"Dean! Wake up! Come on, man, don't you dare die on me now!"
Dean blinks and his vision swims before him. He feels lightheaded and dizzy like he's been hanging upside down for too long and all the blood's gone to his head. He blinks a few more times, finally registering Sam's voice and the warmth of arms around him. Sam's face finally takes form before his eyes and he smiles at him.
"Don't worry, Sammy. It's only a flesh wound," he says.
Sam laughs, a bit hysterically he notes, and blinks away tears forming in his eyes.
"Of course you'd say that with a sword sticking out of you," he chokes out.
So is that it, then? He glances down and sees that Sam is indeed telling the truth. Someone's knife, he thinks it's his own, is embedded in his chest, close to his heart. He can tell by the way it's starting to hurt to even breathe that it probably pierced his lung.
Bits and pieces of what happened come back to him. He remembers Abaddon and her minions ambushing them. He remembers fighting and then an excruciating pain. Then, nothing. He figures he must have passed out. Had they killed her? He can't remember.
"Cas, do something!" Sam orders.
Cas' face appears above him, a pained look on his face as well. If Dean didn't know better, he'd think Cas was crying too.
"I'm sorry Sam. But I can't do anything."
"Why not?!"
"This Grace, it's stolen and it's leeching my powers because of it. My healing ability was the first to leave me," he explains.
"You mean he's going to die and you can't heal him?" Sam snaps angrily.
"I'm sorry-,"
"Sorry's not good enough!"
"Sam...," Dean grumbles.
His brother scowls at Cas before turning his attention back to Dean.
"Shh, don't speak, Dean," he says.
"Not Cas' fault," Dean insists.
"I know. I know, but I can't lose you. You're my brother and I need you."
"It'll be okay, Sam. Promise," Dean says, vision beginning to blur again. He keeps very still, taking tiny, shallow breaths. Sam shouts his name and he blinks, just to show he's still alive.
Someone takes his hand. Cas, he thinks, because Sam's are occupied at the moment. He can just barely make out their words.
"I can't heal him, but I can make it easier for him."
"Cas, he's going to be fine-"
"Sam, we have to be realistic. He doesn't have much longer," Cas says and maybe it's the whole dying thing warping the sounds around him, but he swears he hears the angel's voice break.
"What are you going to do?"
"I can make things as painless as possible for him. I may not be able to heal his wounds, but he won't feel them anymore either,"
A blurred version of Sam nods and then warmth radiates from where Cas is clutching at his hand. The pain drifts away, leaving him feeling a lot better than before. He blinks a few times to clear his vision and sees Sam staring down at him. Tears shine in his eyes and a glance to his left tells him that Cas is crying too. He rolls his eyes at the both of them.
"Seriously, guys? No chick flick moments," he mutters.
That gets a weak laugh out of Sam and he holds Dean a little tighter. He lifts his hand and brushes away the tears dripping down Sam's face. He's never liked seeing his little brother cry, not when they were young, and especially not now.
"It's okay," he assures him.
He turns to look at Cas. The angel looks guilt stricken, like Dean dying is his fault, and the hunter won't have him believing that if he can help it.
"Cas, it's not your fault," he tells him.
"It is. My powers are nearly gone and I can't fix you anymore," he says, voice rougher than usual. "I'm so sorry."
"Don't, Cas. It's fine. Hey, maybe you can visit me when you get your wings back."
"What if I don't get them back? What if I never see you again?" Cas says in a small voice.
Dean squeezes his hand reassuringly.
"Sure you will Cas. I know you will," he says.
He blinks tiredly and figures he doesn't have much longer. He looks up at Sam and smiles.
"Take care of Baby, got it? Don't douche her up like last time," he says.
"I won't," Sam replies, refraining from rolling his eyes.
"It'll be okay, Sam. I'll see you sooner or later anyway. Just make sure it's later," Dean says.
"Okay," Sam chokes out.
Dean turns to Cas, one last time. "Take care of him," he says.
Cas nods. "I promise," he says, voice equally as hoarse as his brother's.
He's relieved to hear that. If Sam and Cas stick together, they'll be just fine without him. They can go back to doing something semi-normal. Maybe Cas will become a hunter, a full time one like Sam. Either way, he killed Abaddon, he remembers, and made sure he protected Sam. His purpose here is done anyway.
"Dad would be proud of you, you know," Sam whispers.
"I dunno about that. I don't think he'd be happy to find out I died," Dean replies.
"No, you're wrong," Sam shakes his head. "You've done so much, sacrificed so much for us. Believe me, Dad would be proud,"
"If you say so," Dean says with a slight shrug. He looks up at Sam, knowing that his brother's face is the last thing he wants to see before he goes. He takes one last breath and says, "I'll tell everyone you said hi, Sam," before closing his eyes and letting himself drift away.
He wakes up at home. Not at his house in Lawrence though. He's at Bobby's house that had been burned down. The old ex-hunter strolls into the room and offers him a beer, but not before slapping him ont the back of the head and calling him an idjit for getting himself done in. Bobby's been here long enough to be able to move around to other people's heavens, like Ash had done and decided to drop in once he'd heard what happened through the heavenly grapevine. The two sit together and Dean catches Bobby up on all the things that he's missed.
It's days, weeks, maybe even years before Dean can traverse the heavens with all the ease of an angel. Heaven works on a different time zone than the Earth and it doesn't feel like it's been that long. He visits Ellen and Jo and Ash, all hanging out together at the Roadhouse. He sees Pamela there too sometimes and when he finally summons up the courage, he finds Kevin. He apologizes to him within an inch of his not-life, but the former prophet has long since forgiven him.
The last people he goes to meet are Mom and Dad. He expects a scolding or a disappointed look from his father, but the only thing present their is happiness and a bit of sadness at seeing his son here already. But the two are happier than they ever were alive and they welcome Dean with open arms. His dad engulfs him in a tight hug and he finds out that Sam was right.
"I'm so proud of you, son," he says.
Dean smiles and blinks away the tears forming in his eyes. Instead, he hugs John tighter.
"Thanks Dad."