"I live in shame, a whore awash in sewage. I confess I teased and seduced hundreds, led them to sin for my own gains. But I am just one of many who suffer here in the Malebolge." – Thais
Once again, Dean and Tessa made their way to the next circle. Dean knew it had to be either Fraud or Treachery. Either one would be tough but not as tough as Anger and Violence. Those were the one's who really had Dean almost fail and lose everything.
Dean and Tessa arrived at a new hall. There, already waiting for them, was a new Goddess. Tessa introduced her as Apate, the Goddess of Lies. Dean stepped forward and nodded at the Goddess, almost as if telling her that he was ready.
Apate nodded back and snapped her fingers. Dean felt thrown back by all the people that appeared around him. They were all people who at one point or another Dean had lied to. Dean could feel their accusing eyes on him, and it made him feel uncomfortable.
Shifting in place, Dean took a deep breath and prepared himself. He knew what he had to do. It was simple, but at the same time so hard. He never meant to lie to them, but for their safety as well as his and Sam, he had to.
Looking around, Dean started apologizing, without giving any excuse. Just a heartfelt apology. He would go from one person to the other, making his apology as personal to them as he could. There were people there from the very beginning of his life, when he would be hauled around by his father from hunt to hunt across the country. He saw old schoolteachers, flames, friends and people he had met on hunts.
The next few minutes were spent apologizing to everyone he had ever lied to. It seemed as if he would never stop, but then suddenly they all vanished. He took a deep breath before walking back to where Apate and Tessa were and stood in front of the Goddess, waiting to hear if he had passed or not.
After a few minutes of silence, Apate finally spoke, telling Dean he had passed the challenge by showing regret and grants him passage to the next and final circle. Bowing her head, Apate disappears, and Dean looked at Tessa, seeing her nod her head in approval.
Dean could feel part of his guilt disappear with her, as they started walking again. It never occurred to him that he would feel guilty about lying to all those people, after all he did it to either protect them or himself and Sam. It was never with the intent of hurting them, it was just a matter of safety. But now, he felt guilty about it. And that was a new feeling for him, at least regarding that.
Shaking those thoughts away, Dean started thinking about the final circle, Treachery. He didn't know what to expect from it, all he knew was that he was one circle away to go home. And he'd be damned if he weren't going to do all he could to win the challenge and go home.