turned around a saw a little girl in blood-stained clothing looking at him. "Don't you remember me?"
Dean shot up from his desk and almost fell over his chair. He looked around his office to not find any trace of the little girl.
Dean ran to the bathroom, where his breath was letting out traces of ice cold mist. He went to the sink, washed his face and stared at the mirror.
First it would be hallucinations, then what?
He walked back to his desk, packed his belongings and headed over to his car. He rested his head on the wheel.
He was back to having the weight of the world on his shoulders.
But all he had to do was give everything up.
Dean turned the engine on and drove off.
Castiel had the day off today, and he went to the store and was preparing Dean a meal. Today would be lasagna. He was even going to try and make garlic bread from scratch today.
Castiel smiled eagerly at the sauce he was making. He had never thought that being human would be rewarding.
He started to lay the plates on the table and sat in front of the TV to wait for Dean. He looked at the clock, which had said 7:47pm. Every day Dean was home before eight, and Castiel had time to watch a bit of television.
Eight o'clock turned to nine. Cas had began dozing off, and headed to the window. He looked outside to see if the Winchester had parked in their driveway.
"Dean," he looked around and held the tears. "Where are you?"
Dean had been gone for days. Castiel began looking for him. First Castiel began on foot, and then he started to use his angelic powers to transport back and forth.
Ever since the end of the apocalypse, he hasn't gone back to using his powers. But when it came to looking for Dean, he was useless without them.
Not once had he seen Dean.
He promised the Winchester that he would not be using his power anymore.
Castiel stopped in his tracks and started walking again. Even to his absent lover, he was still going to be loyal.
Dean held the amulet on his neck firmly in his hands, and pulled it off. He looked at it, while it glimmered in the sunlight. Castiel was not to find Dean. Not now, not ever.
Tears welled in his eyes.
He closed his eyes and closed his hand to fist, leaning his head back on the headrest of his Impala.
He stuck his hand out of the window, and threw the necklace outside.
If this was the one item to lead Cas to Dean, he was to get rid of it.
"Bobby, I tried to call him. I even tried to track him down with my powers, but obviously that isn't working."
"Cas," Bobby, leaned back in his chair, and pressed the temple his nose to the hand that was resting on the arm rest. "Lucky for you, the boy isn't as clever when it comes to hiding his tracks from me." He pulled up a site on his computer and showed the angel. "San Francisco California, his car was last seen there."
In a heartbeat, the angel ran out of the house, and used his power to transport him immediately to where he needed to be.
"Fuck." Dean looked outside the window of a diner he was sitting in from the sight he had seen outside.
Castiel was looking in the window of his Impala.
"How the hell?" He contemplated getting up from his seat, but he couldn't stop staring at him.
It's been weeks.
He missed the way that Castiel would make him laugh from the occasions that he doesn't fully understand what is going on.
He missed how much Cas would be anxious for Dean to come home that they can watch stupid television shows together.
He missed how Castiel would hold him tightly in his arms, saying that everything is to be alright.
Castiel knew this was Dean's car. Bobby wouldn't lie to him, proof was on the computer.
And yet, he couldn't find any sign of the Winchester.
Dean couldn't go anywhere without his car.
Castiel decided to stay near the car at all times.
But what if Dean had already left?
Dean sat in his chair and saw how much Castiel had pondered to stay or go from his body language.
He knew him too much.
But Castiel knew him too.
He headed out of the restaurant through the back entrance.
If Castiel wasn't going to leave him, he was going to leave Castiel.
Castiel checked his watch and saw that he had been standing here for hours.
For Dean however, he was willing to wait years.
Angel's don't age. Of course we know that.
Castiel was wiping the table in the diner he worked at. It was already closing time, and if he was to get home and actually eat dinner tonight, he had to get the tables cleaned.
"Castiel! You can go home now, I bet the tables are cleaner than they should be." Mark, his boss, yelled from the kitchen.
Castiel hopped into the Impala and drove it home. Tonight, he wasn't really going to eat. It was just something, some ritual, he had always been doing for years.
He would go home, cook dinner.
And wait till eight o'clock.
If Dean was to finally come home tonight, he wanted to make sure that he had food waiting for him.
As Castiel did his normal ritual, his vessel had stopped moving, he was forced into shock.
He fell to the floor.
"What do you mean I can't leave?"
"Castiel, it has been years." Joshua looked from the roses that he was watering. "You have no purpose on earth anymore."
"Joshua," Castiel took a deep breath, "I have been taking care of the Winchesters."
"Winchester." He then turned to face Castiel, "And have you seen him?"
"He is out there somewhere. For some reason, even with my powers, I cannot find him."
"Then he is not there."
"Joshua, please!"
"Castiel," Joshua turned his body to face Castiel, and stared directly into his eyes. "The answer is no." He then touched Castiel's forehead, and Castiel was back into his own heaven.
The lush green pastures, the blue skies, and the birds chirping. His heaven had never looked more perfect.
And yet, it had never felt emptier.
It was true, it had been years since he had heard from Dean. He avoided any mention of loss. He stopped tracking him down, when he had finished circling the earth, trying to find any sign of Dean.
No, he had used his power. Even if Dean was missing, he wanted to maintain his loyalty.
No, he was not to believe otherwise.
Castiel had not budged from where Joshua had placed him, right in the center of the grass field. He let out a long sigh, and turned when he heard a rustling in the bushes.
"Cas?" A familiar, gruff, voice had called out.