CHAPTER 50
Pinocchio
Within a week, they were working a new case. There had been a string of suicides in a small town, with none of the victims exhibiting any kind of suicidal behavior. Tensions were running high; Dean was worrying himself to death watching Sam, which meant Danielle, in turn, had to keep an eye on him to make sure he didn't lash out or do anything irrational in a sudden spurt of emotion. At the same time, she was keeping tabs on Sam and trying to cover their tracks and keep them hidden from angels. Needless to say, she was more than stressed. One slip up, and she would find herself in Raphael's hold.
On top of all that, Danielle hadn't even seen Cas in a week. This wasn't unusual, especially as of late. Since she'd picked up with Sam and Dean, he was becoming more sparing in his visits, whereas before she saw him at least once a day, if only for a minute or so. No matter how many times he'd been gone for periods this long, she always worried.
After he'd been kidnapped by Raphael's angels, Danielle had made him swear that he would contact her – be it a visit, a call, or even a text – once a week, and, if he didn't, she was to assume he was in trouble.
If he didn't contact her today, they were going to have a problem.
While Sam went to check out the new murder and Dean lingered behind, Danielle took the opportunity to slip out and get some much-needed air.
It wasn't just their pact that troubled her. Dean had been calling for days now, and he hadn't answered. Danielle told Dean that he was busy, that he was fighting a war, but when it came to Sam he lost all ability to understand anything that didn't work in his favor.
It wasn't until they found – or, thought they found – Gabriel's horn that Danielle finally deemed it a viable time to reach out to him. Seeing as how her ribs were still marked with Enochian sigils, whilst Sam and Dean's had long-since faded away, Dean had to call for him.
"Castiel, hello. Possible nuke loose down here; Dan says hurry."
There was the rustling of fabric, and Cas appeared next to the window. He looked exhausted- hair tousled, eyes drooping at the edges. However, when he met Danielle's gaze, his lips still managed to pull up into a faint smile. "Hello."
Danielle's worried question was drowned by Dean's infuriated, "Are you kidding me? I have been on red alert about Sam, and you come for some stupid horn?!"
Cas shot Danielle an exasperated look, almost as if he was saying why didn't you handle this?
"Dean, I told you-" Danielle started, but he waved a hand in her direction, cutting her off.
"Stop defending him, Dan."
"You asked me to be here, and I came. I-"
"I've been asking you to be here for days, you dick!"
"Dean!" Danielle snapped. Dean glared at Cas for a moment, the tension in the room mounting and building and rising, getting thicker and heavier as the boys held each other's gazes, until Cas finally dropped his eyes.
"I didn't come about Sam because I have nothing to offer about Sam."
"Told you," Danielle hissed, and Dean clenched his jaw.
"That's great," he said, voice dripping with sarcasm. "Because for all we know, he's just gift wrap for Lucifer!"
Danielle let out a heavy sigh, pushing her hair back. Had he even been listening to anything she'd been saying? Why wasn't her word good enough; why did he have to further it with the angels? It was Danielle's turn to shoot Cas an exasperated look, and he just sighed in return.
"He's not Lucifer." Cas grabbed the bottle of whiskey, stepping forward and re-filling Dean's glass. "If he had escaped, we would've felt it."
"Hm, that sounds familiar," Danielle snapped, glaring at Dean.
He shot her a look before relenting and taking a sip. "What's wrong with him, then?"
"I don't know, Dean. I'm sorry."
"You really don't have a clue?" Danielle asked, and Cas just shook his head, grabbing a new glass and filling it. He took a sip before handing it to the girl.
"What happened to you, Cas? You used to be human, or at least like one," Dean said, sounding betrayed.
"He still is," Danielle said. "How would you even know? You've been busy playing house with Lisa and Ben for the past year."
He was getting on her last nerve. She didn't even feel guilty about the surprised look he fixed her with; he deserved getting snapped at. He couldn't just prance back into the hunting life after taking a break for a year and figure Cas would be ready at the call, ready to bend to every whim he had. And Cas was trying, he really was, and for Dean to just walk all over him made Danielle's blood boil.
"I'm at war." Cas turned, bracing himself on the table, so that they couldn't see his face. "Certain… regrettable things are now required of me."
Like torturing kids. Danielle's heart sank, and when Castiel turned back around, he met her gaze with his morose one. She offered a tiny smile, and he let his chin fall to his chest.
"So Gabriel's horn of truth. That's a real thing?"
"You've seen it?"
"I think it's in town. Something's forcing people-" Cas, without another word, vanished. Dean let out a frustrated growl, gritting his teeth. "Oh, well, you're welcome!"
With Cas gone, that left Danielle as the only one to receive Dean's fury. "What the hell is going on with you?"
"Nothing," she growled.
Dean's response was snatched away from him as Cas reappeared in the room. "It isn't the horn of truth."
"What are you talking about?" Dean demanded. "You were gone for, like, two seconds! Where did you look?"
"… Everywhere," Cas responded, as if it was obvious. A smile flickered across Danielle's lips. For the past year, he'd only had to deal with her and the angels; he'd gotten used to not having to explain his erratic, angelic actions.
"Right. Well, nice seeing you anyway." Dean turned away from Cas, bitterness sharp in his tone.
Cas met Danielle's eyes, a pleading light shining in his gaze. He wanted to fix things, Danielle could tell, but he didn't know how. Danielle just shook her head; Dean was in one of his fits, and he couldn't be reasoned out of it. They had to ride it out.
"Dean."
"What?"
"About your brother. I… I don't know what's wrong with him, but I want to help. I'll make inquiries."
"Thanks, Cas," Danielle said, taking advantage of Dean's back being turned. She pressed a kiss against his stubbly cheek, and he slid his arms around her waist, crushing her to his chest for a fleeting second.
And then he was gone, and Danielle saw Dean staring at her, eyes narrowed.
Busted.
Six hours later, and they realized they were dealing with a god.
Danielle particularly happened to like gods- rather, she liked killing them. When compared to demons or angels or ghosts, gods were a nice break. Once their tricks were figured out, they were relatively easy to kill, despite their powers and super-strength. Plus, there was no guilt. These monsters were actual monsters, through and through. There was nothing good about them, and Danielle felt no remorse in taking them out.
However, this god was more… gruesome than other gods.
So when they stepped into a rather large room, and Danielle saw the half-eaten corpse hanging from the ceiling, she couldn't stop a startled shout. Sam nearly broke her nose slamming his hand over her mouth, and she wanted to kick herself.
How was she still screaming at things?!
Bile rose in her throat, and she grabbed onto Sam's wrist, feeling light-headed. Whether it was from the panic, or the fact that Sam was blocking all ways of her breathing, she wasn't sure. Probably a little bit of both.
Dean whirled around to Sam, wide-eyed and freaking out. At any second, she would come down and-
"You came for dinner."
Sam and Danielle turned, just having time to glimpse the woman in the doorway before she flung her hand, sending the three of them flying. Danielle's body collided with something cold and hard before everything went dark.
She woke up some time later, head throbbing and hands tied around a pole. She glanced over at Sam and Dean, who were both awake, eyes locked on the goddess.
"Oh, nice of you to join us, sleeping beauty," she chirped. She turned her back to them, bending over one of the bodies, and squelching sounds filled the air.
Danielle pulled her leg up, folding it underneath her in an attempt to reach the blade tucked in her boot. Her fingers had just managed to grab the handle before the goddess turned back around.
She let her fingers fall lax, eyes locked on the tongs in her hands, grasping something long and pink. Danielle felt another wave of nausea wash over her, and she closed her eyes to fight the sudden bout of vertigo.
"The tongue is the tastiest part. It's where the lies roll off." There was a crunch, and Danielle couldn't stop a disgusted whimper as her stomach churned. It was quiet for a second, and she opened her eyes to see the goddess staring at her, smirk curled on her lips. "What's wrong, honey? Angel got your tongue?"
And just like that, their hunt went from nauseating and uncomfortable to terrifying. Fear pierced her heart, rushing down her limbs and freezing her in place. If she knew, if the goddess knew just how valuable a player she was- they would all be screwed. If she was on Raphael's side…
"Well, Dean, you look like you've got something on your chest with this angel business. Why don't you ask Danny what you're dying to know?"
"Dean," Danielle warned, glaring at him. He couldn't, he wouldn't take advantage of her like this. As soon as they got out of here, she'd tell him everything, but he couldn't take this opportunity.
He met her gaze, eyes every bit as hard as hers were scared. "What's going on with you and Cas?"
She let her head fall back against the pole with a loud sigh. And then the words were coming from her mouth, falling into place like she'd rehearsed them. "We're together. We have been, for some time now. I'm in love with him. And I lied to you because god can you be judgmental." Danielle looked at his horrified face, and she pulled against her restraints, leaning towards him. "See! You're judging me right now!"
"He's an angel, Danny; he doesn't even have a real body! The dude you're pawin' at is Jimmy, not Cas!"
"You think I don't know that? But what else am I supposed to do?"
"He's not even a real person, Dan!"
"Oh, so it's okay for us to be friends, but when we go for something more, then it's all-hell-breaks-loose?!"
"Damn straight! It's no different than loving a demon."
"Except for the fact that he's good. I mean, are you kidding?" she demanded, letting a mirthless laugh fall from her lips. "This is why I didn't tell you! Just stay out of my business!"
"Oh, you want me out of your business? I was more than happy to be out of your way after Sam died, but then you called me and followed me around like a damn puppy- you even moved near to me!"
"Because you freakin' left me for Lisa! Some chick you had knocked up once like ten years ago! Did I really mean that little to you?"
The goddess clapped her hands together, letting out a pleased laugh. "Well, look at you two, confessing your feelings. How very Dr. Phil. But I have to be honest here, this is kind of boring. Let's ask Dean something else…" She crouched down next to him, a smirk curling on her face. "Hey, Dean, I'm curious: what do you really feel about your brother?"
A thrill of panic twisted Danielle's stomach, and Dean stiffened. "Better. Now as of yesterday, I wanted to kill him in his sleep."
Sam snapped his head up, brow furrowed. He looked at Danielle, confused, and she was quick to look away, begging Dean to shut up.
"I thought he was a monster but now I think…"
"Now you think what?"
"He's just acting like me," Dean answered. Danielle's heart hammered; that's what she told him the other day. She had no idea he actually took her words to heart, didn't realize that he associated himself with a monster.
Danielle took advantage of the goddess' preoccupation, removing her blade from her boot. She started cutting her bonds, trying to be stealthy.
"It's the gig. You're covered in blood until you're covered in your own blood. Half the time, you're about to die. Like right now. I told myself I wanted out, that I wanted a family."
"But you were lying."
"No. But what I'm good at is slicing throats. I ain't a father; I'm a killer. And there's no changing that, I know that now."
The goddess stood up. "So, Sam walking back into your life must have been a relief. The Mallory to your Mickey." She dropped to her knees next to Sam, and Danielle held her breath.
This was their chance. Sam couldn't lie, not now. If there ever was a time to figure out what was going on, it was now. "W-Wait," she said, pausing her cutting. "I wanna ask something."
The goddess smirked, nodding and gesturing a hand towards Sam. "Spill."
Scenario 1: Sam proved her and Dean's worries wrong and was upset with her for a week, at most.
Scenario 2: Their fears were confirmed, but then they could figure out what they needed to do to fix him.
"Danny," he warned.
"What are you?"
He furrowed his brow. "What? I- I'm human. What the hell do you mean?"
"Are you sure?" Danielle asked, stunned. It couldn't be this easy; he couldn't just be okay. Not after everything they'd seen him do.
"That's the truth," Sam shot back.
"No," the goddess spoke up, eyes huge. She rose to her feet, a panicked light shining in her gaze. "No, it's not."
"You said yourself; I can't lie," Sam said.
"How are you doing that? That's not possible; you're lying to me!"
"No, I'm not," Sam said.
Danielle sliced through her restraints, pulling them off but keeping her hands hidden. Surprise was her best hope; she just had to wait for the right moment.
"What are you? What is he?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Sam argued, struggling to hide the worry in his tone.
"Really, I doubt that. I doubt anything that comes out of your mouth right now. You're not human."
Danielle froze, sharing a shocked glance with Dean. They were right. Sam wasn't human; there actually was something wrong with him.
"What?" Dean whispered.
"You didn't know that- now that I believe."
And then Sam was standing up, lunging for the goddess. Danielle jumped to her feet as well, just as the monster slammed Sam to the ground. Danielle tackled her, a foolhardy attack, but effective. They knocked over a few tables before sliding to a stop. Before they'd even stopped moving, the goddess was on Danielle, hands around her throat, crushing her neck.
Danielle stabbed her angel blade into the goddess' side, and she howled in pain, jumping up and staggering away, giving Danielle just enough time to rise back to her feet.
"You bitch," the goddess spat before the tip of a knife appeared in her chest, and she gagged before crumpling to the ground.
"You okay?" Dean asked, standing over the corpse, and Danielle nodded, rubbing her aching neck.
Sam stood up, catching both of their attentions. Dean turned, raising his knife in his hand while Danielle slunk to the side, should he try to make a run for it.
"Dean, it's me," Sam said, hands up at his chest.
"You are not my brother," Dean growled, advancing. Sam started backing up, and Danielle's heartbeat was erratic as she snuck down the wall. Sam's attention was focused on Dean, giving her the opportunity to sneak up behind him.
"Just listen-"
"What are you?"
"It's me, Dean. Look, listen, just let me explain."
"Why the hell should I believe anything you say?"
"Okay, okay, you want the truth? Here it is, here it is- God's honest. She was right. There's something wrong me, really wrong. I've known it for a while. I lied to you- yeah."
This wasn't devilish behavior. Any kind of creature would have given up the gig by now. There was something wrong, yeah, but this was Sam. Threat averted, Danielle's blade lowered; she wasn't going to kill him. But, if she had to, she'd knock out and they could take him to the panic room. Considering that was their best option, she grabbed a stray PVC pipe, raising it in the air, waiting until after Sam explained himself.
"And… I let you get turned by that vamp. Because I knew there was a cure, Dean, and we needed in that nest, and I knew you could handle it!"
"Handle it?" Dean thundered. "I could've died. I could've killed Ben; hell, I nearly killed Dan!"
"I know, and that should stop me cold. But I- I just don't feel it."
Danielle's heart sank, and she let the pipe hang at her side. "Wh- What do you mean?" she stammered, and Sam spun around.
"I'm sorry, I just… Ever since I came back, I am a better hunter than I have ever been! Nothing scares me anymore! 'Cause I can't feel it."
"So you're pretty much saying you don't care," Danielle snapped, heart aching at what he was saying. If she had died, he wouldn't have mourned. If something had happened to Dean, he would just turn away, apathetic. He met her gaze, and she had to bit down on her lip, hard to hold back the involuntary whimper. He shook his head, and Danielle furrowed her brow. "H-How? How do you not care? We're your family!"
He just shrugged, and fury rose inside of her.
"How the hell-" She stopped, taking a deep breath and trying to keep herself from losing it. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
"I don't know," he answered, turning to Dean. "I think… I need help."
And, just like that, the rage was sucked out of her. This was Sam, her best friend, her brother, and he needed their help. Something had happened downstairs, something to horrific it had snatched away his ability to feel, and they had to help him.
Danielle dropped the pipe, watching as Dean turned and set down his knife. She held her breath, watching the oldest Winchester, waiting for him to make a move.
And he did, and Sam fell to the ground, nearly taking her out with him. Dean straddled his brother, slamming his fist into his cheek, over and over.
"Dean!" Danielle shrieked, running forward and pulling on Dean's shoulder. She grabbed his wrist, dropping to her knees and sticking her shoulder into his chest, pushing as hard as he could.
"Move Danielle!" he shouted, ripping his wrist away and shoving her. She fell over before grabbing at his arm again, raking her nails across the skin. She dug in with her fingers, pulling his arm to her chest.
"Stop!" she demanded, meeting his hollow gaze with her panicked one. "We will figure this out, but we sure as hell don't need him unconscious or dead. It's still Sam."
"It's not," Dean said, his voice weak, holding the threat of tears. He bowed his head, shaking it. "It's not Sam, not anymore."
"Hey, yes it is," Danielle promised, grabbing at his shirt collar, his cheeks, pulling his gaze up to hers. She could see the fear, the panic, the dread, all being pushed aside as he tried to deal with the rage of emotions. "Hey, listen, we'll be fine. Let's just get back to the hotel. Then we can call Bobby; he'll know what to do."
He gave a faint nod, before staggering to his feet and leaving the room, without a backwards glance.
Danielle grabbed at the hair on her temples for a second, squeezing her eyes shut and taking quick, ragged breaths. She only allowed her a second before turning back to Sam, who was clutching his cheek, blinking and shaking his head. "Can you get up?" she asked, avoiding his eyes.
"Yeah." He rose, grunting, and followed Danielle out of the house. Sam was forced to sit in the backseat, giving up his seat to Danielle, who watched him all the way to the hotel. He didn't protest; there was not one snide remark on how he wasn't going to try and run away. He was silent, staring down at his hands, not putting up any kind of fight.
When they got back to the hotel, Dean tied his brother up – paying no heed to Danielle's constant protests.
"Call your boyfriend."
Danielle froze. He couldn't be serious. He couldn't possibly want to have a little chitchat with Cas about their relationship right his second. "What? Why?"
"So he can tell us what's wrong with Sam. C'mon!" he exclaimed as she just stood there, gaping. "He only answers to you; get movin'!"
Danielle just nodded, though her stomach was clenched. She didn't trust Dean not to say something, even with the current Sam-crisis. All he had to do was say the smallest thing, put the faintest idea in his head, and Cas would take off, like a spooked deer. It's not as if Cas wasn't loyal; if anything, he was too loyal. He was scared to damn death to hurt her or threaten her, let alone with the stereotype of 'humans and angels don't date' so engrained in his mind that it was near unfathomable for him to get over it. Dean just had to mention, just exaggerate the point that Cas was an angel – a swirling mass of celestial energy, of raw power, of waves of light and constellations shoved together into one being – while Danielle was just a human, nothing but blood and flesh and bone, doomed form the moment she took her first breath.
Nevertheless, Danielle called him on her phone, and he was down before she even finished her sentence. His eyes were locked on her, and she avoided his gaze, struggling to swallow past the lump in her throat.
"What's wrong?" he asked, looking over at Sam.
"We, uh- we just got through talking to the goddess of truth, and she said that he wasn't human," Danielle said, reaching up and pushing her hair back behind her shoulder.
Cas's eyes widened, and he put a hand on her elbow, stepping close – too, too close – and looking at the dark pink mark on her neck, tracing where the vampire had ripped into her. Overly aware of Dean's eyes on them, she shrunk away form his grip, allowing him to see the nasty bruises on her arm.
"What happened?" he demanded, before catching sight of the bruises on her back – from being slammed into a van multiple times. He pulled the back of her shirt down, exposing her shoulder, becoming frantic in his movements.
"Okay, okay," she stammered, jerking away from him. She turned her back to him, hand on her forehead, heart slamming. She risked a glance at Dean, who was watching with a faint expression of disgust mingled with horror; he hadn't seen the bruises he'd given her, either.
She turned back to Cas, seeing the hurt painted so clearly on his face. His hand was still lingering in the air. "I'm sorry," she said, moving back to him. "It's just… Dean knows," she whispered.
"Damn right I do," the man snapped, pointing an accusatory finger at the angel. "And you and me'll be having a hell of a talk later. But first- tell me what the hell is wrong with him."
Castiel glanced back at Danielle, who just shook her head- Dean didn't approve. Cas turned, moving over to Sam, allowing Dean and Danielle to watch. Danielle folded her arms, chewing on a hangnail, not bothering to hide her worry. Dean's face was blank as he leaned against the wall, the picture of tense nonchalance.
"He looks terrible," Cas said, bending to lower his face in Sam's. "Has he been feverish?"
"Have you?" Dean demanded.
"No?" Sam said, confused. "Why?"
"Is he speaking in tongues; are you speaking in tongues?"
"No- are you… diagnosing me?"
"You better hope he can," Dean said.
"You- Sam began to protest, but Dean cut him off, words short and sharp.
"What- you think there's a clinic out there for people who pop out of hell wrong?! He asks- you answer. Then you shut your hole. Got it?"
Sam's gaze fell, and Danielle had to ignore the twist her heart gaze. He looked exhausted. He was still in there, there was just something wrong with him.
Cas's fingers rested on his neck, checking his pulse. "How much do you sleep?"
Sam was quiet for a second before confessing, "I don't."
"Ever?" Danielle asked at the same time Dean asked, "At all?"
Sam shook his head, gaze moving back and forth between the two. "Not since I got back."
"And it never occurred to you that there might be something off about that?!"
No wonder he'd been so willing to give up the bed; he didn't need it.
"Of course it did, Dean… I just never told you."
Cas had had his back turned to Sam, gaze roving the floor as he thought. Now, he stiffened, eyes snapping up to Danielle's. Castiel had had an epiphany- it was obvious. He turned to Sam, brow furrowed. "Sam, what are you feeling right now?"
"Uh… my nose hurts-"
"No, that's a physical sensation. How do you feel?"
"I-"
"Feel."
It was quiet for a second before Sam said, "I don't know."
All eyes were on Cas, everyone in the room feeling some sick sense of worry. Then Cas reached down, pulling off his belt. Everyone's expressions turned to shock and uncomfortable embarrassment, before realizing that he was just folding the belt, holding it in front of Sam's mouth.
"This will be unpleasant. Bite down on this. If there is someplace you find soothing, you should go there." Cas was rolling up his sleeve, bracing himself on the arm of the chair.
"Wait!" Danielle said, realizing what he was going to do. She grabbed onto his arm, shaking her head. "You can't!"
He met her gaze, eyes apologetic. "I'm so sorry. I have to check."
"What- his soul?" Then it dawned on Danielle, and she felt all color drain from her face. "You think he's working with Raphael."
"I'm not sure," he said, quick, to calm her down. The last thing she needed was another friend lost to Raphael, and if she even started to think that it might've happened again, he wasn't sure what she would do. "I think it's unlikely. But I need to check."
Danielle stepped back, offering a faint nod. Her face was pale, and she looked sick to her stomach. Castiel watched her for a second, struggling to find the right words that would put her at ease, but he couldn't find any. There was nothing that could be said, not now, not until he knew for sure.
He sank his arm up to the elbow in Sam's chest, and Sam clenched his teeth on the belt, choked hisses and screams slipping past his tight jaw. Danielle clamped her lips together, trying to ignore the way her skin was crawling.
Sam fell silent, exhausted pants the only sound in the room as Castiel turned away from him. His brow was furrowed, and Danielle's heart sank. She knew that expression, and it meant serious trouble.
"Find anything?" Dean asked.
"No."
"So what's wrong?" Danielle breathed.
"Physically… he's perfectly healthy."
"Then what?" Dean demanded.
"It's his soul. It's gone."
angelashortall: Yes omg that's just as hilarious! And thanks (:
NotCrazyJustWeird97: Well I don't really know bc I heard it on Teen Wolf? I researched a bunch of stuff for that scene, but it pretty much was all just try to stay calm and whatnot. I did find a post on Tumblr with something about holding your breath for panic attacks, and I'll send it to you over PM! And thank you!
ArchangelInTheTardis: I do too, even though it just means trouble for Danny :) & thanks!
ixistargirl89ixi: *sighs* Yep. He is. Does he ever get a break? and thank you very much!
Guest: That's what I'm saying XD
allietheepic7: Thanks, that's kind of what I'm going for... It's not T.V., so there aren't any visual cues that readers can pick up on, so I kind of have to elaborate on a bunch of stuff. Plus, it's just more fun for me that way (; And no, I'm not, I left that episode out! As much as I love imagining the dynamic of everyone on those simple hunting trips, they're not fun to read (to me), and they're not much fun to write /:
Why: Same.
Kawaii-Attack: Haha, thank you very much!
mamareadstomuch2: Oh yeah. OhHhH yeah. The road is gonna get a little bumpy.
Guest: Don't like it, don't read. Simple.
