Author's Note: Thank you so much for reviewing, alerting, favoriting, etc: I really appreciate it. I would have updated really quick, but I wasn't able to get on the Internet. I actually have changed this to Hurt!Sick!Cas as you will notice. Hope you like it.
Chapter 2-
Dean turned around at the sound of wings. Gabriel was standing in the room with them.
"Nice of you to finally show up." Snarked Dean.
"What the hell happened to my brother?" Gabriel snarled.
"Demon stabbed him with the angel sword."
"I can see that dipshit! Why didn't you pull it out?"
"We didn't know what to do! We prayed and nobody showed till you!"
Sam and Bobby came running down, because they heard the yelling. They stopped when they saw a red faced Dean standing over one side of Cas and Gabriel, looking like he was about to snap his fingers and kill Dean, on the other. It's what happens when to big brothers are both trying to protect.
"None of this is helping Cas you idjits!" Yelled Bobby, pointing at the Archangel and the elder Winchester.
"What do we do?" Sam asked Gabriel.
Gabriel bent down beside Cas and placed his hand on the hilt of the knife. "You may want to cover your ears. This is going to get loud."
Gabriel grabbed Cas's shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "It's okay bro. I've got you now."
He turned to the humans watching behind him and said, "Give me a belt."
Sam quickly took his off and threw it to him. Then Gabriel folded it over and put it in Cas' mouth. "Here goes nothing." He said, as he pulled the knife out.
Cas screamed in his true voice, his back was arching off the bed. The lights exploded and the room shook. Dean, Sam, and Bobby fell to the floor covering their ears.
Cas fell back into the bed with a strangled cry. Light was beaming through the wound at full strength. Dean eased himself back up and ran over to his fallen friend. Cas lay painting on the bed, moaning, and grabbed the sheets in his hands. Blood spurted out of the wound along with the light. Cas' eyes fluttered, and his breathing slowed.
"God dammit heal him!" Screamed Dean.
Gabriel put his hands on his little brother. Nothing happened.
"What the-"
"Gabriel..." Cas mumbled.
"Cas don't. Save your strength." Said Dean.
"Demon...blood on the...sword." Cas whispered.
Gabriel stood up and screamed in frustration. "Freggin' stupid ass Winchesters!"
Dean, Sam, and Bobby stood looking alarmed. The Archangel looked distraught.
"What does demon blood on an angel sword do?" Asked Sam.
"Poison. It taints an angel's grace, eventually destroying it." Said a new voice.
Balthazar stepped beside Sam and looked at Cas.
"What do we do to stop it?" Asked Dean.
Gabriel advanced on Dean, but Balthazar stopped him. "There is no way to stop it." Said Balthazar.
"So what you are just going to give up?"
Gabriel flew in front of Dean and pushed him up against the wall. "Listen good Winchester! My brother is dying, and it's because of you! So help me dad I'm going to smite you!" Gabriel growled.
"Gabriel!" Shouted the weak Cas, lifting up to glare at his brother.
"Cas, stay down." Said Balthazar, gently pushing his brother back down onto the bed.
"Balthazar I-"
"That's enough, okay Cassy. You need every bit of your strength you can get." Balthazar said.
Balthazar looked to Dean and said, "Fix up the wound. It won't help if his vessel doesn't have any blood left."
"Will it stop the grace from flowing out?" Asked Sam.
"It should."
"Sam hand me the first-aid." Said Dean. Sam threw it to him, and Dean began cleaning out the wound with alcohol. Cas winced and Dean felt the guilt in his stomach rise.
Bobby growled in frustration. "Hell I'm not just going to stand here."
"Where are you going?"
"I'm going to see what I can find out about this."
"Dean you need any help?" Asked Sam.
"Go." Dean nodded.
Dean turned to the angels in the room. "Well are you going to help at all?" He snapped.
"Tarael. If anybody knows what to do it would be her." Said Balthazar.
"Why would she want to help him?" Said Gabriel. "Don't get me wrong, but last time I checked she wasn't a fan of rebelling angels."
"You're a bloody arch-angel! Command her to help." Said Balthazar.
"So she can bitch to Raphael that Cas is poisoned? You want a mob of angels after him?"
"Gabriel, She is his only shot. It's time for you to grow some balls and stand up!"
"You-" Gabriel started, but was cut off by Cas coughing.
"Cas, you okay?" Asked Dean.
Castiel continued to cough violently. He turned over to his side. Blood spilled out of his mouth, he wheezed trying to breathe.
"Cas!" Balthazar ran and put a hand on his younger brother's back. He wanted to heal him, but he knew it wouldn't do anything.
"Cas look at me!" Shouted Dean, his heart was pounding in his best so hard he thought it was going to burst. "Take it easy. Breathe in slowly. Then out. In and out." Dean continued to talk Cas through it until he had stopped coughing. Balthazar rubbed circles into his brother's back. Cas turned onto his back with a groan, blood staining his teeth and chin. Dean quickly wiped the blood away and started back working on the stab wound.
Balthazar turned to look at Gabriel. The arch-angel was extremely pale and had a look of desperation on his face. There was a flutter of wings and Gabriel was gone.
Two hours had passed, Castiel's condition had worsened. He was running a fever, swear forming on his brow. Dean had taken a towel, wet it with cold water, and set it on the angel's forehead. The skin around the wound had turned red, with black spider veins sprouting from it.
Sam and Bobby had no luck so far with research. They had been working non-stop. Balthazar nervously paced on the floor. Dean had told him to help Sam and Bobby, the worried angel had almost driven him insane with his pacing. Although, he could understand his point of view. He would be just as bad if it was Sam. But it was Cas lying in the bed.
And it was his fault. His best friend lay...
He couldn't say it. Cas wasn't going to die. Not like this.
Dean saw the pain in the angel's face. He lay with his eyes closed, hand closed tight.
"Cas?" Dean asked.
Cas opened his eyes and looked at Dean.
"Dean."
"I'm going to give you morphine, for the pain. It may not do much, but hopefully it'll help some."
Dean looked in the medical supplies and realized that he needed an IV. He knew Bobby kept one somewhere.
"Cas I'm going to get an IV from upstairs. I'll only be gone a second."
The angel closed his eyes and nodded.
Dean ran upstairs and saw Bobby and Sam buried in books.
"Hey Bobby where is your IV at?"
"In the cabinet over there."
"I'm going to give him some morphine. Hopefully it'll lessen the pain some." Dean said, looking at Balthazar.
"Try it." Balthazar said, with a shrug.
Dean grabbed the IV and hurried back into the panic room. Cas heard him coming and opened his eyes. Dean set up the IV and filled the bag with morphine. He then disinfected the back of Cas' hand and stuck the needle in. Cas winced and looked away from Dean.
"There, you fill it working?" Asked Dean.
"It has lessened the pain." Said Cas, bleakly.
Dean sat next to him and put a hand on Cas' shoulder.
"Cas, I didn't mean anything I said. I'm sorry man. You gave up everything for me and Sam. You've died for us already, you're not doing it again. Especially not because you saved me ass." Said Dean, hanging his head.
"I will endeavor not to do so." Cas said light heartily.
Dean smirked. "I'm sorry Cas-"
"Dean I never took your words seriously." Cas said. "You are forgiven."
The guilt that Dean held went away a little bit.
"Can you send Balthazar in. I need to speak with him... alone." Said Cas.
"Sure."
Dean called Balthazar, who flew down into the panic room.
"I'll give you two some space." Said Dean, backing out and going up the stairs.
"You needed me Cas?"
"You remember Daniel?" Asked Cas.
"Of course."
"You know what Michael did for him. To keep a part of his grace pure."
"Cas-"
"If it comes to it... I want you to do the same for me."
"Cas no! I can't!" Said Balthazar.
"Please brother. You are my oldest friend."
"Cas, you are asking me to kill you!" Balthazar exclaimed.
"If I am to die. I'd rather it'd be at your hand than a demon's poison."
Balthazar turned his head, his eyes watering. He thought for a long time. "I will do it Cas, but only if you are an inch away from death's door."
"Thank you brother."
A loud cry of triumph was heard from upstairs. "I've got something!"
Cliff hanger! This is one of the longest chapter I have ever written, if not the longest. Review please. :)
