A/N: So, part two. Dean's POV this time. Don't expect a third chapter; this is a two-shot and it's staying that way.


Dean paces back and forth at the bus stop, checking the time on his phone every two minutes. The bus was supposed to be here already.

Sam took the Impala with him when he left last Thursday, something about a shapeshifter in North Dakota. Two days later, Dean heard of a man in a dirty trench coat healing terminal illnesses in a hospital in Iowa.

He doesn't know what Castiel's up to, but he knows he has to be in Iowa immediately. Thus he resorts to public transportation.

The bus stop is mostly empty, save for one woman on a bench. She glances up from her book every now and then, eyes raking him up and down.

What the hell is Castiel doing in Iowa? He talked about healing people before, but now he's on the run with the angel tablet and causing miracles isn't exactly inconspicuous. The last time Dean saw Castiel, Dean was bloodied and bruised on the floor of Lucifer's crypt, and Castiel hovered over him with an Angelsword.

Dean still doesn't understand much of what happened, but he doesn't blame Castiel. He knows Castiel. He knows Castiel would never…

Castiel couldn't make that final blow. Castiel couldn't, Castiel wouldn't kill Dean. Would he?

Three years ago, Dean would never have doubted Castiel. Castiel saved Dean from Hell. Castiel fell from Heaven for him. Castiel fought at his side.

Dean trusts Castiel, without hesitation. Castiel is his best friend, his family, his soul mate. Castiel is his angel.

He was never afraid of Castiel before. But in that crypt, Dean felt his hands shake, felt his heart pound. He was positively terrified.

Not for death, exactly. Been there done that, after all. Dean was afraid that Castiel would really do it, really kill him. Dean was afraid that Castiel was capable of shattering their bond so fully. If Castiel could kill Dean, it would mean the bond was never that strong to begin with. It would mean the Castiel who raised him from perdition was gone. It would mean there was no hope for Castiel. And that terrified Dean.

If anything, the experience has reaffirmed his faith in Castiel. He doesn't feel betrayed, not really. Dean understands that Castiel was possessed, even if he doesn't know the details. He's angry at whoever this Naomi chick is, but he can't be angry at Cas.

He was angry at Cas, really angry after the whole Purgatory business. But then Cas was dead and Dean just felt this hole in his chest that burned hot and ached cold and he doesn't ever want to feel like that again.

Castiel died still thinking Dean was angry with him. Dean can't ever let that happen again.

That's why Dean has to find him now. Cas has run off with the angel tablet, and he probably thinks Dean is angry or hurt or something. So Dean has to find his angel and set the story straight.

He has to tell him that he could never be angry with Castiel, not anymore. It took a year in Purgatory for Dean to realize it. But seeing Cas like that, covered in dirt, machete in hand, it made Dean realize a lot of things.

Dean would do anything for Castiel.

If that means taking a bus at five in the morning to Nowhere, Iowa, then he'll work with it.

He checks his phone again. The bus is seventeen minutes late now.

"Which bus are you waiting for?"

He spins, hand going to his belt for his gun. But it's just the woman on the bench. Dean was so lost in his thoughts he'd forgotten she was there.

"Uh, the one headed for Iowa."

She laughs a little. "Really? I just got back from Iowa. I'm headed home now."

He breathes a laugh. "What a coincidence."

"My name's Kate," she says.

"Dean." He rakes a hand through his hair, goes back to his pacing.

"So why Iowa?"

He shrugs. "I might ask the same of you."

"I was headed for Oregon, when something… changed my mind, you might say." She smiles slightly, like there's a joke he doesn't quite get.

Frankly, Dean doesn't care. Finding Castiel matters most right now, finding him and bringing him home.

"You remind me of a man I met on the bus, actually," she says. Damn, this lady is nosy.

He glares at her a little. "Sorry, I'm kind of busy right here."

She laughs outright then. "He said that too."

Dean really doesn't give a fuck about some stranger she met on a bus. Hell, she's a stranger to him. All he wants is to get to Iowa. He should never have let Sammy take the Impala. Public transportation sucks.

He considers stealing a car, but he's not really in the mood. He's stressed and tired and grumpy and all he wants is to curl up in a bus seat and take a nap.

He wonders if Cas is all right. He worries that he isn't. God, if Castiel is in trouble, Dean doesn't know what he'll do.

Kate insists on making conversation, though, and so he grunts responses and keeps checking his phone.

Eventually, Kate says, "You should come and sit down. Pacing won't make the bus come any faster."

He's seriously considering shooting her in the head. Instead he sits down.

"So, why the rush? What's so important in Iowa?"

Dean can lie his way out of any situation, but again, he's in a foul mood. "My friend ran out on me and now I have to go catch up with him."

"Why'd he leave?"

He doesn't know why he's telling her this. "He fucked up, really badly. And I think he thinks I'm angry at him now. I don't know why he left. I don't know what's going on. All I know is he was spotted in Iowa and I've got to go talk to him."

"Are you? Angry at him, I mean."

He looks up. "No! No, I'm not. It wasn't his fault."

"What did he do?"

Dean rolls his eyes, checks the time on his phone. "What's with the third degree, lady?"

"Sorry," she says immediately, cheeks coloring. "I didn't mean to pry. I'm just, you know, curious."

Dean hasn't even told Sam the details. Why should he tell a complete stranger?

Maybe the anonymity of it is good, better than talking with Sam. He can tell this woman anything without seeing that look of pity in her eyes. Without her pursuing the conversation a day, a week from now. He doesn't have any baggage when he's talking to her.

So he says, "He beat me up. Broke my arm and stuff."

Kate snaps up, eyes going wide. "What did you say your name was again?"

He raises an eyebrow. "Dean. Why?"

"Castiel. You're looking for Castiel, aren't you?"

Dean starts, jumps to his feet. His gun is out automatically and aimed at her heart. She screams and drops her book.

"Please don't hurt me, oh my God." Her hands are trembling, eyes wider even than before. "Oh my God, please don't shoot."

"How do you know him?" Dean growls. "What are you, a demon? Are you working for Crowley? What have you done to him?"

She stutters, trips over her words, her voice a mixture of fear and confusion. "I didn't- I don't know what you're talking about! I just sat next to him on a bus and he started talking about some guy named Dean and I thought, what are the chances? Oh God, please don't shoot me. I don't know anything!"

Dean believes her, so he lowers his gun. Then it sinks in that if she really is a regular human, he's probably scarred her for life. "Okay. I believe you."

She looks on the verge of tears. "What's going on? Why are you doing this?"

He steps towards her slowly, hands up to show they're empty. "I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. You've done nothing wrong."

"Then what's with the gun?" she says. She's starting to get hysterical, which is bad, because Dean can't afford a police inquiry right now.

"I-" He curses. This is an awful situation. "Cas is being trailed by some, uh, bad guys. I thought you might have been one of them. I'm just really worried about him."

"So you pulled a gun on me? Do you even have a license for that thing?"

"Just calm down, lady- Kate. I'm not going to hurt you. I just thought… Nevermind, forget what I thought. How do you know Cas?"

She chokes through a few breaths, but visibly begins to calm. "He and I were on the same bus. I struck up a conversation."

The Castiel Dean knows isn't likely to make conversation with a stranger. But then again, Castiel isn't a very common name. It has to be the same man. "He's about yea high, rumpled hair, absolutely no social skills? Talks like he's in a courtroom?"

"Yeah, that's- that's him. And you're his Dean, aren't you?"

Dean tenses up again. "What did he say about me?"

She stoops to pick up her book. "A lot, um. Sort of a long story. What did you mean, there are bad guys after him? He just said he was running from you."

Dean curses. "I knew it. Jesus, I need to get to Iowa."

"But, um, is he really Secret Service or whatever? He said some weird stuff, I don't know."

Dean laughs shakily. What has Castiel gone and told this woman? "Okay, let's start with the basics. What did he say about me?"

She's still shaking from the whole incident with the gun, but Kate manages a smile. "You're really him, aren't you?"

"Who?"

"The way he talked about you… Like nothing else mattered in the world but what you thought of him."

Dean drops his head into his hands. "He thinks I'm angry with him, doesn't he?"

"He seemed more… angry at himself? I don't know, he acted like he'd done a lot wrong and was trying to run from that."

"Yeah, that makes sense." Of course, Castiel would blame himself. He's probably wallowing in self-pity in Iowa.

"Are you in love with him?" she asks abruptly.

"What? What the hell kind of question is that?"

"You are, aren't you?" Her smile widens, the glint in her eye mischievous.

"I- It's more complicated than that."

"Right, right, soul mates and all that."

"He said that?"

She shrugs. "Something along those lines. I thought you two were dating."

Dean shakes his head. "Hell no. He's not, we're not…"

She raises an eyebrow, and Dean suddenly finds himself unable to lie to this woman. So he just shuts up entirely.

"Listen, he was in pretty bad shape, but then… I don't know, I started talking about stuff, and he just cheered up. I don't know. He seemed like he wanted to help people or something."

Dean nods. "Yeah, he was doing that before. Castiel is a good guy, he helps people."

"He helped me," she says.

He does a double-take. "Sorry, what?"

"I told him about my brain tumor, and he did this weird thing, touched my head. I went to the doctors to get a scan, and the tumor was just… gone. As if it'd never been there. The doctors didn't believe me, of course, but I'm convinced he…"

Dean smiles, just a little. That sounds exactly like his Castiel. "Yeah, that was him."

"What did he do? That's impossible. And then- and then he disappeared, right off the bus. The bus driver didn't believe me when I said that."

Dean laughs. "Yeah, he does that. I hate it when he does that."

She looks at Dean nervously, then down to the gun on his hip. "He talked about humans like… like he wasn't one of them."

Dean gives her a sidelong look. "He's not."

She takes the news surprisingly well. It takes her a moment, and her breathing quickens, but she doesn't question him. "What is he?"

"He's an angel of the Lord."

"A-" That really rocks her. She stares at him in disbelief for a moment. "You're joking. Angels aren't real."

"Yeah, they are. And you just met one. Healing, teleportation… it's all in the angel handbook."

She looks at him, then looks out at the empty road. "Wow. Okay."

"You're taking this well."

"I've spent the last week tossing around theories about who – or what – that guy was."

He waits patiently for a moment to let the revelation sink in. But the matter is really kind of pressing, so eventually he has to say, "What else did he tell you?"

"Not much, really. He babbled some stuff I didn't really understand. He seemed really worried about you and what he'd done to you. That his mistake was irreparable."

"Jesus, I've already forgiven him." Dean lets out a breathy laugh. Castiel's always been so stubbornly ignorant of Dean's faith in him.

"Yeah, he thought that would happen. I think, honestly, he just had to get away from whatever happened for a little while."

Dean drops his head. "Son of a bitch. If that idiot goes and gets himself killed…"

"You said bad guys were chasing him. What did you mean? If he's an angel, then define bad?"

"King of Hell? Half the angels of Heaven?"

"Angels are chasing him? But angels are good."

He laughs. "No, most of them really aren't. Castiel sort of…went rogue. Did he tell you about what happened?"

"He just said he really hurt you."

Dean curses. Of course, Cas would leave out the crucial part about how it wasn't his fault. "He was possessed, by another angel. It wasn't his fault. He actually, um, saved my life. He fought back."

When she doesn't respond, Dean looks up to see why. Kate is just staring at him, an appreciative look in her eyes.

"What?" he snaps.

"You two really are soul mates," she says. "The angel and the human."

"It sounds like a chick flick," Dean grumbles, but he doesn't deny it. The kind of bond he has with Castiel… Maybe it's love, maybe not. He doesn't really care about that; he just cares about Cas.

Dean had all but given up on his bus coming, but at the last moment it pulls up. He stands up, anxious to get on and get to Iowa.

Halfway up the stairs, he turns back to Kate. "Thank you. Really. And promise you won't…"

"I won't tell a soul," she says, winking. "Go get him. Good luck."

Dean turns his back on her then, intent on finding Cas and bringing him home.