A Bond Unbroken

by Blayzepwa

Sequel to Flirtin' With Disaster. Dean has to find a way to save his bondmate Castiel from a powerful enemy. Together with Sam, Bobby, and a couple of unlikely allies, Dean will be pushed to the brink, and finds out that some bonds can never be broken.

4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Dean grabbed their duffels and the med kit from the trunk before slamming it shut. He followed Sam into the motel room and dropped the duffels on the floor. He opened the med kit at the table, drawing out what he would need. "Lay on the bed, Sam," he said as he grabbed a vial of morphine and a needle.

He filled up the syringe and pushed the plunger to get rid of the air bubbles. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Damn, but he hated when Sam was hurt. Always felt like his fault, like he should have protected Sammy better. He plastered a grin on his face before turning around. "You're getting the good stuff today, Sammy-boy," he said as he brandished the needle.

Sam made a face. "I hate needles," he muttered.

"Yeah, I know. But I don't really feel like holding you down while I dig through your shoulder. So you're gonna have to get one. Let's get you out of the shirt first." Dean placed the morphine-filled needle on the nightside table, and grabbed the pair of scissors. He cut off Sam's shirt. "Man, no wonder we never have any clothes." He pulled the remnants of the shirt off, and winced as he saw the damage the bullet had done in the light.

Sam just nodded and held his arm out for Dean to slip the needle in. As they waited for the morphine to take effect, Dean laid out and sterilized all the supplies they would need. "How you feelin', Sammy?" Dean asked after a few minutes.

Sam giggled. "Good," he said.

Dean rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I'd say so. I need you to keep still for me, okay?"

"'Kaaayy," Sam slurred.

Dean took a deep breath and picked up the tweezers. He winced as he stuck them in Sam's shoulder. Fresh blood welled up and he used his other hand to wipe it away with a damp cloth. Sam began humming and tapping his fingers, causing Dean to growl out, "Still, Sam. Stay still."

"Sorry."

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Dean felt the tweezers clink against something metal, and he carefully pinched the bullet between them and drew it out. He held it up before his eyes, always amazed at how something so tiny could cause so much damage.

"Lemme see, Dean!" Sam mumbled. He tried to snatch the bullet out of Dean's hands with his good arm, but missed completely. He looked at his hand with a shocked expression, as if he couldn't believe he missed.

Dean chuckled and passed it over. "Here. Keep laying still, man. I gotta stitch you up."

Sam held the bullet up and examined it closely. "Pretty," he said.

Dean paused as he threaded the needle. "Seriously? Dude, you are fucking weird on morphine." He started sewing Sam's shoulder closed, shaking his head at his brother. "Well, the good thing is that the bullet didn't do much damage. You'll just be sore for a while."

"Not sore. Got the good stuff, you said!" Sam protested.

Dean finished sewing Sam's shoulder shut, then he grinned and patted his brother's head. "Yeah, Sammy. Always the good stuff for you." He pulled out the bandages and wrapped them around Sam's shoulder tightly. Then he started cleaning up, as he shook his head at Sam. "Dude, one of these days I gotta get you on video when you're high on morphine. Perfect blackmail material."

Sam stuck out his tongue at Dean.

"Just relax, dude. I'm gonna give Bobby a shout and let him know where we ended up." Dean sat down heavily on the other bed and pulled out his phone. He scratched his forehead and dialed Bobby's number.

"Yeah," Bobby's gruff voice answered.

"Hey, Bobby. It's me. We made it to the motel alright." Dean said as he watched Sam waving his hand holding the bullet around.

"Good. You get that brother of yers fixed up?"

"Yeah, just finished. Dork's playing with the bullet," Dean replied with a roll of his eyes in Sam's direction. Sam wasn't paying attention; now his eyes were crossed as he tried to focus on the bloody bullet in front of his face.

Bobby snorted through the phone. "Morphine?"

"Yup. Anyways, we're in the Starlite Motel, room 18."

"I'm about two hours away. I'll be there soon."

"Thanks, Bobby."

"Don't mention it. Get some rest, Dean. You sound beat." Bobby hung up the phone. Dean stared at it for a moment. "You have no idea," he whispered.

"What?" Sam shouted from the other bed.

~*~*SPN~*~*

"Okay, let's run over this again. You're going to meet Crowley and have him take you to Cas. Then you'll call me and let me know if Crowley held up his end of the deal."

"He better have," growled Dean.

Sam nodded before continuing. "Then I'll let you know where Bobby is."

"That's the plan," said Dean, as he tucked the demon killing knife into his jacket.

Sam reached out and grabbed Dean's arm. "Be careful, Dean."

Dean paused as he opened the motel's door. "I got this, Sammy. Rest that shoulder up, okay?"

Sam looked at Dean for moment before dropping his hand back down. "Yeah, man. I will." As the door shut behind Dean, he moved over to stand at the window and watched Dean head over to the car.

Dean opened the Impala's door and slid behind the wheel. Looking up, he saw Sam watching him from the window. He gave his brother a small grin in reassurance, then backed the car up. He needed to find somewhere to call Crowley. He drove for about ten minutes before a glowing neon sign caught his eye. A bar. Perfect. He could leave the Impala here and it wouldn't look like it was abandoned. He parked the car and got out.

He wandered around to the back of the building and took out his phone. He texted Crowley the name and location of the bar before leaning up against the brick to wait.

He didn't have to wait long.

"Dean," Crowley greeted him as he walked around the corner. "I can't say as I'm surprised you chose a bar to meet up in."

"Shut it, Crowley." Dean snapped. "Where's Cas?"

"Where's my ring, Dean?" Crowley shot back.

Dean glared at him. "When I get Cas, I'll call Sam and he'll tell me where Bobby is with the ring. Then you can have it, but first you take me to Cas."

Crowley paused and eyed Dean. "Fine. Hold onto your hat, Squirrel." He reached out and grabbed Dean by the elbow.

Dean opened his mouth to ask Crowley what he was doing, but the next second he was filled with the disorienting sensation of demon teleportation. It was nowhere near as smooth as when Cas flew him somewhere, and Dean fell heavily on his knees when they landed outside a small, abandoned house.

Dean's stomach rolled and he shook his head as he stood. "Not fun," he muttered under his breath. Suddenly, Dean could feel that Cas was close. The tiniest trickle of Cas came through the bond. This was it! He was near! Dean's heart thudded against his chest in excitement.

Crowley stepped up to the door. Strange sigils that Dean didn't recognize had been painted above the door and each window. He eyed them with distrust.

Crowley noticed him looking them over. "Demonic sigils. Useful when you want something, or someone to remain hidden from supernatural eyes." He opened the door and stepped inside, Dean followed him closely, through the door and into a tiny living room.

"Cas?" Dean whispered hoarsely. Oh god, his angel looked horrible. His wings... What happened to those beautiful wings? Dean reached out one hand and slowly reached for the least damaged one. A tiny twitch of the wing and a slight groan from Cas was the only response he got.

"No. Oh no, Cas." Dean knelt and cupped a hand against Cas's cheek. "Come on back, Cas. You can't leave me. Not now." Dean whirled on Crowley. "I told you what would happen if he was hurt, didn't I?" He hissed, pulling out the demon killing knife and advancing towards Crowley.

Crowley held up his hands. "And I told you I wouldn't hurt your boyfriend, Dean. And I didn't."

Deans lip curled up and he pointed back at as with the knife, not taking his eyes off of Crowley. "What the fuck am I supposed to believe happened then, huh?"

"Simple, really. He was attacked. By demons-" Crowley only had a moment to react before Dean lunged, and he slammed the hunter into the wall and held him there with his powers. "Will you settle down and listen!" He yelled. "You have got to be the most impatient human I have ever had the misfortune to meet!"

Dean fought against the invisible restraints for a few minutes as Crowley looked on unimpressed. With a final curse, Dean fell limp and glared at Crowley, who simply raised an eyebrow. Dean grit his teeth but nodded, and Crowley released him.

"As I was saying, before you went all nasty on me, was that he was attacked by demons, but they weren't any of mine."

"Wait, any of yours? Aren't you the king of Hell? Don't you control the demons down here?" Dean asked incredulously.

Crowley shrugged. "Of course I do, Dean, but there's always gonna be some assholes in every kingdom. Now, you have your angel. I believe you owe me something."

Dean ignored Crowley and turned back to Cas. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the bond, and suddenly he was overwhelmed by the unmistakable feeling of Cas that he'd been missing. It was like a set of floodgates had been opened, and every part of him that had just been Dean was suddenly Dean and Cas and it was so right, so perfect, and he wanted to stay in this state of deanandcas forever and ohgodhowdidhelivewithoutthis and-

"Dean."

Dean's eyes flew open and met the blue eyes of his angel. "Cas," he whispered hoarsely. He grabbed the shaky hand that Cas reached up towards him. Cas was awake. Cas was awake and talking. They could figure everything else out later. He gently raised Cas's head and slid it into his lap. "You okay?" He asked roughly. "What happened to you?"

"Raphael."

Dean grimaced. "Yeah. I knew about that asshole already. Got some intel from Balthazar. Guy's a dick, but he really helped me out. No, what I meant was, what happened to your wings? How come you haven't healed them yet?"

"I was attacked by a mob of demons. I allowed myself to get distracted and got knocked down. My wings landed in Hellfire," Cas replied matter-of-factly. Dean winced in sympathy. "My Grace is not working. I thought it might have been because of the bond strain, but you are here now and I am still unable to heal." Cas's voice took on a pondering tone at the end. "I do not understand why I still cannot heal."

A thought hit Dean and his eyes widened in realization. "I felt you," he whispered. Cas's brow wrinkled slightly in confusion, and Dean continued. "I thought it was just a nightmare. But when your wings...I felt it Cas. Oh god, it was horrible."

Cas opened his mouth to reply, but the sound of a throat clearing behind them sounded. "As much as I hate to break up this sweet little reunion Dean, shouldn't you be getting Moose on the phone? I don't have all day."

"Can you give me a goddamn minute here, Crowley? You'll get your damn ring, just give me one fuckin' minute!"

"Dean, it's okay. We're okay." Cas's gravelly voice reached Dean's ears and instantly calmed him down.

Dean gave his angel a small smile. "Yeah, I know. No thanks to your dickhead of an older brother though."

"Raphael, he is still out there! He has to have figured out by now that I will have failed in the task." Cas tried to push himself up, but fell back down with a cry. "You are in danger, Dean. I have put you in danger. You must get somewhere safe before he finds you!" Cas said frantically.

"Hey Cas, relax. Lay still, and don't worry about me, alright? I can take care of myself," Dean said in a soothing voice.

"Dean. This is Raphael. He-" Cas paused and caught his breath. "He can and will kill you as soon as he finds you. I have to stop him."

"Cas, no offense, but you can't even sit up on your own right now. We'll figure out Raph as soon as you get better."

"Well, if you would just give me my damn ring, I might be able to help there." Crowley's smarmy voice interjected from behind them.

Dean whirled around to shoot a confused look at Crowley. "What the hell are you talking about, Crowley?"

"That ring is my access to a lot of power, Dean. A lot. As in, enough to take out an archangel," he grinned. "'Course, I would need it in my hands to actually do anything."

"Seriously?"

"Dean, what did you promise him?" Castiel interjected.

Dean spared his angel a glance. "Don't worry about it, Cas." He turned back to Crowley. "Can you really take him out? As in, permanently?"

"Given enough souls I can," he replied with a nonchalant shrug. He explained his idea to Dean, who nodded sharply.

Dean pulled out his phone and speed dialed Sam. "Hey, it's me."

"You got Cas?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I got him."

"He okay?"

"No. Where's Bobby?"

Sam rattled off an address. Dean looked up at Crowley. "You get that?" he asked.

"Got it." Crowley snapped his fingers and disappeared. A few seconds later, Dean heard Bobby's unmistakable shout of surprise.

"Bobby's here, Sam. I'll call you back." Dean hung up on his brother's startled protest and looked up as a nauseous looking Bobby followed Crowley into the room.

"Dean!" Bobby saw him and started forward, only to halt when his eyes finally registered the damaged angel in Dean's lap. "Balls! What happened to you?"

"Hello, Bobby," Cas rasped.

"You got the ring?" Dean asked. At Bobby's nod, Dean raised his chin towards Crowley. "Give it to him. We got a plan to stop Raphael for good."

~*~*SPN~*~*

Balthazar swung his legs back and forth as he sat on the cliff overlooking the ocean. He could hear through the Angel Radio that Raphael was coming for him. He had been outrunning his older brother for a while now, but he knew it was just a matter of time until he caught up to him.

Still, he was startled when he heard the deep voice behind him. "Hello, Balthazar."

He looked over his shoulder and raised an eyebrow at Raphael. "What? No fancy entrance? Or have you just come to enjoy the view, Raphael? I know this vessel is sexy, but surely you're too uptight to appreciate true beauty."

"Very funny, little traitor. Perhaps I should keep you around to amuse me instead of destroying you outright."

Balthazar winked then stood up, facing Raphael. "I'm not the traitor here, Raphie-boy." Raphael sneered at the nickname. "You are."

Raphael chuckled at that. "How so? I just want Father's goals realized."

"So you forced bond strain on Castiel to do it? You know, I always thought you were a little slow on the uptake, but that's just really, really stupid. Dad would be so proud." Balthazar slowly clapped his hands.

"And you thought it would be smart to antagonize me?" Raphael replied calmly.

Balthazar felt his blade slip into his hand, and he tightened his grip on the handle. Surprise was his only chance. His strength had nothing on Raphael's, but if he could just wound him, he might stand a chance of escape. "No. But I figured since you're here anyway and the shoe fits..." He spread his wings and lunged. Suddenly it was as if his wings were frozen just a couple feet from Raphael. He closed his eyes. This was it.

Raphael pulled out his sword. "Mine's bigger." Without another word he rammed it into Balthazar's stomach. His eyes flew wide and his mouth formed a silent 'O'. Raphael pulled his sword out and watched disinterestedly as Balthazar's body slid to the ground. A bright flash of light appeared as his Grace was extinguished, and midnight imprints of his wings burned into the cliff rock.

~*~*SPN~*~*

"You sure we can trust him, Son?" Bobby asked, pointedly not looking at Crowley, who sat in the corner with the ring on a table. Crowley's eyes were glowing red as he pulled souls out of the void to power the ring.

Dean shrugged. "He saved Cas, and he doesn't want that cage opened any more than we do. This might be our only shot. I'm not willing to take the chance that Raph can grab Cas again." He turned to Crowley. "Can you grab Sam for me?" He told Crowley where Sam was and the demon vanished, only to reappear with a startled looking Sam in tow. "Hiya, Sammy," Dean said tiredly.

"Ugh, that's a horrible trip, Crowley. Dean! Cas!" He looked back and forth between the two. "What's going on?"

Dean told Sam about the plan to lure Raphael out and have Crowley use the power of the ring to destroy him. Sam scratched his head before looking up at Dean. "Dean, can I talk to you outside for a sec?" Dean nodded and the two of them left the room and headed outside. Sam grabbed his arm and gave Dean a hard look.

"What the fuck, Sam?" Dean hissed as he yanked his arm back. "Fuck, your sasquatch hands have some grip, dude," he muttered as he rubbed his arm where Sam had grabbed him.

"I don't want you being bait," Sam said simply. He crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Dean.

Dean stared at Sam as though he had grown a second head. "What?"

"You heard me," Sam repeated slowly. "I won't have you putting your life on the line, again. Do you have any idea how hard it has been watching you this past little bit? God, Dean, it was like you were slowly dying and there was nothing I could do about it! You're always putting yourself in danger, and I won't go through that again. I can't."

Dean snorted and raised an eyebrow. "So how do you propose we call out Raphael, then? If you have another alternative, I'm all ears."

Sam took a deep breath. "Use Cas."

"No! Absolutely not!" Dean began pacing back and forth.

"Dean, it's really the only choice we have; he's an angel. He has a way better chance of surviving than you do!" Sam tried to placate his brother, but Dean wasn't having it.

"He's not using Cas as bait! No fuckin' way in hell! How could you even suggest that, Sam?" Dean cried. He ran both hands through his hair. "No. No, no, no!" He could feel his muscles clench with tension at the suggestion, and grit his teeth as he tried to calm down.

Sam opened his mouth to reply but was interrupted by a gravelly voice in the doorway. "Dean, stop. Sam is right; this is something I must do."

Dean whirled, facing Cas with a wide-eyed look that warred with the snarl on his lips. "No!" He snapped once again, this time at his angel. Why was nobody listening to him?

"Dean!" Cas's voice echoed with celestial power, and Dean flinched back despite himself. "I will do this, and you will not stop me." Then his voice softened, and he pushed himself away from Bobby, who had helped him to the door. "I cannot take the chance that Raphael will come after you again. And Sam is right. I am an angel, and even though I am weakened at the moment I am still more powerful."

"Cas..." Dean whispered. He looked at Cas pleadingly. "Don't. You don't need to do this."

"But I will. For you."

Sam cleared his throat awkwardly. "I'm just gonna...Yeah." He squeezed past Cas, who never took his eyes from Dean, and escaped back into the house with Bobby.

Dean looked at the ground for a moment and neither of them said a word. Then he looked back into Cas's eyes. He saw strength, determination, and love shining back at him. He had faith in Cas. If anyone was able to do this, it was him. "Yeah, okay. You don't do anything stupid, you hear me? Let Crowley take care of that asshole."

Cas smiled and nodded. "I promise, Dean. I will come back to you."

"You better."

~*~*SPN~*~*

"Raphael!" Castiel shouted at the heavens. "Come down here and face me!"

Thunder crashed as Raphael appeared in front of him. "Castiel. You have failed in your task, I see." He looked around and arched an eyebrow. "And you aren't hiding behind your pathetic human. I'm shocked."

"You will never speak of Dean again, Raphael." Castiel snarled. He unfurled his wings in his anger, forgetting for a moment about the burns. Raphael's eyes raked over his wings and he smirked, but didn't say anything about them.

"Funny, Balthazar thought he could take me too. Too bad for him, he was just as much of a failure as you."

Castiel's heart dropped and his face paled. "What did you say?" he whispered.

"Balthazar. He betrayed me by helping your human, so I had to take care of him."

"You lie!" he hissed.

"Do I?" Raphael said. He took a step towards Castiel, who backed up away from him. Raphael smiled and took another step closer. "Since you failed to open the cage, you are of no more use to me. I will kill you, then take care of Dean." One more step towards Castiel.

"No, you won't," said Cas lowly. He flicked open Dean's zippo and dropped it on the ground, lighting the ring of holy oil that Raphael had just walked into.

Raphael looked around him at the fire, a laugh rising up from his throat. "You are a fool, Castiel. You may escape me now, but when this extinguishes I will find you. And Dean."

Castiel didn't answer. Instead his eyes looked at something over Raphael's shoulder. The archangel slowly turned around. Standing behind him was the King of Hell, Crowley. His eyes were glowing red and a pulse of power came from a ring on his hand. Raphael tilted his head. "What is that, demon?"

A bright red light slammed into him, and his celestial scream of pain and surprise echoed throughout heaven. All around his vessel's body, flames licked the ground. Raphael's many wings flared once, and then exploded in a flash of light and Grace. Both Castiel and Crowley covered their faces. When the light faded away, nothing remained of Raphael, not even imprints of his wings.

Castiel stared at the spot that Raphael had once stood, unable to believe it was over. Distantly he heard the voices of his brothers and sisters crying out, some in rage, some in dismay, and others in joy. His thoughts drifted to Balthazar briefly, and he felt a pang of regret that his brother, his friend had to die. But he would always remember the sacrifice he had made.

"That was fun," said Crowley, coming up to stand behind Castiel.

The angel looked over his shoulder at him, before a small smile crossed his face. "I never thought I would say this, Crowley, but I believe you are right."

Crowley put out the holy oil with a wave of his hands then looked at Castiel. "Shall we?" A snap of the fingers and a flutter of wings, and the field was empty.

~*~*SPN~*~*

"Well, with that, I got places to go, souls to collect. A king's work is never done." A snap of his fingers, and Crowley disappeared, leaving the four of them standing around.

Sam cleared his throat and looked meaningfully at Bobby. "So, uhh. Maybe you and I should go grab a bite, what do you think?"

Bobby grinned and nodded his head in agreement. "Good idea. You two lovebirds stay here and hold down the fort for us. We'll bring you something back. Eventually." He chuckled and followed Sam out of the house.

Dean stared at the shut door for a moment, thankful for Sam and Bobby's consideration. Then he moved to stand beside Cas, drinking in the sight of his angel alive. "Cas, are you sure about this bonding? I mean, I'm just a human. I'll die one day. Probably soon-"

"Do not say those things, Dean! You will not die soon, I will not allow it."

Dean snorted. "Not sure you'll have much choice there, Cas."

"Dean!"

"Okay, Cas, okay. I'll shut up about that. But I'm serious when I asked if you're sure you want to bond with a human."

"Haven't I made my feelings clear enough? Besides, we've already bonded Dean. We just need to complete the ritual to finalize it. Usually that's done right away, but we obviously couldn't."

"That's why the bond strain crap, right?" Dean made a face.

Cas nodded.

"Okay, so what do we gotta do for the ritual?"

"The ritual is s the Grace to Grace. Or soul to Grace, in our case. This is can be done, but I'm not going to lie, it will hurt."

Dean grimaced inwardly. Of course it would, everything good in his life had to come with a bit of pain it seemed. He didn't voice his thoughts, instead just looked at Cas questioningly and asked, "how?"

"Essentially, I must take part of your soul into me, and you must take some of my Grace."

"So. Simple then," Cas stared and Dean cleared his throat. "Sorry."

"We have to carve Enochian sigils on each other's body using a blade of heaven. This will allow our feelings to flow between one another easier."

"Easier?" Dean was confused. "Easier than what?" He had been able to feel Cas, but never any of his feelings.

Cas tilted his head to the side. "Can you not feel what I am feeling towards you, Dean?"

Dean shook his head. "No. Just feel you, nothing specific."

Cas chewed on his lower lip. Dean couldn't help but stare and think to himself how much he would like to be the one chewing on those lips.

Cas stopped chewing his lip and grinned at him. "Do not worry. You will after the ritual."

"I will?"

"Yes. It will allow us to always feel if the other is in danger or pain."

"So, uhh. Should we...you know?" Dean paused and looked at Cas.

"Start the ritual?" Cas finished for him. Dean nodded. "Yes. That is why your brother and Bobby left us alone."

Cas moved, shrugging out of his coat with a wince and Dean hurried to help him. "God, Cas. I wish there was something I could do for your wings," he said as he helped Cas into the chair.

"The pain has decreased. They will heal, given enough time." His sword slid down into his hand. A twist of his Grace and some paper and a pen appeared on the table beside him. He picked them up and very carefully began to draw some symbols. "This is what you must carve on me, Dean. You must be very careful and copy this exactly." He finished his drawing and Dean picked it up and looked it over. He thought he recognized several of the sigils, but most of them were unfamiliar to him.

"You should start on me first. As I mentioned, it is supposed to be a painful process, and I would rather have you focused on getting the symbols correct."

"I can handle it!" Dean protested.

Cas smiled at him. "I know you can. But so can I, and I know the symbols very well."

"Okay, fine." Dean muttered.

Cas slowly began peeling himself out of his clothes. Every movement stretched and pulled at the injuries on his wings, but he pushed that pain down. Soon he would be feeling a lot more.

"You must carve those symbols into my chest. Start at the top and work your way down, going left to right." He paused, then added carefully, "You have to ignore my pain, Dean. If I tell you to stop you must continue."

Dean swallowed heavily. The thought of causing Cas more pain did not sit well with him. He was already hurt. Maybe they should wait until his wings healed. He opened his mouth to say just that.

"I will be fine, Dean. This is something that cannot wait any longer."

Dean stared at Cas. "Did you just read my mind?" He asked. Hopefully this wouldn't be a permanent side effect of the bond. His thoughts were private, and the idea that Cas could read his mind any time he wanted made him slightly uncomfortable.

Cas smiled softly. "Not exactly. The bond lets me feel what you are feeling, not your exact thoughts. I felt your worry for me just then," he replied.

Dean nodded, relieved. That was something he could deal with. He picked up the angel blade and took a deep breath. "Okay then." Suddenly a thought hit him. "How come I can't feel you then if we've already bonded?"

Cas shrugged. "I am an angel," he said, as if that explained everything.

Dean rolled his eyes. "Right. As if I could forget." He chewed on his lower lip. "You ready?"

Cas moved to lay on the floor. "Yes, Dean."

Dean knelt above him and placed the paper with the sigils on the floor where he could easily see them. He took a deep breath and lowered the blade to Cas's chest. He carefully carved the first of the symbols into Cas's skin. As soon as he had finished, he heard a small sound of distress come from Cas's throat. He paused with the blade poised above the skin to make the next one. "You alright?"

"Keep going, Dean." Cas said tightly.

After the second symbol, Dean began feeling something. It wasn't uncomfortable, he wasn't feeling the pain that Cas obviously was, but there was a definite niggling sensation throughout his body.

He stopped what he was doing and looked at Cas's face. His angel had his eyes squeezed tightly shut and teeth clenched. God, he hated being the one to cause Cas pain. Guilt tried to settle over him, but he pushed it down firmly. Now was not the time. He cleared his throat. "Cas, am I supposed to be feeling something too?" He asked.

Cas opened one eye. "It's your soul bonding to my Grace. It is not hurting you because your soul is all still there. I am in pain because some of my Grace must die to make room for your soul. Please Dean, keep going."

Dean lowered the blade and continued. By the time he was finished, Cas was crying openly. He had begged Dean to stop several times, and Dean felt bile rise in his throat as he steadfastly ignored his angel's pleas. Finally, he was done. He threw the blade away as though it burned him and scrambled up to Cas's head. He ran his fingers through Cas's hair. "Hey, Cas, hey. It's over. All done, okay buddy? God, I'm so sorry."

"Don't be sorry, Dean. This is something I want, I-" Cas's eyes flew open and he sat up with a gasp, making Dean scramble backwards.

"Cas?" Dean questioned worriedly. "What's- Your wings!" Pale blueish colored light framed each wing, and Dean watch in awe as beautiful new black feathers grew in place. New downy covered flesh covered the burnt scabs. Dean reached out to run his fingers through the newly healed wings. They were so soft. "Did you know this would happen?" he asked Cas.

Cas turned to him, a look of relief on his face. "No. I had hoped, but I didn't know. I feel incredible!"

"Everything else feels okay, then?" Dean asked. Cas nodded enthusiastically. "This is awesome!" Dean grinned. The remorse he had felt at being the cause of such pain for Cas melted away in the face of Cas's regained healing ability.

Cas bent down and picked up the discarded blade. He stared at it for a moment, then raised his eyes to meet Dean's. "Your turn," he said quietly.

Dean bit his lip, but didn't hesitate to pull off his shirt and lay down. If Cas could go through this just for him, then he would be damned if he showed any hesitation.

Cas poised himself over Dean. "Brace yourself." As he started carving, Dean winced. The first symbol wasn't too bad, until it was finished. Then Dean felt as though his very sense of self was being ripped into shards. He gasped and tried to move away from the hurt, and felt Cas's hand gently but firmly hold him down. "I know it hurts, Dean, but you must stay still."

"Cas," he cried. After the next few symbols, he felt tears leak unbidden down from his eyes. His muscles trembled from the strain of keeping them still. What the hell was happening? Not even when the Hellhounds had come for him had he felt this kind of burning agony. At least then his sense of self had remained intact; now it felt like he was shattering into a thousand pieces.

Suddenly he felt something nudging its way in. His mind was too fragmented to immediately recognize what it was at first, then Cas. Cas's Grace. His mind opened wide and embraced the Grace. The Grace seemed to seep in and fill all the cracks left by his soul ripping. Slowly he began to come back to himself, away from the pain, but the essence of Cas remained right there with him. It was a strange but welcome feeling, as if a part of him that had always been missing was now whole. The pain was still there, but the more time passed the further away it went.

He opened his eyes that he never remembered closing and saw Cas's concerned blue eyes right above his own. "Cas." Fuck, was that really his voice? He sounded like he had been screaming himself hoarse, but he didn't remember screaming.

"Are you alright?" Cas asked as he helped him sit up. "It's over."

"I...Yeah. Fuck, Cas. That was intense." He put his head in his hands and shivered at the remembered pain. Then he realized he could feel Cas's worry. His head shot up and he stared at Cas. Slowly a grin split his face. "It worked. Cas, I feel you!" The worry began to dissipate as Cas realized the ritual worked, and affection came through after that. "This is incredible!"

Cas stood and stretched, his wings arcing high before shaking themselves back to lay comfortably along Cas's back. Dean stared. How he wished he had been able to see those gorgeous wings before! He felt the blood rushing to his cheeks as he looked at Cas. The angel turned to Dean, an impish smile crossing his features, feathers flaring. Dean groaned. Damned asshole was teasing him.

Finally, Cas stopped preening and turned serious. "Dean, we are connected now, but it is very important we spend some time together to get used to the bond. Let me take us somewhere more...special." He raised his hand to Dean and then with a flutter of newly healed wings, Dean looked around at the plush room in awe.

"Wow, Cas, where did you take us?" he asked.

"The Ritz-Carlton suite in L.A." The angel supplied. "Don't worry, we won't be disturbed."

Dean raised his eyebrow at Cas. "Sweet. This is awesome Ca-" Dean was cut off by Cas's mouth crashing into his own. He opened his mouth further and deepened the kiss.

When he finally pulled away he was breathing heavily. "Damn, Cas. For not having any experience at this you sure picked up kissing quick."

His angel grinned at him before pulling him over to the bed. "Dean, I have been alive for millennia. But I have never felt as happy as I do right now. Thank-you."

Dean swallowed and shifted uncomfortably. Because of the bond, he knew Cas was telling the truth, but he still had trouble seeing himself in such a positive light.

Cas didn't say anything, he didn't have to. Instead he focused his devotion to Dean through the bond. He took Dean's hand and settled them down on the bed together. Gradually, Dean let himself relax.

"Open yourself to the bond," Cas whispered in his ear. "Feel how happy you make me."

Dean did. A smile broke out on his face, and he basked in the feeling of Cas's happiness. Fuck, this was great. He settled deeper on the bed. He could get used to this. Maybe settle down…

Huh. Settle down. He would have never thought of it before, but now... with Cas? Maybe one day he could. He snorted inwardly. Yeah right. Not with douchebags like Raphael out there. But having Cas by his side would make things a little more bearable.

They lay there in silence, just enjoying the feeling of being together as one. No words were needed. After a while, Cas looked over at Dean. "Dean," he said. "We should get back to Sam and Bobby. I imagine they are wondering where we are by now."

Dean shifted and sat up. "Yeah. Mind if we grab the Impala? She's just at this bar."

"Of course." Cas lifted his wings and flew them back to the house, stopping to grab Dean's car. When they landed, Dean's eyes lit up when he saw his Baby beside him. He reverently ran his hands over the hood, crooning softly.

"Careful, Dean. You'll make Cas jealous, and I don't want a pissy angel around," said Bobby. Dean glanced up to where Sam and Bobby were sitting on the deck. He grinned. He was in a great mood.

"You're glowing," remarked Sam with a smirk.

Cas looked back and forth between them with a confused look on his face. "You can see his soul?" he asked with a frown.

Dean had a great idea. He knew just how to freak out his brother. He laughed and stepped over to Cas, clapping him on the back. "He's talking about the post-sex glow," he said loudly. "You know, because we just had wild, kinky m-"

"Dean!" Sam slapped his hands over his ears, at the same time Bobby turned beet red and started coughing loudly.

Dean laughed even harder, and even Cas slowly smiled before joining in. The amusement reaching him through the bond was infectious. Like a feedback loop of joy, they both began laughing harder.

Sam watched the two of them laughing and smiling, and slowly put his hands down and grinned. Dean and Cas were now laughing so hard they were bent over, and Dean had tears starting to leak out of his eyes. He beckoned Bobby over with his hand. "Can I stay in your room tonight?"

Bobby nodded. He looked at the two on the ground and scratched the back of his neck. "That's probably a good idea," he said. After a moment he added, "been a while since I seen your brother laugh like that."

"Too long." Sam watched their laughter slowly die down to occasional trickles. "But you know what, Bobby? I think we might make it now."

"Make it? Make it where, Sam?"

Sam shrugged. "Wherever we want." He stood and headed inside, and after a moments consideration and a thoughtful look at Sam's back, Bobby stood up to follow.

On the gravel of the driveway, Dean and Castiel's laughter had finally died down. Dean closed his eyes and felt himself relax. His angel's wings came up and wrapped him in a comforting embrace, and Dean knew, as he felt Cas's Grace mingling with his own soul, that he would never be alone again. And that was the best feeling in the world.