Characters: Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester, Castiel, Charlie Bradbury, Anna Milton, Benny

Pairings: Dean/Castiel

AU: Plague/Victorian (IE: themes from Dishonored, such as character and storyline similarities)

Warnings: Violence, mild language

Word count: Overall: 9,434 This chapter: 1,018

Summary: Dean, the bodyguard of the empress, sets out to stop the plague, and finds a little love along the way.

Chapter 1: The rat plague

A young man stood by a closed door.
He had been standing there for most of the day.

The door flew open and a red-haired woman exited. She glanced at him and offered a smile.
He smiled in return, and followed after her.

"Where are we off to, my Lady?" He asked curiously.
She looked up at him, "You can call me by my name, you know, Dean."
He nodded in reply.
"I have decisions to make, regarding the city." She explained.
Dean nodded as he walked by her side.

They were stopped by a young, dark-haired man. He stood up straight, his arms to his side.
"Permission to speak, your Majesty?"
The Empress nodded, "Granted."

Dean shuttered as the man's stern, blue-eyed gaze met his.
"The Lord Regent would like to speak with you. He says it's important."
The Empress frowned, "I see. Tell him I'm on my way."
Although he looked displeased, the man nodded.

Without saying anything more, he left the two.
Dean's eyes followed after him for a moment, and then he followed after the Empress.

Dean stood by the door which lead to the Lord Regent's office.

As he waited, the door opened, the young man from earlier slipped out.
"Hey," Dean called after him.
He stopped and turned towards Dean, "Hm?"

Dean walked towards him, "You're in the military, right?"
He nodded slowly, "Yes. What's it to you?"
"What's your name?"
"Brigadier Novak." He responded.
Dean was somewhat impressed, "Brigadier, huh? Aren't you a bit young for that?"
"You should show me some respect."
Dean smirked, "Oh, yeah? I could take you."
"Wanna bet?" He stood up straight.

Dean cleared his throat, "Where are you off to in such a hurry?"
Novak sighed, "Important business."
"Oh? What kind of important business?" Dean asked almost mockingly.
Novak glanced around, "You seem trustworthy," He murmured, and stepped closer to Dean.
Dean looked away awkwardly.
"Have you heard about the recent death outbreak?" Novak inquired.
Dean shook his head, "I was aware of a few deaths, but not that it was an outbreak."
Novak nodded, "We've had six victims this week. All the same symptoms."
"So... what do you think it is? Is it a natural illness?"
He sighed, "I don't know. Look, don't mention it to anyone else."

Dean finally looked at him and their eyes met.
They stared at one another.
Novak furrowed his brows, and turned to walk away.

After he was gone, Dean cleared his throat.
"Weird." He muttered, and returned to his waiting position.

Two weeks had come to pass, and the body count went up.
They had started calling the illness 'the rat plague'.

The Empress was busier than usual, meaning Dean was as well.

"My Lady," Dean started, "Just slow down for a moment."
She shook her head, "You know I can't do that. Things need to get done."
"With all due respect, Miss-"
"Dean. I'm not in the mood."
Dean nodded his head to the side, "With all due respect, your Majesty, you're not at your best when you're rushing around."

She stopped and faced him, "With all due respect, Winchester, you are a bodyguard, not a physician. And I suggest you do your job."
He nodded slowly.
She sighed, "I'm sorry. It's just- with everything going on. It isn't right."
Dean cocked his head, "It's a plague, Miss, of course it isn't right."
She looked at him with wary eyes, "That's not what I meant. You see, this plague? Things aren't adding up."

Dean was silent for a moment.

"Have you seen Brigadier Novak? I haven't seen him for a while"
The Empress frowned, "No, he... he was discharged last week."
Dean was surprised, "What, why?"
"See, he was a bit of a rebel; he refused to serve under the Lord Regent."
He nodded slowly, "I see... do you know where he went after he left?"
"No, I'm afraid I don't. Why are you taking so worried about him?" She paused and smirked, "Have you... taken interest in him?"

Dean raised an eyebrow, "What? He seemed to know something about the plague. What do you mean by 'taken an interest'?"
The Empress laughed through her nose, but said nothing more.

"Oh, Dean," She started, "Will you excuse me? I need a change of clothes, there is a 'royal dinner' tonight."
Dean nodded with a smile, "Of course, my Lady."

Dean waited on the main floor for a short time, and then made his way back to the Empress' quarters.

He knocked on the door, "Miss? May I come in?"
There was no reply.
"Miss?" He called louder this time.
Still no reply.

He paused, "I'm coming in." He said loudly, but as he tried to open the door, he found it locked.
He braced himself and rammed the door with his shoulder.

As soon as he entered the room, his heart nearly stopped.
The Empress lied sprawled on the floor.
"Charlie?!" He exclaimed as he crouched beside her.
He put his hand on her neck; there was a pulse.

Frantic, he scooped her up in his arms, and darted out of the room.

He finally found the Empress' personal doctor, and left her with him.
"What happened to her?" The another guard demanded.
"I don't know!" Dean spat.
"You're the one who found her, surely you saw something!"
Dean shot him a look.

The large doors flew open, and the Lord Regent entered with three whatchmen following behind.
"That's the man!" He exclaimed.
Dean stood up, "What's going on?!"
"This is the man who poisoned the Empress!"
"Why would I bring her here if I tried to kill her?!"
The Lord Regent stepped aside, "Felt guilty about your actions, no doubt. Take him away."

Without warning, two of the watchmen took Dean by the arms.
He started to struggle, but the third watchmen struck the back of his head with his cane.

The watchmen followed the Lord Regent out of the palace.
They stopped at the bridge, and threw Dean's unconscious body over the side.
"That should take care of the bastard." The Lord Regent smirked.