I'm really freaking sorry, guys, okay?! I know I haven't posted in forever, but now it's time for WHEEL OF EXCUSES:
Did I have too much homework? Did I have another fic that I simply HAD to finish? Did my dog eat my new chapter?
NONE OF THE ABOVE- I've actually been working on an original novel (yes, novel, not fanfiction) called Chasing Hope, it's about Pandora and Greek mythology and stuff, yada yada yada, but you guys want to read the new chapter now so I'll leave you to it.
RECAP:
"The seals were like locks on a door: separate events that, when they unfolded, brought the Devil one step closer to being free and unleashing Hell on earth."
"You are one of those seals, Dean."
He shouldn't be telling him any of this. Dean wasn't supposed to know, not yet.
But it was too late.
"The first seal is broken when a righteous man sheds blood in Hell. From there You are the righteous man- you are the one destined to bring the apocalypse. I didn't want to believe it before when they told me, but it's so obvious now.
When the first seal breaks, Lucifer will walk the earth. It's inevitable. Not one of them has been broken yet. But if you go to Hell, Lucifer is eventually free."
"Lucifer? The Lucifer?"
Cas nodded.
"How- how would I- I mean, am I, I dunno, destined to go to Hell?" Dean asked.
"No. You would need to do something drastic to deserve that. Kill an innocent, make a deal-"
"Wait, a deal?"
Castiel hesitated. "Dean, I really shouldn't be telling you all of this. Any of this, actually."
"Cas, you can't just say that I'm a harbinger of the end of times and leave it at that. I need answers, and right now you seem like the only one who knows what's going on."
Cas paused, but finally gave in. "A demon deal. You would have to make a deal with a Crossroads demon. They offer you anything you desire, then after some time, 10 years usually, they come to collect."
"I have a feeling that you don't pay with money."
"No- they collect your soul. Not that Hell really needs more than it already has, but the King of Hell likes to be prepared. If they're down there long enough, the souls eventually wither away and corrode, in a sense, into a demon."
"How would you make a deal?"
Cas gave Dean a look, then stood.
Dean gave a dramatic eye-roll. "Cas, man, c'mon. I'm not gonna do anything, I'm just curious. This is all new to me," Dean reasoned.
"You summon a demon at a crossroads. They offer you a deal, you sign the contract and seal it with a kiss."
"That simple?"
"It's not really simple, Dean. And never worth it. Now, you need to rest: we're going to meet with the Kansas Men of Letters faction tomorrow."
Despite how safe Cas had assured Dean that this safehouse was, Dean couldn't- or wouldn't- sleep. If something did find them somehow, one of these Supernaturals, as Cas had called them, Dean would be completely and utterly defenseless. He didn't even have a stick- the only thing he could find in his room that resembled a weapon was the two swords hanging over the door, and even those seemed more decorative. Not like he could lift them anyway, seeing as how they looked to be made from pure silver.
And now that Dean had some time alone to himself, he could really mull over his predicament. On one hand, his best friend was a freaking angel, which was awesome, but on the other hand Hell existed (not to mention he was destined to go there), which sucked.
Royally sucked.
After about an hour or so of closing his eyes and trying to sleep, Dean eventually gave up on his attempts. He alternated between exploring the tall oak bookcase in the corner, filled with tomes and other magicky-sounding books that Dean couldn't read.
Not because he was so tired, no- he literally couldn't read them: one of them was in actual Greek, most were in Latin, and there were a few that were locked shut.
Every few minutes Dean would hear Cas get up to walk around in the front room: sometimes he could hear him leafing through a book (seriously, this place had so many bookcases), other times he seemed to be talking to himself. Later in the night/early morning, Cas turned on the TV and Dean could faintly hear what sounded like cartoons. At that, Dean had to chuckle to himself.
Dean still had his phone: about every 10 minutes he checked to see what time it was, and every time he saw that it was 10 minutes later than before. Finally 6 a.m. rolled around, and Dean figured that was an appropriate time to "wake up".
Cas was standing in the kitchen: all of the cupboards were open, and a package of well-past-the-sell-by-date bread was thrown on the counter. Cas surveyed the empty cupboards with dismay: he then noticed Dean standing there, and began to close them.
"This safehouse was always a backup. I guess no one's been here for a while," he said as he threw away the moldy pack of bread, "We'll pick something up on the road."
Minutes later they were in the Impala, ready to head out for the Kansas faction.
Cas turned to face Dean, and his head tilted in that obnoxiously cute puppy fashion.
"Why didn't you sleep, Dean?"
"Couldn't," How did he know? Dean's inability to sleep forced him to conserve energy with 1-word answers.
"You should have told me. I'll drive," Cas offered.
"No, Cas, it's fine, I'm not really tired anyw-," Dean lied although he could tell his words were slurred and his eyelids were heavy.
Dean was cut off when Cas touched two fingers to his forehead. His uncompleted sentence trailed off as he immediately slumped in the driver's seat. It took him a few minutes, but Castiel finally got Dean buckled in the passenger's seat, got the keys and started the car.
If there were no delays, they would be at the Kansas faction in Lebanon within the next few hours.
I think this one was longer, so that kinda makes up for not updating. Also this fic is kinda wrapping up now I think.