Ch. 36. Action.

The path to the Traders was done in haste, as the chauffeur was rushed incessantly to go faster. The moment his uncle prompted him to actually take action he snapped out of his stupor, grabbed Dean by the wrist and got in the coach. Cas was a bit terrified but utterly... alive.

Once inside the building, a secretary asked Castiel to wait for Mister Edgar, who would meet him in a minute. Dean was glued to his Master's side, the place held really bad memories for him. Cas wasn't very comfortable either but he forced himself to look nonchalant, he had a part to play. They didn't have much time to get lost in thoughts though as suddenly the angel was greeted in a very cheerily mood by the trader.

"Mister Novak, I see you brought the boy! Yes, he's exactly what I need!" Unexpectedly the trader, Mister Edgar, was grabbing Dean by his chin and forcing his head up. "Look at me, boy! Yes, pretty eyes and lips, and the right hair color… let's see the back…"

Castiel opened his mouth as to say something, but the secretary passed by his side, lifted Dean's shirt and turned him forcefully, making him hiss in pain. "mmm… I see you got your way with this one too… good thing you didn't mar the face, the girl will be hard to sell, but this one…"

Cas was staring at Dean's back, his bandages were dirty with new and old blood, and that somewhat distracted him from the trader's hand traveling down Dean's back, but when it reached his ass and slapped it, that snapped Castiel out of his trance. He yanked Dean towards him, making him wince but shielding him from the examination.

"Get your hands off of him! What are you doing?" Castiel was almost growling. Dean was shaking with a mix of pain and fear in his eyes and the angel held his hand, hoping the familiar gesture would ease the slave a bit.

The trader looked at them in confusion and started explaining as if he was talking with some infant: "I'm taking the boy you brought for sale, he's the girl's brother, isn't it? The blond boy toy you got tired off. I must say that you shouldn't play so hard with them if you're looking for a good selling price…"

"Why would you think I brought Dean for sale?" Cas was not sure if he wanted the answer but he needed it, just to confirm what he already knew.

"Mister Michael Novak, your father, he sold me the girl a couple days ago and said he had the matching boy, that he'll bring it sometime when he saw fit. I wasn't expecting you today but it works for me…"

"Oh, you fucking bastard!" Cas couldn't help raising his voice. He breathed deeply, making an effort to calm down, barely achieving it, before addressing the trader, who had a startled expression on his face. "See Edgar, this was a misunderstanding, I'm not selling, I actually came to put Jo and Dean as my property. She was sold to you by mistake, so now I'll have to buy her back, and Dean here, he belongs to my household but I need him to be just mine, so you tell me what kind of paperwork is needed in this case"

The trader raised his eyebrows. "Well, this is rather unconventional, but in regards to your family I'll sell her back to you, if we still have her that is. Please wait at the office"

He showed them to a room near the entryway. Cas kept holding Dean's hand, even when he was invited to take a seat. The trader looked at them amusedly, Cas was sitting with a serious frown on his face, and Dean was standing by his side, holding his hand, shivering and looking down.

The secretary entered the room followed by a very distressed Jo. Her hands were tied in front of her and in addition to her bruised face, her eyes were red-rimmed and puffy and her headscarf was gone. Dean couldn't hold a whimper when he saw her and Jo, knowing that voice anywhere, lifted her head and widened her eyes. "Master!" she wailed and tried to reach them, but she was held back by the secretary.

"Not so fast girl!" Edgar pointed his finger at her and Jo flinched, forcing herself to stay put, she was still property of the trader. "I've already taken her, so you'll need to sign these papers to purchase her. The boy's case is different, these are the forms you'll need, but we should discuss the price first"

"It's all right, money is not a problem"

Cas let go of Dean's hand, read and signed the forms, they looked like the ones his uncle had shown him early, then, he took his wallet out and handed the trader a check for the sum he was asking without blinking. Dean was glued to his side, fidgeting. It was way more than a fair price for them both, but he didn't say a thing, for once his Master was making good use of his money. The whole paperwork took them almost an agonizing hour but they endured it happily knowing it'll be over right after that.

"All right, there you go" Edgar, satisfied with the transaction, motioned for his secretary to let her go. Jo then walked the few steps toward her Master, smiling when she was finally by his side. Castiel unbound her wrists and briefly squeezed her hand before placing her by his brother's side.

"I see you had trained them well, even after the way you've played with them, they still cling to you… You'll have to tell me your secret!"

Edgar was smirking at him, and Cas took this as their cue to leave. "Maybe some other time. Goodbye" and walked away followed by two very excited blondes.

Once inside the coach Cas sat in front of them. They were trembling, sitting side by side, their hands knotted tight. Both of them were biting and licking their lips, obviously waiting for Cas to say something, so he did: "We're off the hook now, go on, hug, I know you want to" and they did, they hugged each other and cried happy tears, Jo kissing her brother's forehead and Dean almost cradling her in his arms.

The pure affection they showed was too much for Cas and he started to blink rapidly, trying his best to hold his own tears. Once and again, the sole responsible for this ordeal his friends went through had been his family, they were the ones that had hurt them, the three of them victims of abuse in a way or another. Cas wondered why had he always been so fearful of his father, he could have prevented all of this just by doing what he just did, this smallest act of rebellion actually meant the world for his friends.

They broke their embrace and looked at him, both sporting teary eyes and the broadest smiles he had seen so far on their faces. "Thank you, Master! Thank you so much!" They said to him in ragged voices, confusing his distressed tears for happy ones.

Before any of them could say another word they were back at Gabriel's place. Only back inside they finally breathed and relaxed. Gabriel allowed them a moment to themselves before he spoke his mind. "Well Cassie, I'm going to be honest here… you all look like crap"

Cas looked at his clothes, they were what he was wearing when he jumped on his brother and left the manor two days ago. Dean looked so tired and had dirt and blood all over the back of his shirt; and Jo… well, she just needed a break. "Yeah, you're right Gabe… we all need to eat something and rest, get our strength back. Can we do that in here?"

Gabriel softened his gaze while rolling his eyes, a gesture purely his and something Castiel wished to know how to achieve. "Of course Cassie, I'll see they get whatever they need" and asked a girl to take care of them. The slaves bowed and left them alone to talk.

"Well, now what?" Gabriel leaned on the door frame.

"I… I have the documents stating they are mine, but we can't go back home. Please, uncle, I'll need you to help me find a place, I think I am sufficiently independent now to be on my own"

"On your own?"

"Well, Dean and Jo will be there with me… you know what I mean"

"Don't sweat it little bird, I was teasing you. Of course I'll help you find a place, you don't have to worry about it right now. You can stay here as long as you need it"

"Thank you. I… I need something else from you, as a lawyer…" Castiel then asked him to explain what he needed to do in order to secure access to some of the money entitled to him as a member of the Novak family, like an early inheritance or something, or an extended allowance.

Gabriel explained that he needed Michael's signature on some documents, but it shouldn't be a problem, Michael was an asshole but he was still his father, so he will surely accept to do it. Gabriel then started working on said documents that very moment. Cas was finally seeing how the pieces of his life's puzzle were coming together.

The older angel lifted his gaze from the papers and grinned when he saw his nephew lost in thought, thinking of how he was finally growing up because, yes, he was a grown ass angel, but clearly his life was just starting. He got to his feet and went to hug his big baby, startling the other angel for a moment before he too surrendered, and it lasted for a moment till Gabriel just had to speak. "Cassie, darling, you need a bath too you know…?" they pulled apart and laughed. Cas hugged his uncle briefly once more before retiring to the guest room he always used whenever he stayed, at Milton House.

Dean and Jo had a very welcomed shower too, and once they were clean and dressed in fresh clothes, they were taken to the room they'll be sharing for the night, so Jo could help him bandage the cuts and gashes that reopened on his way to town. He was on his stomach when the girl that had shown them around got into the room and handed Jo a small jar, smiling at them. "It will help close the wounds, the ones on his back and those on your face. My father made it, we use it all the time here, even Master Gabriel uses it for his paper cuts"

"Thank you, we really appreciate it… I'm Joanna and this is Dean, it's very nice to meet you" Jo smiled back and took off the jar's lid, the creamy paste inside smelled like chamomile and bay laurel. She took some of it and rubbed it on Dean's back, making him squirm under the ministrations.

"You're welcome. I'm Amelia by the way" She fidgeted for a moment, like dwelling on something, but then she sighed before speaking again. "We asked your Master if we could give you a haircut, and he said that it was up to you so, if you let me, I can try and fix your hair" she smiled apologetically while waiting for an answer. Jo's cheeks were burning and she focused on Dean's back, making an effort to not look up. Dean spoke for her, thanking Amelia and accepting the offer. She grinned and went to find scissors, a comb, and a small mirror. Some time and work later Jo's hair looked much better, it was not necessary for her to cover her head now, it was even stylish. Dean smiled at Jo and, when presented with a mirror, she tried to focus on the hairdo, not the bruises or the cuts on her eye and lip.

They were taken to the kitchens where they ate. Dean asked for his Master but they told them he had ordered for them to just rest and meet him in the morning. They retired for the night and went to the bedroom set for them, there were two beds but it never crossed any of their minds not to share one, even with Dean's injured back to take in consideration they needed to heal their hearts first.