They pulled up in front of Bobby's place and Sam clambered out of the car, but Cas sat still and didn't move.

Dean turned off the engine and turned to look at Cas. "You coming in?" he asked, throwing his arm over the back of the seats.

"Are you certain I should be here?" Cas looked nervous. It was an odd thing to sense from him. His usual stoic energy vibrated around the interior of the car, filling the space with anxiety.

"Sure, why shouldn't you be?"

"We've never spent time together before. You aren't actually friends with me. You just want to solve me like a Rubix Cube or a crossword puzzle." He looked down at his still hands lying on his lap. "I should go to Meg's." Anyone else would be bouncing a leg or wringing their hands, but not Cas, even in the face of admitting fear of outright social rejection.

"Cas, why are you acting like this? I mean, yeah, I want to know what's going on with you, but mostly I want to help you. You saved my life. Let me help you find answers."

"It's not safe. Bad things happen when I'm around."

"Well, it's a good thing you can heal me then. Now, let's go inside, grab some chips and flip through Bobby's books. Sam will probably bounce around and ask you a million annoying questions. Still, he's smart—like genius smart—so he can probably help us."

Dean opened his car door and looked back over his shoulder. "Come on, if you decide you wanna leave, I'll drive you home or to Meg's, whatever you want, okay? Really, with the stuff locked in your brain, I think you're gonna get a kick out of Bobby's collection."

"Why don't you find this more upsetting?" Castiel finally got out of the car.

Dean shrugged, "Like I told you, I'm good with weird. Our Mom, she died because of something weird, nothing like you, it was… the bad kind. And since then, our Dad has been, uh, really into figuring out what's out there."

Cas narrowed his eyes at Dean, "You're holding back. Something you don't want to tell me. I understand that feeling, but I'd like you to know you can trust me too."

"Thanks, man."

As Castiel approached the house, he slowed. "This place is heavily warded."

"What?" Dean snapped his eyes to Cas, who was frowning as he looked at the house.

"Can you not feel it? How do you live here with so much… power in the air."

"No, I don't feel it because I'm fucking human," Dean looked at Cas and thought about the handgun he kept in his glove compartment and the shotgun just inside the front door. "Why do you feel it?"

"I don't know," Cas said, frustrated. "Let's go in."

Castiel walked up onto the porch and into the house through the door Sam had left wide open. Dean watched, jaw dropped before running after him. He put a hand on Cas's shoulder and turned him around. "You can feel the wards, but you can come inside? They don't hurt you?"

"Of course not. I'm not a monster." Cas wandered further in, somehow knowing what direction to go to get to the living room where the couch and television were shoved against one wall. The rest of the room was dedicated to bookshelves and Bobby's books.

Dean followed behind, trying to organize his thoughts. "How do you know? How do you know you aren't some kind of monster we haven't heard of?"

Cas stopped and looked at him, head tilted. "Are you afraid of me now? Because I could sense the wards? All that means is that I'm connected to the other world somehow, which we already knew. If anything, I feel calmer knowing powerful magic like this is protecting you."

"Why?" Dean hopped up on Bobby's desk and dangled his legs, staring at Cas. He's relaxed now, standing still in the middle of the room, right over the demon trap painted on the wood under the rug but not bothered by it in the least.

"Well, I have a feeling that inviting me here was at least in part a test to see if I could get past the protection work, which makes you smart."

"Tell my GPA that."

"Grades aren't the only kind of smart." Cas frowned at him and shook his head. "Besides, I suspect that whatever reason you have access to these wards and books means that Bobby is not just a guy with books, and your Dad wasn't just 'into weird.' So there's someone who cares about you, keeping you safe. Even if they're keeping you safe from me." Cas looked down and his feet shuffled in an awkward way that looked unnatural on him.

Dean wanted to say something, reassure him, offer some kind of answer, but he's sworn to secrecy about hunting just as much as he promised not to tell Castiel's secret. And really, what difference did it make? It's not like he did anything wrong.

Instead, he hopped off the table and went to the bookshelf closest to Cas. "There are more books downstairs but we can flip through these to start." He pulled one off that's kind of an encyclopedia of creatures various hunters have encountered over the years. He placed it down on the desk and flipped through.

After a few moments, he felt Cas come over and stand next to him. He was so close, Dean could feel the heat coming off him, their shoulders only millimeters apart. If he shifted his weight, he could lean against the calmness Cas radiated. His momentary bout of anxiety in the car notwithstanding, Cas seemed to be completely unflappable, even in the face of broken bones and magical wards and boys who can't stop looking at him, hoping for a glimpse of the person behind the stoic facade.

"I don't think you're a wraith."

Cas looked down and rotated his wrists, "No, I don't believe so."

"And you aren't a vampire or a werewolf. I think you'd know. What about a Djinn? Do you have a rack of bodies hanging in your basement?"

"If I had a penchant for killing people, I think I'd know. Where I live isn't an ideal situation. If I could string some of the guys there up and drain their blood, I definitely would." Cas laughed without humor.

"Is it that bad?" Dean stopped his flipping and turned to Cas, leaning against the desk. Now, they aren't just standing close side by side, he can practically feel Cas's breath against his lips but he doesn't lean away. The warmth and proximity of Castiel was comforting in a bizarre way that Dean ignored, enjoying it instead.

"It is."

Dean reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, man. You can always stay here if you need a night out of there. I'll give you my number so you can text and I'll come get you."

Cas tilted his head. "Why would you do that?"

Dean shrugged, still holding Cas's gaze. "You're my friend."

"I don't think I've had a friend before."

Dean shrugged, trying to hide the pink rising into his cheeks, "You have Meg."

Castiel didn't say anything but held Dean's gaze. They stood like that for another moment, altogether far longer than should be comfortable, but Dean didn't mind. He didn't move his hand, just lightly gripped Cas on the shoulder, squeezing a little now and then.

"Ok, so, I was thinking…" Sam rushed into the room like a whirlwind, talking as he streamed past them into the kitchen.

Dean jumped back from Cas, dropping his arm.

"Do you guys want something to drink? I'm grabbing a coke."

"Sure, Sammy," Dean shrugged at Cas shyly before flipping another page in the book. "Do you ever shed your skin and turn into an otter or sea lion or something?"

Cas huffed a laugh.

"Ha! I knew you could do that."

"What?"

"Laugh."

That brought a full smile to his face. A crinkling the corners of his eyes, white teeth flashing, dimples showing, smile. And fuck if Dean's breath didn't catch at the sight. Cas was… he was stunning. How had he not noticed before? How had he been in school with him for the entire damn year and never realized how handsome the dark-haired enigma standing next to him was.

"Here," Sam tossed them each a can of soda and slumped down in the chair across from them at the desk. "What if Castiel isn't a monster?"

"I'm not. I've told Dean this repeatedly, but he doesn't seem to believe me."

Dean shrugged abashedly, "I believe you, I just… I mean, what else is there?"

Sam perked up, "Well, there are things like psychics. They aren't monsters and they aren't exactly human or at least not only human, right?"

"Yeah, where are you going with this?" Dean narrowed his eyes and leaned forward.

"Well, Castiel could be something like that."

"I don't believe I'm psychic. I cannot read minds to my knowledge." Cas frowned.

"Sammy, this is good," Dean smiled. "Maybe you're just something we haven't thought of yet. I say we keep with the plan, go through the books and see what rings a bell."

They spent the next few hours pouring through Bobby's books, searching for entities that didn't kill or feed or maim. Along the way, they discovered that Castiel spoke fluent Russian and could read ancient Babylonian, which was a fucking trip, but they didn't get any closer to figuring out Cas's deal.

"I know!" Sam announced, slamming the book he was looking through closed.

Cas and Dean turned to him from where they sat, eyes bleary from reading.

"You're an alien." Sam stood triumphantly. "Really! Just think about it. You glow strange lights, you know things you shouldn't, you clearly aren't human or at least fully human, but you don't seem to have any instinct to harm people. I mean, it totally tracks, mystery boy found on the road with no parents. Do you have a belly button?" He stepped forward as if he was going to lift Cas's shirt and check.

"Yes, I have a belly button," Cas frowned, turning his body slightly away from Sam. "What does that prove?"

"Well, if you were an alien, you could have been hatched or in a stasis pod or…"

"That's it, I'm outlawing sci-fi in the house from now on. No more Alien movies for you. No more True Mysteries either." Dean laughed.

"You shouldn't rule it out just because I can't prove it. We can't disprove it like everything else we've found so far." Sam practically whined.

"He's right," Cas said hesitantly. "We shouldn't assume it's not possible. Plus, I haven't told you about my tail yet."

"Your what?" Dean and Sam said in unison, causing Cas to raise an eyebrow and give them a crooked smile.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Dean stared with wide eyes, enjoying the easy way Cas smiled at him now, hoping it would never stop. "You're such a dumbass."

"I prefer hysterical. Less dumb. Less ass."

"Hardy har har," Dean said back with a broad smile.

It was dark by the time the front door slammed open and Bobby's voice rang out. "Boys, I got the fixin's for Chicken parmesan. It'll be ready in an hour, so get your homework done."

Dean felt a rush of wind next to him.

Bobby walked into the living room and stared at them and the books laid out all around them. "What the hell are you two idjits doing?"

Dean's eyes went wide and he looked around but Castiel was gone. He and Sam caught each other's gaze and Dean shook his head to keep him from saying anything.

"Clean this shit up and make sure you put the books away where you found them. I'm glad you two are taking an interest, but next time could you try and keep from crumpling the pages quite so much?"

"Yeah, yeah, Bobby. Sorry. We got carried away." he said, picking up the books and exchanging looks with his brother. Where the fuck had Cas gone?

That Friday night, the party at Adam Milligan's was rocking. Dean hated to admit it, but the kid had pulled it off. The music was loud, the booze was plentiful and flowing, most of the junior and senior classes were there, and there was an influx of people he didn't even know, meaning other schools or even the local colleges were filtering in.

People were everywhere, jumping in the pool fully clothed, streaking through the property in the back, making out in the corners. There wasn't a single room that wasn't packed full of dancing, laughing, drunken teenagers. This was the fucking party of the year.

Dean was on his third beer with Lisa in his lap, straddling his waist, alternating between kissing him stupid and talking to Ruby, who half sat, half laid on Gordon's lap next to them. Victor stood next to them, leaning against the armrest, his leg up against Dean's side in a way he would usually shy away from but tonight, he just felt too damn good. Dean used the hand without a drink to rub Lisa's thigh.

"Where's Tessa?" he turned to Victor, who just shrugged.

"She said she might come but no solid plan."

"Ahh, so you two aren't?" Dean waggled his eyebrows.

"I didn't say that." Victor laughed and Dean hooted back, cringing on the inside at his own behavior. When had he turned into the kind of dickbag he hated? He took another drink and stopped thinking about it.

He didn't know if it was the beer, the hot chick rubbing against his lap, or the fact that he'd safely determined Castiel wasn't any kind of monster. Just a weird, strangely powerful, awesome little dude. Well, not little. He was practically the same height as Dean. Especially in those boots. Fuck, those boots were hot. It made him even more imposing than he already was, always dressed in black with that crazy hair and shining eyes.

"Hey baby, what you thinkin' bout so hard?" Lisa asked, leaning into him.

"How hot you look tonight."

"You're a liar, but I don't even care." She took a sip of her drink and pressed her front against him. He set his cup down and wrapped his arms around her waist, grabbing her ass with both hands and pulling her tight against his chest before chasing her lips with his.

"Fuck baby, you are hot, I ain't lyin' bout that," he said before crashing his lips against hers, biting and tasting her, feeling the tingle of beer on her tongue. She rubbed her breasts against him, making him moan and squeeze her harder.

"Get a room, you pervs," Ruby laughed before leaning in. "Unless you want company." She winked at Dean when he and Lisa stopped kissing and then leaned up to take Lisa's lips in her own, licking the bottom one and drawing out the slow sweet kiss.

"Fuuuckkk," Dean groaned, tilting his hips up against Lisa, grabbing his beer, and finishing it in one gulp.

Gordon let out a resounding whoop and put a hand on Lisa's thigh to squeeze.

When they were done, he looked at Lisa and raised an eyebrow, "When did this start?"

"The other day when you wanted to hang out with Krazy Krushnic more than me. I was lonely." She laughed, "Ruby's a good friend. Why? You jealous?"

"No, no, you go ahead and make out with all the friends you want," Dean smirked, waiving for the two girls to continue. He probably should care that his girlfriend was making out with someone else. Had done so when he wasn't around and hadn't told him. He probably should, but he just didn't. Lisa… she was fun and this was hot, but that was really the extent of his feelings on the whole thing.

Victor left to talk to some girl they'd seen at lacrosse games from another school and the crowd thickened around them. People danced and shouted, clothes came off thanks to the heat of bodies crowded together. Dean was happily buzzed and borderline drunk. Maybe actually drunk if he stood up, but he wasn't doing that any time soon. His head was empty, his lap full with a sexy girl, and he could touch Lisa wherever and whenever he wanted. Gordon was cracking jokes and the music throbbed in his veins. It was a good fucking party.

The music swam over him, and Lisa wanted to dance. He usually wouldn't, but tonight he indulged her-and himself, if he's honest-he's just in a good fucking mood. When Gordon slapped him on the ass and told him he's pretty enough to work a pole, he didn't even flinch, just flashed a smile and winked at him.

He grabbed another beer and wrapped an arm around Lisa, pulling her close and grinding her against his leg.

"Dean?" a sharp voice broke through the fog filling his mind.

"What?" he opened his eyes and looked around. Lisa smiled up at him, so he dipped into a kiss, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

Who's fucking touching him. "What the fuck?"

"Dean, please?" The touch was insistent, clutching.

"Fuck off, Meg," Lisa snapped, turning them away from her, but Dean caught a look at her in the corner of his eyes. She was running both hands through her hair, looking around frantically.

"Fuck." Meg swore, her eyes wide.

Dean let go of Lisa and stepped up to Meg, worried she was going to freak out. Her breathing came in harsh bursts like she couldn't get enough air.

"Hey, hey, Meg. What's going on?" He bent down so she could look him in the eye and he spotted the oncoming panic. He knew that look—the fear, the feeling that you're going to drown in your own pain.

He pushed her over to the couch and sat her down, keeping his hands on her the whole time, trying to keep her tethered to the moment. He crouched in front of her, maintaining eye contact and breathing with her.

"Lisa, go get her a cup of water," he asked without looking.

"Fuck that. What's going on, Dean? You're friends with Krushnic and his druggy girlfriend, now?"

Meg winced and tears came to the surface, threatening to spill over.

"Lisa, just fucking do it, alright? She's having a panic attack." Dean didn't take his eyes off Meg. "How can I help?"

"I can't find Castiel." Meg breathed slowly, her eyes focusing better now that Dean was right in front of her.

"I haven't seen him. Do you want me to go look for him?"

Fear filled her brown eyes as she shook her head. "There's… he's here. He's here and I can't—I need to find Castiel." Her breathing sped up as she punched out the words, only kind of making sense.

"Okay, I can help. Keep looking at me. I've got you."

Meg nods.

"I'm going to call him."

"I tried. He's not answering. He left me. He would never leave me. I can't. I need Castiel. You don't understand." She was getting frantic, gripping Dean's shoulders and digging her nails into his shirt so hard he'd probably have half-circles marked on his skin, but he didn't really care. He didn't like seeing her like this and he knew she wasn't going to be happy that so many people had been around when she lost control.

Lisa came back with the water and handed it to Meg with as little enthusiasm as possible. "Gordon and Ruby are going upstairs to find a room. They invited us. You coming?" She blinked her eyelashes at him and pushed her long wavy hair over her shoulder. Dean couldn't like her less.

"Meg needs help. I can't leave her." He said incredulously.

"Whatever, Dean. Make your own choices. I'm going with them."

He stared open-mouthed for a second as the girl who was supposed to be his girlfriend walked away to fuck around with other people, leaving him here. She didn't even care that Meg was in distress. How could she be so fucking cold?

Dean left one hand on Meg's leg and dug his phone out of his pocket with the other. "Keep your eyes on me, Meg. You're gonna be okay. I'm gonna help. I promise I'm right here."

She nodded, a tear breaking free. Her eyes were unfocused and she'd started shaking a little.

He barely knew Meg. Had had maybe three conversations with her during all of high school before this week. But she and Castiel were a package deal, and whatever Cas saw in her, Dean trusted. If she was Cas's friend, she was his and he took that shit seriously. Unlike the people he usually called friends who had all abandoned him and didn't have the empathy to even care Meg was upset.

He hit Cas's number, hoping the guy had his phone with him. It rang and rang, no voicemail. Dean tried again and when he didn't get an answer, he texted.

Dean: Cas, Meg is freaking out. Gonna take her outside. She needs u.

He waited a minute and there was no answer. Fuck.

"Alright, Meg. Come on, let's get you outside."

"No, I can't leave. Where's Casti…"

"We're not leaving." He cut her off gently. "We're just gonna clear our heads a little. I called and texted Cas and told him where we'd be. He'll find us. Let's take care of you now, okay?"

She nodded slightly, looking at him with skepticism.

"You can trust me. You came to find me because Cas and I are friends, right?"

"Y.. yeah."

"So, you know he trusts me and he'd never let anything happen to you. I know how much he cares about you. So let's just go sit outside for a little while, we can share a smoke and you can tell me what's going on if you want, or we can just sit and wait for Cas."

Meg nodded and let him wrap an arm around her shoulder and half guided, half pushed her into the crowd. She kept her back straight, her tears reigned in, and while Dean didn't know what was going on, he could tell it was an act of tremendous strength to keep her shit together like this. There were so many people there that he couldn't keep from bumping into someone no matter which way he went.

Meg grabbed hold of his shirt when someone bumped into her.

It was hot, and the beer he'd drank turned on him, making it hard to think, but he had to keep going.

"No… Fuck…" Meg muttered, turning into him, body freezing except for the nails that were now definitely digging into the skin of his chest and arm.

"Oh, well, if it isn't my favorite chew toy." A stocky kid with black hair slicked back and a crooked smile stopped directly in front of them. "What are you doing here, pet, and with such a strapping lad. He looks good enough to eat."

"No…" Meg growled, glaring at him.

Dean sent up a hope, a prayer, whatever, that Cas was around because he had no fucking idea what was going on.

"Alright, look, we're just going outside," Dean said to the dude blocking their path. His accent was off, British or Scottish. Dean tried to maneuver Meg away from him but he just kept casually slipping in the way.

"Love, what's the matter? You don't call, you don't write? If I didn't know better, I'd take it personally." He turned his attention to Dean, sizing him up with a lascivious gaze that made Dean's skin crawl. "And who is this lovely thing? Name's Crowley MacLeod. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Dean glared at him and tucked Meg behind his back, still holding her arm. "I'm Dean Winchester, and if you know what's good for you, you'll get the fuck out of my way."

"Oh, you big, beautiful lumbering pile of flannel," Crowley laughed but there was no humor in it, only cruelty.

Meg grabbed the back of his shirt and leaned against his back. She was afraid of this guy. This slimy little pig fucker had done something to make Meg cower. He may not know her well but he'd seen her flip out on people before, heard her make impassioned and obscenity filled protests over how the girls were treated in Biology Class by their dick of a teacher (who happened to be named Dick Roman). She always held her head high no matter what anyone did or said.

This Crowley guy had to be some seriously bad news.

Dean looked around. He knew some of the people nearby but no one who would go to bat for him. Oh, that's right, his friends were upstairs fucking his girlfriend without him, and Victor had disappeared to chase his next meaningless hookup. Dean squared his shoulders and pulled on all the bravado he'd learned watching his Dad hunt; all the bravery he pretended to have so Sam could sleep at night, despite everything they knew about what went bump in the night.

"Look," Crowley's words practically oozed out of him. "You have something that belongs to me and I want it back. I'm not above making a deal or getting in bed with the enemy, especially when the enemy looks like you. But at the end of the day, I want my girl back."

Dean looked around again. A transfer student he didn't know had a determined look on his face and came to stand next to Dean. He had broad shoulders and looked older than the rest of them, definitely going to be on the football team. "It looks to me like the girl doesn't want to be talkin' to you, Chief," he said, holding Crowley's gaze before looking at Dean and giving him a quick nod.

With some support, he felt better, but now they had to get around Crowley. "Come on, Meg." Dean shuffled behind the new kid, using him like a shield, and tried to work his way through the crowd, but there were even more of them now. Crowley had drawn a crowd and people were pressed in around them. Looking at her with morbid curiosity in their eyes, but not helping.

Assholes.

The new kid stayed with him, catching his eye. "Benny Lafitte."

"Dean Winchester, you're a fucking rockstar Benny."

"Only doing what's right, cher."

Dean tried to elbow his way through the crowd but Crowley kept cutting them off and Meg was now whimpering. Dean turned and wrapped his arms around her, no idea how to get out of this.

"Fuck, Meg, I'm sorry." He didn't know what was happening, The guy couldn't really hurt her in front of all these people, but she was practically catatonic except for the hyperventilating and shaking. Dean was starting to worry she might pass out.

"What exactly do you think you're doing, Crowley." A familiar voice rose above the crowd, it vibrated through Dean's body, like a sonic aftershock. Dean turned and found Cas pushing his way through a crowd that suddenly was more than willing to get out of the way. "I told you Meg was off limits."

He shoved away the last person in the crowd before he stood a few feet away, staring down Crowley with an intensity that seemed to suck all the oxygen out of the room. The hair on Dean's arms stood up and the room went silent except for the blasting music that suddenly seemed so much louder.

"Really, Castiel, this is getting ridiculous. I know you have a soft spot for Meg, but at the end of the day a whore is a whore is a whore, and this one is mine."

Cas's shoulders rolled back and a breeze of air that smelled like the fall of fresh snow filled Dean's senses. When he looked over, Cas's eyes were bright, his jaw squared, and a level of fury Dean had only ever seen on his father's face. Shit, Cas was fucking terrifying. And then, a high pitch sound started on the edge of his awareness and Cas's eyes flashed, growing bright the way they had when he'd healed Dean.

"Fuck." Dean grabbed Benny and practically shoved Meg into his arms saying, "watch her," before he ran over and grabbed Cas's arm. "Come on man, not here."

Cas didn't seem to register that Dean had spoken.

"Cas! Cas, man, this asshole isn't worth it. You gotta calm down." Dean stepped in front of Cas and kept talking him down. When he didn't get through, he placed his hands on either side of Castiel's face and tried to will him into seeing Dean. Cas's eyes finally drifted down to his, the light softening. "We need to get Meg out of here. She needs you. Come on, Cas, this isn't the time, okay? You need to calm down."

"Why can't I just kill him now?" Cas growled, eyes flicking back up to Crowley.

"You know why. Focus on Meg. Come on." Dean's hands drifted down and settled on Cas's shoulders, squeezing them and trying to soothe the angry beast. Cas audibly growled in Crowley's direction who only smiled and waved.

"I'll be seeing you, Megan, Castiel. We'll pick this up when it's more convenient." Crowley flashed an oily smile and then slipped away into the crowd.

"Meg?"

"Clarence?" Meg pulled away from Benny and ran into Cas's arms. "Why is he here? How did he find me."

"I don't know but I'll handle it. Let's get you home."

Now that there was a conclusion to the tension, people returned to drinking and dancing and general revelry. Apparently, it was a good enough show to watch, but not enough to make them actually care.

"I'll get my car," Dean said, nodding at Cas, who smiled at him with just a touch of his lips. Dean was learning all of his little ticks and expressions and was starting to think he knew how to read the guy, at least a little. Cas led Meg out the closest door.

Dean clapped Benny on the back. "Thanks again, man, you're a good dude."

"Nah, ain't nothin' special."

"Well, it was to me, and definitely was to Meg. I'll see you Monday?"

"Yeah yeah, brother. It'll be nice to know somebody. It's been hard these last few weeks, feeling out of place all the time."

"I've been here a few years and still feel that." Dean smiled warmly and made his way toward the front door.

As Dean grabbed his leather jacket and started for the door, he heard Lisa call his name. "Dean! You never came upstairs."

"Yeah, I'm not into that."

"What? It's just sex." she pouted. "It's not like you love me or something."

"No, I don't. Because you know what, Lisa? You're a cold bitch."

"Dean?" she paled and her posture slumped. "Are you mad about Ruby? I thought it would turn you on, be a little fun. I didn't mean to hurt you. We don't have to…"

"You think this is about Ruby? I don't give a fuck about that."

"So you don't care who I fuck and you don't love me. Message received, Dean."

"Good, because I never thought that when it came down to it, you really were so cruel."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she practically yelled, stepping closer. "What did I do?"

"Nothing, you did absolutely nothing, and that's the problem."

Lisa stared at him, pale and blinking, still not understanding what he was talking about. And wasn't that just the fuckin punchline, she didn't even get it. The part of Dean that had cared about her wanted to scream and cry, but the rest of him just wanted to get back to Castiel.

Dean pulled his keys out of his pocket and left the party, relaxing when the door closed and the noise dulled a little. He ran the little ways down the street to where he'd parked the Impala, jumped in, and started it. He was mostly sober now. The adrenaline of the stand-off with Crowley and Cas looking like he was going to make the whole room spontaneously combust had that effect. He pulled around to the side of the house and texted Cas.

When they got in the car, Cas put himself in the middle in the front seat and pulled Meg in next to him.

"I thought you would sit in the back," Dean smiled.

"Oh, we could do that," Cas shifted.

"No, it's fine," Dean smiled. "You okay over there, Meg."

"Yeah," she said, "just exhausted."

Dean started the car back up and pulled out of the drive and out to the main road. "So where to?" He asked, peeking over to where Cas had his arm around Meg. Something twisted inside him but he ignored it. Seemed like he was ignoring a lot of things when it came to Cas lately.

"Can we just drive for a while?" Cas asked, looking at Dean with unreadable eyes that he wanted to stare into long after it was safe to have his eyes off the road.

"Yeah, sure. I know a good place to look at the stars, it's a bit of a drive, but it's worth it."

"Sounds perfect," Cas sighed, his posture finally relaxing. "Thank you, Dean. I'm sorry you were pulled into that."

"It's fine. I'm just glad Meg is okay."

"I'm okay," came her tired voice, slightly muffled by Cas's shirt. "Thank you."

"'Course," Dean replied.

Can dropped a kiss on her forehead and whispered a low, "I'm so sorry," before turning his head and resting his cheek on the top of her head.

"It's okay Clarence, you were there when I needed you, and Dean did pretty okay, I guess."

Dean snorted.

"I still don't know why you call me that." Cas smiled into her hair.

"You should watch a movie sometime," she sighed. After they'd been quiet for a while and Meg seemed to have fallen asleep, Dean looked at Cas again, who had a slight frown on his face that pulled all his features down. Dean wasn't sure he liked that look.

"She's calling you an angel," Dean said into the darkness.

"What?"

"When she calls you Clarence, she's calling you an angel. It's from an old movie. I'll show it to you some time."

"That would be nice, Dean. But believe me, I'm not an angel."

Dean just smiled. "Tell her that."