DESTIEL BEING DESTIEL
As with so many others, I found myself unsatisfied with the official Supernatural ending. I didn't hate it, I'll be honest, but I was unsatisfied, and an unsatisfied writer will imagine a more satisfying ending, so, with my minor tweaks to the official story, here's an alternative ending for those who want it. There is still violence and danger (it wouldn't really be Supernatural without them, after all), but there is also life, and love... and smut. ;)
We begin with the minor edits, then move on to the story. I hope you enjoy!
CW: There will be swearing in every chapter, consider this your only warning! Other CWs include violence, death, injuries, suicide, past abuse, trauma, panic attacks/anxiety/PTSD?, arguments, homophobia, and LOTS O' S M U T. Each chapter will have it's own CW so you know what to expect when.
Cas and Dean were in Death's library, and they had her cornered. Well, Dean had her cornered. He always took charge when it came to fancy supernatural weapons (like Death's scythe) or any attack on any bad guy, and this was both of those. Neither of them had questioned the arrangement: it was simply how things were. And when they got the advantage, Dean would do the threatening, and Cas would stand nearby, backing him up mostly silently, but no less effectively.
But then Death was telling them that their friends going missing wasn't her doing. That it must be Chuck. That she was already dying. Cas was surprised, to say the least, but not as much as he would have been a few months ago. Of course it was Chuck. He'd become so cruel... this was right up his alley.
"Awesome," Dean said blandly, interrupting her tirade. He released some of the pressure on the scythe, and Billie sighed in relief, her hand dropping from where it had been stopping the blade. Then, without warning, Dean slammed down on the blade again, pushing it through Billie's neck and into the wall behind her in one violent thrust. He stood back when her head and body fell to avoid them falling on him, and the blade stayed in the wall, blood dripping morbidly from it.
"DEAN." It was all Cas could think of to say. The action had taken him completely by surprise. "She said this wasn't her doing!"
"Exactly," Dean answered grimly. "So she can't help us."
Cas's eyes popped. "She said she was already dying, why did you...?"
"Our current problem may not have been her, but she's been responsible for an awful lot of them lately, don't you think?"
"Still, to just kill her-"
"You said it yourself, she was already dead." Finally, Dean looked up at Cas, and the look on his face eased Cas's alarm some. Yes, he showed no remorse, but he showed no joy either. "Now everyone can move on without waiting for her to finish."
Cas sighed. He hated these situations where there was no right answer, and inevitably they had to pick one anyway. It felt like their lives had been nothing but bad choices lately--all thanks to Chuck, probably--and he was sick of it, but there was nothing to do now. Nothing except finish the battle they were already in.
And they did. Somehow, Jack was their miracle again. Somehow, they survived another apocalypse. Somehow, life went on...
They were on a hunt. Just Sam, Dean, and Cas... and no Chuck dictating the outcome. They'd spent that first night drinking and celebrating, but the next day all three of them threw themselves back into work. Chuck being powerless didn't stop monsters from being monsters. Team Free Will finally actually having free will didn't stop people from needing help. Jack being essentially God didn't stop hunters from needing to hunt.
So, when Dean found a case, they went. All three of them. None of them had anything better to do, and more hands on a case was never a bad thing. Besides, there was something almost comfortable about the three of them working a case together with no strings attached. No big bads on the horizon. No looming apocalypse. Not even a lingering argument among them. Just the Monster of the Week, like it used to be.
It didn't exactly go according to plan, but then again, when did it ever?
The fighting ended, six or seven vamp bodies scattered across the barn, and immediately Dean was ready to move on to the next step. "Sam, Cas, find those kids and get them out of here. I'll search for the rest of the nest."
"I'm... stuck..." Cas whispered, his voice sounding strained.
Sam and Dean finally looked closely at Cas, finally noticing the stiff way he was pressed against the wooden beam behind him.
"What do you mean, you're stuck?" Sam asked as they both rushed forward. Cas looked pale, but more than that he looked deeply uncomfortable, and panic started to boil in Sam's stomach.
"There's something in my back," Cas explained. "I think it's at an angle. I can't seem to just step forward off it..." He tried again, just to prove his point, and grimaced with the pain it caused.
"What do you need?" Dean asked, straight to business, his voice tight and eyes locked on Cas.
"I need you to lift me off of this, whatever it is. I can't heal until it's out..."
Without a word, Sam and Dean crouched under Cas's arms, one hand each grabbing Cas's wrists, the other supporting him at the shoulders. With just a glance, they lifted simultaneously, and Cas shouted as whatever it was pulled free of this back. They carried him forward just a couple of steps, just enough to get him a safe distance, and then Cas was pulling his left arm off of Sam, his palm glowing on the front and light shining out of the bloody hole in the back of his coat.
Sam's eyes were drawn to the light at first, relief flooding him as Cas seemed to be healing normally, but the hunter in him would not let him forget his surroundings completely. His gaze darted back to the beam Cas had been against, and he saw with horror the five or six inch spike covered in blood. He looked away, had to look at anything other than that stark reminder that danger was everywhere, and found himself glancing back at Cas and, by default, Dean.
Cas's right arm was still slung across Dean's shoulders, his hand gripping Dean's jacket just as tightly as Dean's hand gripped Cas's wrist. Dean's other arm had moved from Cas's shoulder to wrap around him, but that wasn't what caught Sam's attention. Cas's eyes were closed tight, his face still a grimace of pain and effort, but the barn was glowing with his healing light, and yet Dean was still watching him intently, fear etched across his features. Dean looked worried.
Cas gasped, and the light went out. After one more breath, he stood straight again, pulling away from Dean finally.
"You good?" Dean asked.
"Yes, I'm fine now." He looked back at the spike that was still covered in his blood, but didn't elaborate further, just frowned at it and turned back to Sam and Dean. "Shall we?"
"Yeah, sure," Sam agreed, still a little rattled.
"Go with Sam to get the kids-" Dean started.
"No," Cas interrupted. "I'm staying with the fight."
"Cas, you just-"
"Yes, I did, but I'm fine now."
"Don't you think you should take it easy for a minute?"
"I'm not leaving Dean."
"Cas, I'm not asking!"
"Neither am I! That wound would have been fatal to a human!" Cas pointed back to the spike, forcing Dean to look at it finally. "What if that had been you fighting with that vamp and getting impaled? Worse, what if I hadn't been here at all?"
Silence followed, Dean clearly trying to come up with a clever response. Sam just swallowed and stayed quiet. Frankly, he'd been thinking that exact thought - what if it had been one of them? What if Cas hadn't been there? Would this have been the last hunt for one of them?
"If you're looking for the rest of the nest," Cas continued, "then I'm going with you. Sam is more than capable of handling a couple of children on his own."
Dean glared at Cas, still unable to come up with a convincing argument against it.
"He's right, Dean," Sam finally said. "At minimum I can get the kids in the car and then come back to help you two clean up. In and out, no problem."
"Fine," Dean growled, and walked towards the door the kids had run out of without another word.
Cas touched Sam's elbow, getting his attention. "Thank you," he whispered.
Sam nodded. Sometimes Dean was too stubborn for his own good. He and Cas knew that better than anyone else. If they were going to survive - both monsters and accidents - they needed to look after each other. Together.
Later that same week, Jack appeared. He reminded them that he wasn't planning on making a habit of being around, but apparently there were a few things he was trying to set right before officially stepping away.
"Castiel," he started, looking over at the smiling angel. All three of them had been grinning like idiots since Jack appeared, no matter what he said. It was just good to see him. "Would you help me?"
"Of course, but... what exactly are we doing?"
For a moment, Jack looked so intensely at Cas that it felt like Dean and Sam weren't in the room anymore. "First, I need to fix something with the Empty."
Cas's face dropped.
"The Empty?" Dean asked, his own worry spiking due to Cas's reaction.
"Yes," Jack said, the intense look disappearing as he turned towards Dean, "but don't worry. Cas will be returning. I promise."
"Jack," Cas interrupted hesitantly, "you know-"
"I know. Trust me."
"Why do I feel like I'm missing something?" Dean said as the two celestial beings shared a meaningful look.
Cas sighed. "It's a long story."
"But nothing you need to worry about," Jack promised again, smiling that awkward honest smile he'd always had.
"You said that's first," Sam said, "what's second?"
"I want to make some changes in heaven," Jack answered quickly, "but given how unfamiliar I am with it, I would like Cas's assistance. It shouldn't take more than a week or so to set up."
"You want to change heaven?" Dean asked. "Is that even possible?"
"Well, I am kind of God now," Jack said jokingly, making all three men smile again.
"I can't imagine you actually needing my help, but I will happily go with you," Cas said, looping the conversation back to the original question. "It'll be nice to spend some time with you again."
"Likewise," Jack said, smiling warmly at Cas.
"Don't keep him too long, kid," Dean said, feeling awkward even as he said it, but needing to say it all the same. It felt like he, Sam, and Cas were just starting to figure out normal again, but that was going to be hard with one of them flitting in and out of the picture. Plus, though he wouldn't admit it out loud, the last year or so had left him with a strange sense of anxiety whenever the three of them weren't together. Hopefully with time that would pass, but it hadn't yet.
"Don't worry Dean," Jack repeated. "I'll get him back to you as soon as I can."
It felt like that promise was more literally for Dean than necessary, but he wasn't going to point it out.
"Don't get into too much trouble while I'm gone," Cas said, giving both he and Sam a meaningful look as he stood next to Cas.
"No promises," Dean teased.
Without a sound or a flash, both Jack and Cas were gone, and the vague anxiety settled in Dean's chest.
"How do you feel about going on a road trip, Sam?"
"Did you somehow find a case during that conversation?"
"No, I mean, like, a normal road trip. That normal people do. Go see the Grand Canyon or something."
Sam shrugged. So, while Cas was off with Jack, they went to the Grand Canyon.
Somehow, in all their travels they'd never been before. It didn't completely distract Dean from the anxiety, but it certainly helped. And, as a bonus, because they weren't hunting, they stayed out of the trouble Cas warned against. No one would get impaled on a spike while Cas wasn't around - probably not, at least.
They returned to the bunker exactly seven days later - not that Dean was counting - and Cas returned the following day. He wouldn't talk about what he and Jack had been up to, but he seemed... lighter, somehow. Whatever they'd done he must have enjoyed, or relieved him of some worry, but no matter how he or Sam asked, Cas wouldn't say anything.
"Just trust Jack," Cas repeated, smiling knowingly again. It was infuriating, but at least he was back.
A/N: Next chapter - the story begins! :D