Chapter 9
"Down the Rabbit Hole"
They followed Meg down a corridor to a glass elevator. Oddly enough, the demon didn't follow them inside, but took a left without looking back at them.
"Uhm, am I the only one finding it strange that she seemed to forget us after like five seconds?" Dean remarked, a frown spreading over his face.
"No. More importantly, Dean, why do you know this demon and how did she know my name?" Castiel replied, almost copying his frown.
"You guys don't belong here. A part of their nuggets knows that, so it shuts you out as soon as it can. Something about a paradox in a bottle and all that juicy fruity stuff." Lucifer said from behind them as the doors of the elevator closed.
"Then why did she just help us back there, genius?"
"Maybe there's a higher power at work," Lucifer retorted somewhat mysteriously, making a vague hand movement upwards. "I bet you could figure it out if you just strained that peanut of yours just a little more."
Dean just shook his head. "Give me a break."
The elevator opened on the third floor, and they found themselves in another set of green corridors. A male nurse passed them absently, starring at his wrist watch.
"That guy's gonna come home to his wife humping the pizza-man," Lucifer whistled
Ignoring him, Dean turned around and whistled sharply. "Uhm, hey, male nurse dude!"
The nurse stopped, and while pushing his glasses further up on his nose with a scrawny finger, threw them an irritated glare. Dean didn't look the slightest bit apologetic.
"We were told Emanuel was on this floor?"
The nurse threw another glance at his watch.
"I was off duty 5 minutes ago, but I'll take you past his room. Don't expect any conversation though, the guy is catatonic and hasn't reacted to anything for a month. He's been diagnosed with Schizophrenia and nothing we've done has helped. You family?"
"Would we be here if we weren't?" Dean answered cryptically. The nurse shrugged and waved for them to follow him.
They passed by several rooms. In one of them a thin man, with long ragged hair and facial scars from the corners of his mouth sat muttering to himself.
"Too soon... too soon..."
Dean cocked an eyebrow, but didn't say anything.
As they passed by a larger room with couches and a television set in the corner, a news report flashed on the screen with the headlight;
President Obama Supports Gay Marriage
"Excellent!" Lucifer hollered. "Now all the self-proclaimed Christian hypocrites will start burning posters and be all hateful." He rubbed his hands with glee. "I love hateful people, they make me all warm and fuzzy inside."
Castiel threw him a dirty look.
At the end of the hall the nurse pointed to a closed door on their left.
"He's in there. Just don't stay too long, visiting hours are closing soon."
Dean opened the door and turned on the light.
"Whoa... Dude, you've looked better."
Castiel, the real one as they claimed, was pale and lay motionless on a bed near a window covered by white curtains in a shade that matched the color of his face. The blue eyes were open, staring blankly. Walking closer, Dean saw nothing in them. No life, no sign of awareness.
"Yup, that's catatonic, alright!" Lucifer commented happily.
Castiel walked up to stand next to Dean.
"What did he do to me?"
Dean just shook his head and raised both eyebrows.
"You wanna see?" Lucifer teased with a pleased smile.
They ignored him.
Dean walked closer to the bed and leaned slightly over it. No, right, him. The supposed real Cas, if it wasn't complete BS.
"Cas?" He said loudly.
"Yes?" Castiel replied from behind him.
Dean rolled his eyes and blew out a frustrated breath.
"I think he's talking to Veggie Cas, buddy." Lucifer whispered in his brother's ear. Then he straightened and mused to himself. "A veggie state, would that be California or Idaho?"
Castiel looked confused.
Someone passed by the door and soft footsteps sounded as he or she continued down the hall.
Dean leaned closer to the bed and tried again;
"Cas, can you hear me?"
There was nothing, but silence. Dean blew roughly on the absent angel's face, but not even his lashes flickered. He proceeded to prob the right cheek with his index finger. Then he tapped the angel twice on the forehead. "Hellooo? Earth to Cas. Bad mojo is going on. Hell's broken loose. My brother married a demon and unleashed Lucifer. End of the world!" He made an exasperated sound. "I lost my car, man... Please wake up!"
"I do not believe this is working, Dean."
"Geez, thanks, Cas, I hadn't noticed!" His voice was dripping with sarcasm. Of all the stupid angels to visit a psych ward with. "I need a beer!"
"Dean..." The angel said in a warning tone.
"Don't talk to me!"
"Love is in the air ..." Lucifer hummed, confetti had once again mysteriously appeared in his hands and was now coloring the dirty-white linoleum floor.
"You seriously need to get some help," Dean said and brushed past him into the hallway, where he stopped and let his hands fall to his sides. The arched brows knitted together as a shadowy figure disappeared around the corner before he could get a good look at him.
"Dude, I think we're being stalked," he said, shooting a look back at Castiel.
"Stalked? Dean, half of the people we meet here does not even seem to realize we exist," Castiel replied, coming up behind him.
"I know, it's giving me the creeps."
"What is a creep?" Castiel looked confused.
Dean looked past him to Lucifer, who was now blowing soap bubbles towards the defenseless angel on the bed, carefully aiming for the eyes.
"Your brother, for starters..." Dean mumbled. "Look, we have no clue what to do here, I don't know how to fix you."
"Dean..." Castiel began, but stopped himself.
"We need some answers. I need a phone. Maybe if I'm lucky, Bobby can still pick up his. If ghost-Bobby can sit his ass down on a chair, he better be able to pick up a damned phone. If not I don't see any other alternatives than going back there."
As he didn't have any better ideas, Castiel followed Dean back down the hallway. Dean threw a look at the passing Nurse Meg Masters, but she didn't seem to notice him at all.
"This is too just too weird," he muttered.
"I still want to know why you know a demon," Castiel sounded disapproving.
"And I want to know why she's wearing a sexy nurse costume, but we don't have the time."
They had gotten all the way down the elevator, through the lobby and to the parking lot when the attack smacked them right on the rear end. The last thing Dean saw before something connected heavily with the back of his head was a man in a black suit, staring intensely at him from a car parked by the sidewalk in front of them.
