As an angel, Castiel wasn't meant to need sleep, but in last few years he was finding himself more often needing to go to such limits to regain his energy. When he was human, he hated the prospect of sleeping, for every time he closed his eyes all he could see were falling angels, or the death he had caused while being possessed by the Leviathan, or the death of the Winchesters. Sleeping had been a traumatic thing to deal with as a human, and it had seemed unlikely like that would ever change..

When he became an angel again, Cas had hoped that because he no longer needed sleep, the nightmares that had plagued him during the unconscious hours would vanish. It didn't take long to realize he had figured wrong. Too many things had gone wrong, too many mistakes had been made, and too many emotions had begun to filter through his angel programming. So, even as an angel, he suffered through visions that chilled his grace, and he hated it. Hated that he was too weak to get rid of such thoughts alone, and loathed the fact that it seemed he would always be followed by his worst decisions.

These were the reasons why that, despite having been drained from healing Ishim, Cas was stubborn in doing what needed to be done to recharge. He sat in the back seat of the car, eyes staring blankly at the window, occasionally drifting into a state that he despised so much. From the driver's seat, Dean cast concerned glances in the rearview mirror.

An hour later, they reached the hotel and Sam clamoured out, informing his brother that he would get them a room while Dean dealt with things there. Sighing, Dean dragged himself out of the impala and opened the door to the back seat. Cas was so focused on keeping his eyes open and not thinking about Ishim that he barely noticed Dean's movements.

"Hey," the hunter grumbled, not harshly or irritably, just tired. "Come on," he reached out a calloused hand to gently touch Cas' shoulder. "Sam's getting us a room."

Feeling Dean's warm hand on him, Cas glanced up towards the hunter, his gaze too hazy. Sighing, he slowly climbed out past Dean.

Frowning, Dean asked unnecessarily, "You okay?"

"I am still drained. That is all."

The frown deepened. "Is there anything you could do that could help with that?" Dean always worried about Cas when his grace wasn't acting properly. He was especially worried now that they were just waiting for cosmic justice to happen, Cas being the most likely target since he was the one to break the Reaper's deal by killing Billie.

"No," Cas answered softly, but with determination. He sounded confident and unperturbed by his current state of being, but Dean had long since learned to read behind the stoic expression and could tell the angel was lying. He knew of a way to recharge quicker, but was reluctant of doing whatever it was.

Before Dean could argue with him and force an answer out, Sam came back with two key cards in hand. "They didn't have any rooms left with two beds, so I go us two singles. Who's bunking with who?"

Usually when this happened, though it didn't occur all that often, Dean protested that he be the one that got his own room, not willing to share a bed with another man, whether that man be his baby brother who he used to sing to sleep or an angel that didn't require sleep anyways. This time, however, it didn't even take two beats before Dean was replying, "Cas and I will share a room." The look he gave Sam cut off any comment that might have been made about his uncharacteristic volunteering.

Cas seemed to understand that nothing needed to be said about Dan's decision either, because the entire walk up the three flights of stairs to their hotel room was spent in silence. Though, that might have just because Cas couldn't bring himself to do anything that would require even more energy from him, like talking.

The second that the door closed Dean rounded on Cas. "What will help you recharge?"

"What?"

"Don't play dumb. Something will help you recharge. Tell me what it is." Cas stared, narrowing his too blue eyes. For moment, Dean thought they were about to enter another bickering round, which isn't something he wanted after dealing with Ishim and the consequences of his obsession with Lily. However, Cas didn't seem to have the energy to even do that, which was a little surprising considering Cas had been acting around him the past few months. "Cas?" He decided to push a little more in a softer tone.

"I will recharge in time." Came the monotone answer.

"Not good enough. You're practically dead on your feet."

"Dead men would not be able to keep standing open their feet. Not unless…"

Dean couldn't help but give a small smile at the response that was so much like his Cas. Then, realizing what he had just said, realized what the problem was. "It means you look tired. You should rest. Sleep."

"Angels do not require sleep."

"I've seen you sleep as an angel before." The other times Cas had drained too much of his energy in his efforts to helps others at the cost of sacrificing himself. "Come on," he took a hold of Cas' elbow to pull him towards the bed.

The second his fingers wrapped around Cas' arm, though, the angel pulled back fiercely. "No. I do not require sleep."

Dean wanted to argue. He hated when Cas was like this, acting like he was too powerful and too strong to need a little extra help. But with everything that had happened between them, after treating the angel like crap after Cas had done nothing but try and protect him and his family, he couldn't bring himself to raise his voice.

Trying to reach for a patience that had long since been buried, Dean breathed deeply. "What do you plan on doing then while I sleep?"

Cas seemed to relax slightly. "I will watch over you."

This time that small smile threatened to appear on Dean's chapped lips was ignored. It had been awhile since he had heard Cas say that, and it brought back mostly fond memories. Shaking his head, making sure that the angel wouldn't be able to even detect the desire to smile, Dean responded in his usual manner, "We've had this conversation before Cas. You can't watch me sleep. It's creepy."

The angel frowned, but he was still mostly relaxed, if not still looking like he was about to topple over onto the floor. After a short pause, he decided, "I will watch TV."

"Yea, okay." Dean shrugged and began getting to get into the bed himself. He was pretty drained too, and unlike Cas, he wasn't about to deny it. Pulling back the covers, he slid in comfortably. "At least get comfortable."

Cas looked around the room for a chair, but this was a cheap hotel, and it seemed like even something as small as chair was out of their price range. Blue eyes shifted to the bed. Almost reluctantly, he sat himself at the edge.

As tired as Dean was, he couldn't just fall asleep. It had nothing to do with the glare of the TV screen flashing against the walls, because he had gotten used to distractions like that living on the road with his little brother and father, but rather the body that was sitting at his feet. About thirty minutes into their settled positions, Dean suggested, "Cas, why don't you lean back against the headboard? I'm sure you'd be more comfortable that way."

The suggestion was appealing to Cas, Dean could see it, but he wasn't eager to follow through with it for something. The hunter doubted it had to do anything about because close to Dean, because the angel still had no concept of personal space. Whatever it was, though, was keeping Cas from getting the rest that he needed, and it bothered him.

"I am comfortable as I am."

"Cas, humor me. Please."

The sigh that followed the request was exasperated, but Cas did stand from his position on the edge of the bed and placed himself on the other side of Dead with his back against he headboard. "Good night Cas."

"Good night Dean."

Beside him, the Dead was breathing steadily, his chest slowly expanding and then exhaling. As soon as he knew that the hunter was asleep, Cas' hazy gaze shifted from the TV show to the sleeping form beside him. He wasn't sure how long he stared at his friend, liking the way that peace seemed to have settled around him in his time of rest, but it was long enough that the drowsiness of Cas' drained grace became too much. Unintentionally lulling himself with Dean's breathing, Cas soon drifted to his own realm of sleep.

"Castiel."

Cas frowned, and wished he could leave, but now that he had succumbed to the desires of his vessel, he was stuck. "I do not wish to speak to you any longer," he spat.

Ishim came into view, appearing healthier than he had even been in the diner, and it made Cas' sick to his metaphorical stomach to know it was because of him. Ishim had been able to get away because of him. Once again, Cas had trusted the wrong person and things had gone wrong.

"You think too much brother," Ishim commented dryly, but with a small lift to his expression. "Relax. I'm not here to harm you. Like I said before, I want to repay you."

"I want nothing from you."

"Nonsense. You've just been too brainwashed by that human that you no longer know what you want. Let me help you break out of his hold."

Cas wonders if this was how Ishim had always been and he'd just been too blind by his faith in Heaven to have known.

Seeing that Cas wasn't in the mood to listen to reason, or to be thankful for the gift that he seemed to be offering with 'sincerity', Ishim practically growled. "Don't be ungrateful, Castiel," he scolded. "I am only offering you what you deserve."

Cas knew what he really deserved was to pay for his transgression, but Dean had proven that he wouldn't allow for such things to happen. And since Cas couldn't decipher what Ishim truly meant by "what you deserve", the possibilities weren't looking too pleasant. Ishim had already shown what he would do under what he thought was love - destroying the heart of the woman he blamed for his weakness - and Cas wasn't looking forward to finding out what he had planned to get rid of Castiel's weakness.

"Come now, Castiel," Ishim smiled, catching an unknown energy at whatever thoughts were crossing his mind. "Aren't you tired of being considered Dean Winchester's Pet Angel? Don't you think you deserve more respect than that?"

Honesty, no. Since he had taken the soul of Purgatory and destroyed thousands of lives on Heaven and Earth, Cas hadn't felt he deserved much of anything, especially the respect of the eldest Winchester. Still, the dream induced Cas had to pause at the idea, he didn't appreciate when others called him out on his supposed useless status. He hated it more that the Winchesters never seemed to deny the claim when such things were said.

As if he could hear this thoughts, which might have been possible in this dream meeting, Ishim smirked. "Dean Winchester," he spat in disgust, "has no right to call you anything but Master, brother." Before Cas could argue, he continued smoothly, "I know I said some pretty awful things to you before, but that was before I truly understood what had taken you away from your family, You have been brainwashed by these things, just as I had once been brainwashed by that dreadful woman, and they have become your weakness, just as she had tried to be mine." At this point, Cas wanted to argue vehemently, just as he had when Ishim had accused this of him the first time around while Sam and Dean at amongst them, but no words let his vessel's lips. "So I will help you brother. I will take away your human weakness."

Dread settled within Cas.

Suddenly her was being attacked, hands grabbing his shoulders and shaking him with too much force. His eyes sprung open, and instantly he realized he was back in the hotel room, leaning against the headboard, his head bent awkwardly his unintentional sleeping position. "Dean," he grasped, trying to understand what had Dean spooked to the extent that he would be treated in such a way. "What happened?"

"What happened?" The hunter was incredulous, his soul screaming at Cas' grace at full force. Promptly, the hands were off of Cas and something rattled between them. "You tell me!" Calloused hands wrapped around chain links and pushed them angrily into Cas' face. "What the Hell man?"

The unnatural haze that had followed Cas from his dream induced message from Ishim began to fade, and he realized what he should have noticed the moment his senses had awakened. Chains. Chains that Dean had gathered in his hands that led from the iron clasp of his left wrist to the iron collar that settled around Dean's neck.

"It appears to be leash," Cas commented dryly, this thoughts and emotions not matching the blank tone he was allowing to escape.

Red appeared in Dean's expression. Nothing but red. Jaw clenched, eyes narrowed darkly, Dean seethed, "A leash?" His breathing pulsated furiously, his body beginning to shake in seemingly contained fury.

Cas lifted his left wrist to examine the iron that had encircled his skin. His sent his grace to remove it, but as expected, nothing happened. There was too much power in it for Cas to do anything. "Ishim."

That name managed to turn Dean's already red fueled expression even redder in his rage. "Ishim? What the hell does this have to do with his Ishim?" His voice was low enough to not wake any of the other guests of the hotel, but the vibration of the question got his fury across just fine.

"He had said he wanted to repay me for healing him," Cas stated simply. Inside he was freaking almost as much as Dean, but he couldn't bring himself to act upon it. Nothing good would come by him displaying exactly what he was thinking. One of them needed to think clearly, and it rarely was ever going to be Dead to do so.

"And he repaid you by putting me on a leash?! A fucking leash? What the Hell?"

Cas opened his mouth to explain what Ishim had been thinking, but the words dead before they were spoken. Things were bad enough as it were, telling Dean exactly what Ishim had told him in the warehouse and in his dream would only create increased tension and anger. "We need to figure out how to get rid of it."

"Well duh," Dean spat with venom, and Cas tried not to take the hunter's rage personally. "I'm so glad you think so."

There probably would have been more choice words from Dean, but a knock at the door interrupted them. "Dean? Cas?"

"Great. Just fucking great. What the hell are we supposed to do?"

"Dean?"

"Well Cas? Any bright ideas?"

"Hey! Guys open the door!"

Though he knew Dean would be further upset by Sam's appearance, Cas also knew that they needed to get this over with, and he could no longer face Dean's reactions on his own. Using his grace, Cas unlocked the door. "Come in Sam. But please shut the door quickly behind you."

The doorknob twisted. "Cas, what the hell? Sam can't…"

"Woah," Sam's breath caught in his throat at the sight of his brother and their angel on the bed in a compromising position. "You know, if you were doing something like this, you didn't need to invite me in. I mean, not that I'm judging you or anything but really, not something I wanted to know about either of you."