Chapter Seven: Midnight Hands
Everything was ruined.
Dean Winchester was still alive.
He was supposed to be dead.
It had all been going so well. Dean Winchester, who sold his soul to bring his brother back from the dead, was scheduled to go to Hell within twelve months, less if he was killed sooner. Sam Winchester had tried- and failed- numerous times to withdraw his brother from his deal. Even Dean seemed intent on plunging into the Hellfire, warning his brother not to try and weasel him out of his contract.
Yes, everything was going according to plan.
Dean was going to go to Hell and break the first Seal, starting a chain of events in motion that could not be stopped.
But then Sam Winchester had made one final- seemingly futile- attempt to restore his brother's soul. No one was worried. Sam Winchester had failed in the past to have his brother's contract destroyed. Why should this be any different?
The demon agreed to deal. It was unbelievable! Unexpected, though not a complete disaster. No, all that was needed to break the first Seal was for a righteous man to draw blood in Hell. If it was Sam Winchester instead of Dean, then so be it.
Then Lilith, sly fiend that she was, did not damn the youngest Winchester to Hell. No, instead she kept Sam alive.
The demon queen knew the stakes and had agreed- or at least resigned- to them centuries earlier. It seemed though, that as the decades past, Lilith cared more for her own skin than the decimation of the human race. She knew that if destiny was allowed to play out as it had been determined so long ago, she would die. No one really paused to wonder if Lilith's actions were a result of a love for herself or the enjoyment she gained from tormenting the souls on Earth.
In one fell swoop, Lilith had ruined millennia of planning!
With no righteous man in Hell, the first Seal could not be broken. The Apocalypse could not begin.
The archangels were outraged at this catastrophe. No one knew exactly how to proceed.
Dean Winchester could not be killed; with no contract hanging over his head, his soul would ascend to Heaven.
It was unlikely that Lilith would bend under threats. Although she was only a demon, she was not easily intimidated. She would sooner let herself be killed by one of God's soldiers than take an order from one.
At a stalemate, the archangels could do nothing more than watch and wait, pretend that everything was going along accordingly. Maybe the Winchesters would surprise them; they had done so in the past, even though each of the celestial beings was loathe to admit it.
SPN
Castiel enjoyed watching humans. He found them to be some of the most fascinating creatures his father had created.
He was equally astonished by their capacity to hate as well as love.
The angel had been stationed on Earth- not the most desirable of posts- for a very long time and in all his centuries, Castiel found the humans never ceased to amaze him.
The horror of war always took his breath away, the sounds of the dying mixed with the crash of shield against shield or the roar of artillery fire never seemed to dull.
The music of laughter, of happy voices celebrating life, always managed to make even the worst times a little bit brighter.
The good and the bad and everything in between confused and dazzled the angel.
Castiel could see why his father had deemed humans his greatest creation. They were always overflowing with emotions. Unlike the angels, Castiel himself included, who were not designed to feel, only to do. Castiel knew what happened to angels who found emotions. It was oftentimes too much for them to handle and it always ended badly.
Castiel had seen and heard just about everything there was to see and hear on Earth. And he loved it all.
That was why he had been chosen to watch. He had always been curious about the humans and while some of his brothers and sisters felt distain for the creatures, Castiel felt intrigue. He never grew bored with watching. Even when night crept over a continent, Castiel would not move to a different locale where the sun reigned. He liked watching the humans even as they slept.
Castiel knew about the Winchesters. Of course he did. Their birth had been in the design since God had first created humans. The angel had seen the long chain that stretched out through the ages, the destiny of the two families that would come together and sire the two young men known as Sam and Dean Winchester.
Castiel had been sent to Earth not only to watch humans in general but to ensure that the Winchesters fulfilled their destiny. He had been by Mary Campbell's side as made her deal with the demon Azazel for her boyfriend's life. He had stood in Dean Winchester's nursery the day after his birth. He had watched along with John as the man's house burnt with unnatural fire.
Castiel had been there all along. Observing and reporting. Making sure that the archangels' plans were kept unsullied by any interference.
But the angel could not do anything when Sam Winchester had made his own deal. Castiel was allowed to watch but he was forbidden from action unless it was given by a direct order.
At first his thoughts had been similar to those in the minds of his superiors: the Boy with the Demon Blood would trade his soul for his brothers and break the first Seal in Hell.
The deal though, was not for a soul but for a life. Sam Winchester, although damned to a living Hell, would not become the righteous man.
Castiel did not know what to do. He had remained standing in the middle of the deserted road, surrounded by field on either side, wondering how the plan could have gone so horribly askew so suddenly.
Sam Winchester, of his own free will, had changed the path of destiny without even being aware of doing so.
Castiel watched mutely as the demon deposited the decoy in the grasses- an unfortunate young man- and disappeared. He didn't move when Dean Winchester approached, the growl of his old automobile giving him away even before the angel saw him.
Castiel had watched as Dean cried over the body of who he thought was his brother and burned the remains.
It wasn't until the Impala had vanished from the dreary road that Castiel moved.
He needed to report.
Castiel felt incredibly lost. This wasn't meant to have happened. He was the one who would free Dean Winchester from Hell after he had broken the first Seal and keep the brothers on track towards the Apocalypse.
What was he going to do now?
Castiel didn't even notice the freezing wind that cut through his vessel's trench coat as he appeared upon the summit of what the humans had named Mount Everest.
He heard the flutter of wings above the howl of the wind and turned to see Arcite.
The angel's vessel was a thin young man in his late teens with pale blonde hair and light blue eyes.
"What happened? Dean Winchester's contract was rescinded," the other angel questioned, his voice quiet.
"His brother made a deal with a demon," Castiel answered and his brother's blue eyes widened.
"The abomination is to be sent to Hell?" Arcite asked skeptically.
Castiel shook his head, "No, Samuel Winchester is living. Lilith will not kill him."
"Uriel must know of this immediately," Arcite announced and his wings flared out from where they lay against his back, visible only to Castiel.
Before Castiel could blink, the fair-haired angel was gone. He turned and looked out across the snow-covered peaks and steppes that surrounded the great mountain he stood upon.
"Castiel," the deep, rumbling voice startled the angel and he looked over his shoulder at the archangel.
"Uriel," he greeted, "It has been a long time since we've spoken face-to-face."
Arcite stood to one side, a nervous expression on his vessel's youthful face.
"Dean Winchester will not die?" the archangel asked and Castiel nodded.
"His brother made a deal with a demon that succeeded," the angel explained. He almost didn't believe it. Samuel Winchester had tried for months to prevent his brother's death only to find disappointment and now, when they were only weeks away from their goal, Lilith conceded.
"Why? Why would she agree now?" Castiel asked but Uriel ignored him.
"It is not in Hell?" the archangel asked. Castiel forced himself not to cringe at the term Uriel used to refer to the youngest Winchester.
"No," he answered, "Lilith is allowing him to live, although he has agreed to become her slave-"
Uriel interrupted, "Keep watching both of those mud-monkeys but do nothing."
"What are you going to-" Castiel began but the archangel vanished before he could finish.
Arcite peered balefully at his brother before he too, disappeared. He had the answers no more than Castiel himself did.
W
Castiel did as he had been ordered, as he had done for years now, and watched the Winchesters.
He watched as Dean Winchester threw himself recklessly into hunts to try and stifle his grief. He watched as the young man drank too much and spoke to his friends far too little.
Castiel could relate the human's feelings. He recalled the Great War and the devastation it had caused. Castiel remembered how many of his brothers and sisters- good angels albeit misguided- had been banished forevermore from Heaven and sent into to Pit. He remembered when his father disappeared and no one knew where He had gone. He recalled Gabriel's desertion shortly after the War.
Castiel still missed his sisters and brothers- both the dead and the exiled- and wished more than anything that events had turned out differently.
No one spoke of Lucifer or the third of their siblings who had gone with him, especially not if Michael was nearby.
Castiel wondered where his father and Gabriel had gone and if they would ever return.
Watching Dean Winchester try and drown his grief or dull it with physical pain caused by wounds obtained during hunts, Castiel wished he could tell the human that although the feeling never truly went away, it did ease with time.
But the angel could not make contact with Dean Winchester. He was forbidden from interacting with any human; his only prerogative was to watch and report.
Castiel tried not to be sympathetic to Samuel Winchester's plight. The young man- a man tainted with demon blood- had chosen his fate willingly.
The angel had seen how cruel humans could be to one another over the centuries, he had witnessed some of the most horrific tortures ever conceived by mortal minds and yet… and yet…
As the days turned to weeks and the weeks to months Castiel felt his heart going out to the young man.
Samuel Winchester- the Boy with the Demon Blood- who most nights cried himself to sleep, curled up protectively; Samuel Winchester, who called out his brother's name while in the midst of a nightmare; Samuel Winchester, who shrank away from any raised voice or hand; Samuel Winchester, whose only crime was that Azazel had poisoned him with demon blood while he was still a swaddling infant.
Castiel found himself only watching the youngest Winchester for only a few moments at a time, uncomfortable with long visits. He preferred Dean Winchester's sadness to Samuel Winchester's terror.
After many months passed with no word from above, Castiel began praying that the archangels would come to some sort of decision. This separation was killing the Winchesters.
Castiel knew he could not intervene with humans but watching Dean continue to grieve over a dead body that was not even his kin's and Sam live in a constant state of fear was becoming unbearable.
The angel almost didn't believe it when he was given permission to act for the Winchesters. Uriel's instructions were to be followed exactly and although they did not give Castiel a great amount of freedom, the lesser angel was happy to simply help the Winchesters in any way.
Author's Note:
1. Chapter title comes from a Rise Against song of the same name.
to cold kagome, MysteryMadchen, avidreader33, Elisab68, Stryder2008, angeleyenc, L.A.H.H, murphy9202, sarah, babyreaper, Olive-Pizza, SamDeanLover28, BranchSuper, Leia96, mandancie and Guest for reviewing.
3. Thanks to everyone who alerted, followed, favourited.
4. So, this chapter didn't have ANY Sam or Dean in it. Sorry. But I wanted to talk a little bit about what the angels were doing now that Sammy had thrown a wrench in their plans. I also kind of gave Cas a whole new history. I am pretty sure that his first time on Earth- at least, in a long time- was when he rescued Dean from Hell in the show. I just started writing about Cas and he wanted to be on Earth, watching humanity, so I was like, 'sure, who can deny everyone's favourite angel, right?'. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Don't worry. We'll get back to Dean and Sam in the next one.
5. Please leave a little something in the S.O.S (Save Our Sam) fund.
