Chapter 2

Cas refuses to show the pain. Dean doesn't know if it's for the angel himself or for the hunters. It scares Dean sometimes how calm the angel is sometimes. There are moment when the angel will be so weak he can hardly keep his eyes open and yet...he acts no different. He smiles, laughs, and still acts like the Cas they all know and love. There are days Dean is thankful for it. The hunter feels more relaxed on these days and the worry of the future is pushed to the side briefly. This was one of those days.

"Checkmate," Cas chuckled, watching the shock cross over Dean's face. It was their seventh game of chess already that day and Cas had yet to lose. They had flown through several games together, Sam joining them for a couple. The younger hunter had to go to town though to pick up some supplies so the two had to make do on their own.

Dean pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head. How Cas managed to win at every game was amazing. He even won when they played the old video games Charlie had dropped off for them a few weeks back!

"Damn, Cas, you could at least have some pity and let me win," Dean teased. Cas turned his head to the side and frowned. God Dean was going to miss that.

"That would be cheating," the angel stated hoarsely. Dean decided not to comment and instead cleared away the game from Cas' lap. When the game was moved Cas pulled his blanket tighter around himself, and burrowed back into the couch pillows surrounding him. Dean chuckled at the sight of the angel cocooned in the pillows and blankets and he swatted at the angel playfully.

"What should we do now?" Dean asked. Cas thought for a moment before suddenly grinning. dean grinned back. "What? Another game of Twister? Cas you know I'm shit at that game and last time we played you had a goddamn coughing fit -"

"Can we go outside?" Cas rushed, interrupting the hunter. Dean frowned disapprovingly, but Cas refused to notice. "I've been cooped up for a month, Dean. I just ask to go outside once before I…" Cas trailed off, remembering how Dean got whenever someone said the D-word. Dean was unwilling to except that soon the angel would be leaving this life. Cas had expected this, but he wished that there was some way to console the hunter.

"Okay," Dean said while swallowing thickly. The hunter gave a sharp nod before holding out a hand for Cas to take. The angel was surprised at first, but he quickly shoved it away, deciding that he wouldn't give Dean time to change his mind. Cas took it and Dean helped the angel off the couch. Cas leaned heavily against Dean. His body was shutting down day by day. Hannah had told them what to expect. Cas's body would start shutting down for the first month and then the second his grace would slowly tear him to pieces from the inside out until finally exploding. Dean hated thinking about it.


Slowly, Dean helped Cas to the bunker doors and let the angel out into the cool autumn air. Cas breathed in the crispness of the outside and smiled up at the bluish grey sky. Dean smiled at seeing the angel's smile and led Cas down to a spot a ways away from the bunker. It was an open area surrounded by trees. In the center was the stump of an old tree that had been destroyed by a storm long ago. The hunter gently set his friend down next to the tree before sitting down himself and looking out over the red and orange colored forest. Cas leaned against the hunter a little and Dean wrapped an arm over Cas' shoulders.

"I love autumn," the angel whispered, smiling at the scenery around them. "The colors are so beautiful." Dean shook his head, looking away from Cas and down at the ground by his feet.

"I hate it," Dean whispered. "Everything dies. The leaves, the grass, the flowers...everything." Dean lifted a brown leaf from the ground, trying to prove his point. "How can death be beautiful?" Cas smiled at that and took the leaf from Dean.

"The beauty is that it never truly dies, Dean," Cas stated softly. "The leaves, the flowers, the grass –they all grow back."

"What about this tree?" Dean questioned, glancing upwards at the rotting wood. Cas glanced at the tree as well, shaking his head.

"Great beauty takes time to grow, Dean –"

"What about you?!" Dean shouted, looking into Cas' eyes now, tears streaming down his face. Cas stared at him with a startled expression and Dean held his hands over his eyes. "You...you're going to die, Cas, and there's no coming back. You'll be gone and I…" Dean let out a sob and pulled Cas close, crying into the angel's shoulder. "You're my best friend, Cas. Please don't leave me." Cas pressed his face against Dean's hair and let his own tears fall.

"I'm sorry, Dean. I'm sorry," he whispered, shaky fingers stroking through the messy blond hair. "I'm sorry." The angel opened his water blue eyes and looked up at the dead tree they were sitting under. He thought about its rotting bark and its bare branches. That would be him soon. Just a shell of what he once was. "We'll grow together," the angel whispered up to the tree. Dean looked up at the tree as well, fearing the day when Cas' body would be just like it.


Yeah, I know it's a bit short, but I'll make up for it next chapter. Thanks to those of you who've followed and favorited and remember...reviews are love!