Heroes and Villains Part 2

Soundtrack:
Empires Hitch Hiker
Evan Peters Come As You Are
Greenday Holiday

A few hours later Dean pulled up at a gas station for supplies.

"Oh, hey, hey. Just, uh, sit tight. I'll be right out, okay?" He said as he got out. "Lacey will stay with you." Lacey raised an eyebrow but nodded. Dean walked into the store, grabbing some snacks as he walked along the aisle. The door went again and Dean glanced up at the mirror on the wall to see a man striding towards him. He pulled out the demon knife as the guy shoved him into the wall. Dean pushed him back into the refrigerators before stabbing him with the knife. Dean picked up his phone, which had fallen to the ground in the scuffle, and realised the screen was cracked.

"Oh, come on." As he turned into the next aisle he found two more demons waiting for him. Hew despatched one of them quickly but the second one knocked him to the ground, causing him to drop the knife. He was about to get back up when the demon lit up, as someone stabbed it from behind.

"Thanks, Lace." Dean said as he got to his feet. The demon fell to the ground, revealing Meg

"Lacey. Yeah, not so much."

"Meg." Dean stared at her in surprise."

"Dean, Dean, Dean. You got some 'splainin' to do." Dean walked to the front of the store and changed the open sign to closed, so that they wouldn't be disturbed. "Rumors are really starting to fly about this Emmanuel fellow. My curiosity sure got revved up." Meg told him.

"Just tell me what you want, Meg." Dean grumbled.

"Imagine my surprise when I track him down, and he's snuggled up with you. And he's the spitting image of poor, dead Castiel. So, Dean, what's poor, dead Castiel doing in that junker out there?" Megf folded her arms across her chest.

"Christmas carolling." Dean fired back.

"Fun. But how's he alive? Last I heard, he played God, went poof."

"I don't know. And neither does he, so you got to keep it shut."

"Oh, I do?" Meg gave him a look.

"He doesn't know he's Cas."

"I know. Been watching you for hours. So here's the deal. You might remember Crowley and me were frosty back in the day? Well, times haven't changed."

"Good."

"That hurts my feelings. I've been good to you, Dean."

"No, you've been good to you, sweetheart." Dean said, through gritted teeth

"Look. Right now rumours of this wandering healer are strictly low-level. But body count's getting high enough to change that. Folks start poking, they sniff angel dust."

"Yeah, they start falling all over each other trying to tell Crowley." Dean agreed.

"Now picture Crowley with his hands on harmless little amnesia-Cas. Don't get me wrong. I'm gonna burn that smarmy dick. My time's coming. But right about now, my army-of-one situation is not cutting it. It's cold out here, there's a price on my ass, and I need friends." Meg admitted.

"Yeah. I get that. But I ain't it." Dean grabbed some more things from the shelves.

"That's where you're wrong, Dean. 'Cause I'm here to help you, and that makes us friends."

"Help, huh? You mean see if you can't turn harmless little Cas out there into an angel-sized weapon?" Dean guessed.

"Like you're taking him caroling. And by the way, you really want to keep going with little backup? Hey, I don't trust you, either. But I could really use Emmanuel. And he trusts you. So for now, it's in everyone's best interests to hold hands and cross the street together, okay?" Dean let out a sigh.

"We go straight to Sam. No detours."

"I love it." Meg smiled at him.

"And one more thing. My knife." Meg held the knife out to him.

"You sure we wouldn't be safer traveling with a full-throttle angel? I could jog his memory." Dean glared at her. "Kidding! We wouldn't want to upset the poor guy." They exited the store and headed towards the car. Emmanuel and Lacey got out as they approached.

"Her face! She's one of…" Emmanuel began to panic before Meg interrupted him.

"It's okay. We come in different flavours."

"She's, uh... a friend." Dean admitted, reluctantly.

"Meg. Just here for moral support. I mean, after all, we go way back. Dean and me. Just met you, of course. But I think we're gonna be good friends, too."
"Meg." Lacey stepped forward, giving her a warning look.
"Hey blondie. Long time no see, you don't text, you don't call." Lacey rolled her eyes but couldn't help but smile a little at Meg's antics.

"All right. Can we go?" Dean asked impatiently as he got back in the car.

They carried on driving the final stretch back to the hospital, Meg in the back seat with Lacey.

"This silence is very uncomfortable. Is there something I should know?" Emmanuel asked, looking between the three of them.

"I don't know. Dean?" Meg asked, pointedly.

"No. Meg has that effect. Awkward. You know?"

"That must be difficult for you." Emmanuel said gently.

"Dean's making a joke, Emmanuel." Meg rolled her eyes. Lacey smirked beside her.

"Oh."

A short while later they arrived at the hospital. The four of them got out of the car.

"Oh, gracious." Emmanuel pointed in the direction of the Emergency entrance to the hospital where a small crowd had gathered. Dean grabbed a pair of binoculars from the glove compartment and focused on the group.

"Damn it. Demons." Meg grumbled.

"All of them?" Dean asked.

"No grass growing under your feet."

"How many of those knives do you have?" Emmanuel asked.

"Just the one."

"Well, then, forgive me, but what do we do?"

"Yeah, Dean. Got any other ideas how we could blast through that?" Meg looked between Emmanuel and Lacey.

"Excuse us. Meg?" Dean grabbed Lacey's hand and the three of them moved away.

"Oh, for the love of..." Meg muttered as she followed them. "Sam's in there. I know you're enjoying the double dip with your old pal, but…"

"You think it's that cut and dry? Really? You know what he did. And you want to tell him and just hope that he takes it in stride? He could snap. He could... disappear. Who knows?" Dean whispered vehemently.

"I gather we know each other." They span around to find Emmanuel standing behind them.

"Just a dollop." Meg smirked.

"You can tell me. I'll be fine." Emmanuel reassured them.

"How do you know? You just met yourself. I've known you for years." Dean pointed out.

"You're an angel." Meg told him, flatly. Lacey's eyes widened and she stared at Meg.

"I'm sorry? Is that a flirtation?" Emmanuel looked confused.

"No, it's a species. A very powerful one."

"She's not lying. Okay? That's why you heal people. You don't eat. I'm sure there's more." Dean searched for further examples.

"Why wouldn't you tell me? Being an angel – it sounds pleasant."

"It's not, trust me. It's bloody, it's corrupt. It's not pleasant." Dean assured him.

"He would know. You used to fight together. Bestest friends, actually." Meg pointed out.

"We're... friends? Am I Cas? I-I had no idea. I don't remember you. I'm sorry." Emmanuel looked at Dean apologetically.

"Look. You got the juice. You can smite every demon in that lot." Meg told him.

"But I don't remember how."

"It's in there. I'm sure it's just like riding a bike." Dean suggested.

"I don't know how to do that, either." Lacey melted a little and reached out to take his hand.
"It's ok. I have powers too. We can go together." Lacey suggested. Emmanuel smiled at her.
"All right, I'll try."

"This ain't gonna go well." Dean muttered as the two of them walked towards the group of demons.

"I don't know. I believe in the little tree topper." Meg said as they watched them go.

As they approached one of the demons spotted them.
"Hey, I know you. You're dead."

"Yes, I've heard." Emmanuel reached out and touched the demons forehead, smiting him. The demon screamed as it lit up before falling to the ground, dead.

"That's my boy." Meg muttered as the they watched the two of them despatch the demons. One of the demons tried to escape but lace teleported in front of it, grabbing hold of it while.

"I don't think running will save you." Emmanuel said as he approached and smited this demon as well.

"That was beautiful, Clarence." Meg smiled at Emmanuel as she and Dean joined them.

"Cas?" Dean asked, studying his face for a reaction.

"I remember you. I remember everything. What I did. What I became. Why didn't you tell me?" Cas asked.

"Because Sam is dying in there."

"Because of me. Everything. All these people. I shouldn't be here." Cas turned and walked away.

"Cas. Cas! You stay here." Dean told Meg as he raced after Cas.
"You know I did well too." Lacey raised an eyebrow at Meg as she backed away to follow Dean.
"What do you want, a sticker?" Meg rolled her eyes.
"Yes, yes I do." Lacey nodded before turning around and following Dean.

The two of them caught up with Cas.
"If you remember, then you know you did the best you could at the time." Dean told him.

"Don't defend me. Do you have any idea the death toll in Heaven? On Earth? We didn't part friends, Dean."
"So what?"
"And after what I did to you, Lacey." Cas shook his head sadly.
"Crowley did that to me, not you." Lacey told him. "I forgive you for the part you played."

"I deserved to die. Now, I can't possibly fix it... So why did I even walk out of that river?"

"Maybe to fix it. Wait." Dean told them as they approached the car. He opened the trunk and pulled out Cas's trench coat. Cas took it from him and stared at it for a moment. He put it on before nodding at them and teleporting away.

Lacey teleported them into the hospital and they raced to Sam's room just in time to see Cas smite the demon who was with him

"I should never have broken your wall, Sam. I'm here to make it right." Cas said, before laying his hand on Sam's forehead. Lacey's feeling of relief was short lived as nothing seemed to happen.

"You're not real." Sam said, still delirious from the lack of sleep.
"Oh, Sam... I'm so sorry." Cas shook his head and looked at Lacey and Dean apologetically. "I'm sorry, I can't help him."
"What the hell do you mean you can't?" Dean frowned at him.

"I mean there's nothing left to rebuild."

"Why not?"

"Because it crumbled. The pieces got crushed to dust by whatever's happening inside his head right now."

"So you're saying there's nothing? That he's gonna be like this until his candle blows out?" Dean ran a hand through is hair in frustration as his last ray of hope was shattered.
"I'm sorry. This isn't a problem I can make disappear. And you know that. But I may be able to shift it." Cas looked at Sam thoughtfully.
"Shift?" Dean and Lacey looked back at him confused.

"Yeah, it would get Sam back on his feet." Cas sat down beside Sam on the bed. "It's better this way. I'll be fine."
"Wait, Cas, what are you doing?"

"Now, Sam...This may hurt. And if I can't tell you again...I'm sorry I ever did this to you." Cas reached out again and put his hand on Sam's forehead. This time a red energy passed from Sam into Cas.

"Sam?" Dean reached out and held him up as he gasped for breath, Cas let go of him.

"Dean!" Sam looked around stunned. "Cas? Cas, is that you?" Cas stared in alarm at something only he could see before scrambling to his feet and backing up in fear, until he reached the wall.

The following morning Sam checked out of the hospital, Lacey and Dean met him at the reception and they walked out to the car.
"I don't know. I mean, we can't just leave him." Sam said, looking back at the building.

"Well, we can't bring him with us. Everything on the planet's out for us, okay? Word gets out, we can't protect him. Not completely. This is safer. Every demon who knows about Cas is dead." Dean reminded him.

"Not everyone. Look, Dean, this whole "enemy of my enemy is my friend" thing feels kind of like a demon deal." Sam frowned.

"It's not a deal. It's…"

"It's what?"

"Mutually assured destruction. Look, man, I get it. She's not our friend. We don't even have friends. All our friends are dead." Dean said as he got in the car.
"I don't know, I kinda like her, she's growing on me." Lacey shrugged as she got in the back seat. Sam shook his head, took one last look at the hospital before climbing into the car too