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August 15th, 1976
"Guys! Jimmy Page is here, I repeat, Jimmy Page is here and he just complimented my guitar playing!" Charlie comes crashing over to to where the rest of the band is, looking happier than he's seen her in a while. They're at their first major party and it's hard not to act starstruck when some of their biggest idols are just milling about, drinking punch and conversing with one another. Some times it's difficult to remember they're human too.
"Jimmy Page?! In this room?..." Sam looks torn between wanting to go chase him down or pretending like he doesn't care all that much. He casts a sideglance over to Dean.
"What are you looking at me for? You don't need my permission." Dean snorts and it's only seconds later that Sam takes off, closely followed by Charlie and Gabe to go drool over the legendary guitarist. Dean himself wishes he could come up with that kind of enthusiasm over the man, but the truth is he's only here because it'd be good for them and there's free booze.
"I think you have an admirer." Zeke whispers to him gesturing to their left with his head. Dean looks over to see a gaggle of giggling girls and further beyond that a face he recognizes. As soon as they lock eyes, the man makes his way through the crowd towards them, holding his martini high above his head as he squeezes past the girls.
"Ah! ! It's so nice to finally meet you." The man says in a crisp British accent, sticking out his hand for Dean to shake whilst completely ignoring Zeke's presence. Dean warily takes hold of it, he knows from other bands not too be too trusting of this guy.
"Same to you, Mr. Crowley. Have you met Zeke yet?" He gestures to his bandmate who offers his hand as well.
"Pleasure." Crowley says, barely sparing him a glance. "Now Dean, We have to talk business here. Supernatural is at the forefront of the newest wave of popularity and I want to make sure that you don't lose this opportunity. You will need my help if you want to be popular for the next twenty odd years."
"Only twenty years? You really don't have much hope for us." Dean smirks and is going to give Zeke an amused look but his guitarist has already left the conversation.
Crowley sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. "I'm going to be honest here, Dean. I see a lot of potential in you, more potential than I've seen in a while. But your band? I just don't see it. They're dragging you down. You can't expect to get anywhere if you don't go anywhere. Your sound is tired, you need a fresh start." As if to prove his point Crowley pauses mid-spiel as Sam's voice drifts over to them faintly from some corner of the room.
"I JUST DID A LINE WITH JIMMY PAGE!"
"You see Dean? Work with me and you'll get the career you deserve, not the one you've settled with. We could do great things you and I..."
"Im gonna stop you there, big guy. My band is not nothing without me, I'm nothing without my band. They are way more talented than I am, shit, they each had to master their instruments while all I do is talk into a microphone. Zeke, the guy you just blew off? He's never hit a wrong note once, that kid could play blindfolded. Gabe? He provides the perfect mix of a crazy beat without overpowering the rest of us, can't ask for more than that. Charlie? Jimmy Page said he likes her guitar skills. Jimmy fucking Page. If that doesn't speak miles about her ability, I don't know what does. My brother? I dragged him into this and he rose to the damn occasion beautifully. You'd swear he'd been born with a bass strapped to him. Every single one of them makes me a better musician and a better person and I'm not about to give that up. So if you'll excuse me I'm gonna go make sure Sam hasn't thrown up on Eric Clapton. Go find someone else to corrupt." Dean brushes past Crowley and storms off, his throat aching slightly with each step, and he finds himself sidling up to the bar and throwing back a couple of whiskeys before he's able to calm down some. He's just ordering a third when there's a tap on his shoulder and he turns around to see a rather terrified looking server.
"Uh, ? There's a man in the front lobby who's creating a bit of a disturbance and he claims to know you."
Dean frowns and hopes it isn't who he thinks it is. "What does he look like?"
"Umm, dark hair, blue eyes, I think? Wearing a tan trenchcoat over a..." Dean doesn't let the man finish before he's already sprinting down the staircase leading to the front entrance. Sure enough, Cas is holding onto a pillar for support and yelling at a group of bouncers who are slowly closing in on him.
"Fucking scum! If you'd open your eyes for once and give a shit about what's happening to our world then maybe we wouldn't have so many problems!" Cas is both screaming and slurring.
"Cas? What the hell are you doing?" Dean demands.
"Oh hey, Dean." Cas' voice immediately resumes it's normal tone. "I just wanted to come see what you guys were up to."
"I'll handle this, guys." Dean says to the bouncers who are eyeing him shiftily.
"Yeah, he'll handle this!" Cas agrees and promptly throws up on his shoes. It takes a grand total of ten minutes to drag Cas to the nearest bathroom and get him settled next to an toilet where he continues to empty the contents of his stomach.
"What the hell was that back there? You can't just show up here and attack everyone." Dean chastises him from outside the stall.
"People like them are the reason this world is so fucked up. They're not a part of the revolution, Dean, they're ignoring it!"
"What revolution? There is no revolution going on, that's a thing of the past. The war is over, there's nothing to be protesting right now."
"There's always problems, you just choose to look away from them. The world is going to shit and will continue to do so if we don't do something about it. What happened to you, Dean? What happened to the man who stood by me and punched a cop in the face? You've changed."
"I've changed? I've changed because I refuse to stay hung up on one protest that happened on one day like five years ago? Cas, where are you getting your lunacy from? I should be asking what happened to you."
"I met someone, his name's Metatron and he's shown me how things really are. We need to be the difference this world needs and you guys have the power to do it now. You're at the perfect time in your career to let people know the truth."
"I don't know what crazy drugs your new guru has been feeding you, Cas, but you really gotta stop and listen to yourself. All you're doing is regurgitating the empty lies that he's been telling you. None of what youre saying is making any sense to me. What is the 'truth'? What difference are we gonna make in the world? I don't even think you know what youre saying."
"You know, out of all my friends I thought you'd be the one to understand me, Dean. I knew everyone else would just laugh it off but I figured you'd have my back. That's why I came here, but now I see I've made a mistake." Cas wipes his chin off and Dean sees just how bad he actually looks; his hair is stuck up in all directions and his eyes are completely shot.
"Look at yourself, Cas. You're pathetic. I don't even know who you are anymore." Dean starts to head towards the door and Cas holds out his hand weakly to him.
"Dean, wait. Don't leave me." He begs and Dean grits his teeth, his hand on the door handle. Perhaps it's due to the amount of alcohol he's consumed, or even just the anger he's bottled up inside himself, but Dean makes the biggest mistake of his life and walks out the door to rejoin the party, leaving one of the best friends he's ever had alone on that bathroom floor.
"To this day if you ask me what my biggest regret in my career was, it would be walking out on Cas that night. He needed me, he needed my help and I was just too big an asshole to see it. I just think of all the future problems I would've prevented had I just sat down and actually listened to him, and it kills me. Nothing was really the same after that." Dean says darkly, his gaze downcast.
"Surely that's not true." Rachel replies meekly.
"It really is. And for years I believed that I wasn't at fault. If you're gonna fuck up, at least take responsibility for it."
"Well, as unpleasant as it is to end on a note such as that, we really should stop for the day. It's getting late and I'd rather we get an early start tomorrow then go too late into the night."
"Past your bedtime already? Sheesh, when I was your age, I barely slept."
Yes, well when you were my age, you stayed awake in fear that a Velociraptor would eat you the moment you let your guard down." Rachel retorts as she packs her bag and then immediately freezes, a look of horror passing over her face until she realizes Dean is laughing. "Sorry, I didn't mean to say that."
"I'm glad you did! I was beginning to wonder if you were actually a human being until now. There's no need to be so formal around me, I wouldn't have made it far in this world if I wasn't able to handle a couple jabs at my age." He sees her to the door, still with a slight grin on his face.
"You bring the worst out of me, Dean. I'll be swearing like a trucker and jamming out to Black Sabbath by the time this article is done." Rachel mock sighs as she slings her bag over one shoulder.
"That's all I aim to accomplish with these interviews."
"Goodnight, Mr. Winchester, try not to stay up too late reminiscing. Best save it for tomorrow." Rachel says and gives a quick wave before heading to her car, making a great show of blasting some jangly new pop song as she drives down the street. Dean shakes his head before closing the door and going back to the couch, sinking into it and immediately closing his eyes.
He'd never admit it to her, but it's past his bedtime too.
