A/N: Me again. *waves* Here's the next chapter. I'm going to warn you now: THERE IS DEATH. DEATH OCCURS. THIS IS NOT HAPPY. If any feels are damaged, I apologise. I also apologise for any spelling/grammar errors, since no one else has looked this over.

Warnings: DEATH. Also blood.

For an agonising second, nothing happened. No one moved or spoke. The sound of his heart beating wildly was all Cas could make out.

Then all hell broke loose.

A sudden bang and a harsh, wet cough were enough to bring the angel out of his thoughts. Although he wished to hell that it hadn't. Cas' head whipped round in time to see Sam's knees give way, as he fell harshly to the concrete floor. Even without his grace at full, Cas was by the hunter's side in the blink of an eye, gripping his shoulders to prevent him toppling over. One of his hands left Sam's face in favour of lifting his chin up, so frantic blue eyes could meet fading brown ones.

Castiel didn't have to be a soldier to know a mortal wound when he saw one.

Sure, he'd seen people die before. He came from heaven for crying out loud, not to mention the fact that he was hardly innocent when it came to bloodshed. Yet out of all those losses, be they justified or not, the pain he felt then paled in comparison to what he felt now. The ache in his chest was so great, that he briefly thought that he had been stabbed too. If someone had told him all those years ago that he would weep for Sam Winchester, then he would've scoffed and walked on by. In the beginning, he'd made no attempt to hide his disgust or disinterest in "the abomination", allowing his prejudice for demons guide his thoughts.

However, as time went on, Castiel let his eyes be opened. From the Apocalypse to the Leviathan to the trials, and everything in between, the boy stopped being "Dean's little brother" and became "Sam Winchester": kind, caring, selfless and strong, with his sheer faith in others and his drive to carry on always managing to astound the angel.

Sam had went from being someone Cas treat no better than the ground upon his father's creation, to loving him like a younger brother (nowhere near as strong as Dean's love, but that would be an impossible feat).

Cas stared into the man's eyes, unsure of how to proceed. The ever logical part of his brain was telling him that there was nothing to be done, however the newly found Winchester inside of him was blocking that voice out. "Sam? Look at me…just, uh…stay with me okay? Everything'll be fine and uh… w-we can get you to a hospital and-"

"Cas. Stop"

The faint voice was enough to bring him out of his ramblings, as he paused and studied the human in front of him. Colour was rapidly draining from Sam's face, the dark shadows under his eyes making him seem weary and impossibly old; well beyond his 32 years. Blood was pouring out of his chest at an alarming rate, and each blink taking longer than the last. "This is it. I'm not going anywhere."

"Don't be stupid Sam, we can try-"

"Enough." Sam struggled to take a wheezing breath, before continuing "I'm done for, and we both know it." Another breath "Cas…you need to finish the cure. You need to save him." Of course, he didn't have to specify who he was, they were both painfully aware. "Please man, I..I'm begging you. You've got the vials of blood, the rest is up to you". Seeing the younger man's growing distress, Castiel moved him with the same gentleness one would give a new-born, until Sam was lying on his back with his head in the angel's lap, his face contorted with pain.

As a coughing fit shook him, he felt a hand wipe something sticky from the corner of his mouth, thinking for a moment that the tender touch belonged to his elder brother. In a way, it did.

"Sam, I.. I am so sorry. My grace, it's… I can't…"

"It's okay. You got nothing to apologise for Cas. You did what you could." Both men were at this point trying to stop the flow of tears that threatened to fall. Both were failing miserably. "Just...don't tell Dean what happened. It would destroy him."

Knowing that he was right, it took only a few moments for Castiel to agree.

"Thank you Cas. For everything" Sam managed in a soft whisper, emphasising the final word, hoping the angel knew just what the friendship they'd shared had meant to him. He needn't have worried, as Cas gave him a small smile in return.

"Thank you Sam, it's been an honour."

Castiel could only watch on through his tears as Sam returned his smile, before his eyes fell shut for the final time.

A/N: *hides* It hurt to kill of my favourite character. It really did.
There's probably going to be just 1 more chapter after this, but I may split it depending on the length. Thanks for reading, and again, feel free to review telling me if you liked it. See ya for the (possible) final chapter :3