Chapter Three
Sam hadn't said anything to Dean about his drinking problem after his drunken confession…but he did start reading everything they'd found before and anything new he could get his hands on about summonings and angels in general.
Sure a lot of it was rereading, back when they were trying to find a way to kill Lucifer after the Colt didn't work they'd read everything they could get their hands on about angels. Of course they were looking for completely different intel at the time so Sam was hoping that he'd be able to find something that'd bring Cas back.
Him and Bobby had tried a few summoning spells one night when Dean was out drinking, including the same one that Dean and Bobby had first used to summon Castiel years ago. Obviously they hadn't worked but Sam was not about to just give up. If the Leviathan had control of Castiel then it's possible they were powerful enough to keep him from coming and a more powerful summoning spell could possibly work.
There was also the fact that the Leviathan had said that Cas was 'gone' but if Sam had learned one thing from their lives it is that even death isn't necessarily permanent. Bobby was right. Cas had come back before and he could come back again.
As far as Dean knew they were searching for lore on the Leviathan, obviously looking for anything that might indicate a weakness. And they were but there really wasn't much to go on. In fact it was amazing that they were able to find anything considering what Death had told them, that they were put in Purgatory before God even created angels or man. It was easy to allow Dean to peruse anything that they ran across containing even the most infinitesimal piece of information on Leviathan (after he and Bobby looked through them first because everyone knew Dean wasn't the most meticulous researcher even when he was on his A game which he so clearly off of right now). Meanwhile they spent most of their time hiding from Dean that they were actually researching angel lore.
It's not like they were really expecting to find anything useful, but they had to try. Dean never handled loss well (Sam's own death was the perfect example of that) and he was definitely on the road to self-destruction.
Just yesterday they'd found him on the phone talking to that doctor again. The one who'd killed Dean so he could have a chitchat with Death. Dean claimed that he wanted to ask the only being they knew of that really had knowledge of the Leviathan how to defeat them. That claim actually made it easier for Sam to argue against it. Sam knew that wasn't the real reason, but why argue about the real reason when it's easier to play along? Yeah, Dean probably would've eventually gotten around to asking about the Leviathan after getting what he really wanted to know…what exactly happened to Cas?
Sam had reminded Dean of Death's less than enthusiastic response to their last encounter and that it was more likely than not that he'd reap first and ask questions later. And why would he think Death would be willing to help them with the Leviathan anyway? Death had said that he 'found them entertaining.' Sam was fairly sure he'd managed to temporarily talk him out of trying anything so drastic.
And so they were reviewing everything they had ever found on angels and researching angel lore they are discarded previously as unhelpful in the search to stop Lucifer and the apocalypse. Hopefully one of them would find something before Dean drank himself to death.
xxxxxxx
Dean paced back and forth across the room like a caged animal. He and Sammy had been at Bobby's for a full week. They had suspended all hunting while researching the Leviathan.
Dean had spent most of this time drunk. He hadn't even really gone to bars except once or twice when Bobby and Sam's sympathetic stares started to get to him.
The few times he'd gone he hadn't even thought of picking up a girl. He'd had one clear goal in mind…getting so shit-faced that he couldn't feel anything. Every day it was taking more alcohol to reach that point and Dean wasn't sure how much longer he could keep going on without something to distract him.
"This is ridiculous!"
Sam was so startled that he dropped the book he'd been reading on the floor.
"We're hunting something tomorrow! I don't care what! I don't care where!" Dean stomped out of the room, slamming the door shut behind him.
Sam sat still, stunned. Sure he'd been expecting Dean to blow eventually, he'd just hoped he'd had more time to find something useful first.
Sam's mind was racing. Dean was still getting drunk off his ass. Had his and Bobby's idea to keep Dean from hunting done more harm than good?
Sam leaned over to pick back up the book he'd been reading. He froze, hand mere inches from it, staring at the image in front of him.
