It had been two days since we had interviewed the 'victims' and so far all we had to go on was that they were all at the park when it happened. "So Sammy..." I started. "What's at the nearby park?"
"I don't know. Mrs. Seymore says that her and her husband were out jogging when suddenly they both felt funny. Then, ten minutes later they both go from mid-forties to early twenties. Same thing with Mr. Brent, Miss Layla, and Mr. Gambit. All above thirty and they were all at the park."
"Right...let's see...Mr. Brent was thirty five and transformed into an eighteen year old. Miss Layla was fifty and she de-aged all the way back to twenty five. Mr Gambit...he's the same age as Miss Layla, but he only de-aged to thirty-three. There doesn't seem to be a pattern. Something seems off." I looked through the notes and no one said anything they were doing in particular...I didn't write it down, but perhaps Sam would remember. "Hey, Sammy...what were all these people doing at the park?"
"Well...we know that Mrs. Seymore was jogging with her husband...Mr. Brent was out walking his dog, Miss Layla was there with her grandchildren and they convinced her to stop at the taco stand, and Mr. Gambit was just there to feed the ducks."
"Taco stand?" I asked, wondering what a taco stand would have to do with it and then I remembered that all the tacos had hot sauce on them.
"Seriously Dean...that's all you got out of..."
"TACO STAND!" I shouted as I leapt up from my chair.
"Dean, I get it...you're hungry but..."
"No...you don't get it. Alright...a woman as old as Miss Layla...she may not be able to handle spicey well so what would she need to do if her taco was too spicey for her?"
"She would need water!"
"Exactly! And Mrs. Seymore and her husband were out jogging, they would need to stop for a drink too. Then there's. Mr. Brent...he was out walking his dog...what if he stopped for a drink? Finally, there's Mr. Gambit who was the same age as Miss Layla but..."
"But he wasn't doing anything but feeding the ducks so he wouldn't have gotten that thirsty but it was hot so..."
"We're looking for an actual..." I started with so much excitement I almost couldn't handle it.
"...Fountain of Youth!" He thankfully finished.
"Cas!" I shout at the bathroom door.
"Yes, Dean?" I heard him shout back as the shower was still going.
I cracked open the bathroom door just enough to where I could poke my head in and tell him what we found out. I figured it would be a bad idea to shout it and our next door neighbors hear it. "You won't believe it, but we found out what is the cause of all of it."
"Oh, and what would that be?" I heard the water squeak off and I turned my head so I wouldn't see him.
"It's a fountain of youth!"
"Surely you're joking."
"Nope! No jokes, no double meanings, no sarcasm. An actual fountain of youth! All of the vics had to have stopped for a drink at some point and that's what made them younger. It also may be the duration of them drinking."
I heard him scramble to get clothes on and once he came out he was wearing a Dark blue T-shirt with a light blue flannel shirt that he left open, over it. He was also wearing dark blue jeans and he already had his black tennis shoes on that we bought him yesterday along with the black socks I gave him. "If there's a fountain of youth we need to destroy it immediately! We also need to find out who or what turned it into a fountain of youth."
"Destroy it? And are you saying that something causes this?"
"Yes and yes. If this thing had always been a fountain of youth, it wouldn't have been in the papers just a few days ago. It seems highly likely that a witch is involved."
"We searched for Hex bags and everything else...nothing was anywhere in the park."
"Did you check inside all of the fountains?"
Both Sam and I shook our heads. "So, we go back at two in the morning and look. That way we know no one is gonna show up." I stated and received a nod from Cas.
"Dean and I will go check. Sam, we'll need you to stay here in case the witch catches wind of us knowing and we need help. It would be pointless if we all needed help."
"I understand."
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
Two in the morning rolled around and at this point Cas and I had about two fountains left. The one in front of us, and the other was on the other side of the pond. "So...Cas, I gotta ask you. Why do we need to destroy this immediately? I mean, it sounds like it's doing a lot of good."
"It sounds like it, sure, but Dean...eternal youth was never meant for humans. Not even angels have eternal youth. The way humans grow wrinkles is the same way we grow our feathers. Some get longer, they droop lower, they become harder to manage...but we don't stay young. It really isn't meant for any one. Now, imagine...what do you think would happen in a hundred or two hundred years for now if word about this fountain got out. What do you think may happen?"
"People will be swarming for it." I stated with a realization that left me feeling like an idiot.
"Exactly, and then no one would die, and then the earth will be over populated creating a whole new slew of problems."
"So...how exactly do we destroy the fountain of youth?"
"We find whatever is causing it to become a fountain of youth, burn it, and evaporate all of the water we can underneath the fountain."
"Right...simple and easy as always."
"Is that...is that sarcasm."
"Yes, yes it was."
I pried open the fountain and I didn't see anything around the pipes or any sign that anything was shoved into them, so I closed it and gave out a frustrated sigh. "One more, Dean."
"Yeah...one more, and if it doesn't have a hex bag, then we need a new plan."
"It should be there. This is extremely old magic, at least a century or two old, and it was used to make them younger and to never age."
"Like Rowena?"
"Yes, like Rowena. However, that is slightly different."
"Hmm..."
"What is it, Dean?"
I started walking towards the only fountain left to check and I could see from across the way that someone was sitting on a bench. "I think someone is waiting for us." I pointed with the crowbar at the figure wearing a dark hoodie and sweat pants.
"Well, let's not disappoint them." I chuckled and we made our way to the person on the bench.
Once we made it to the person that was waiting for us, they turned there head and shrugged their shoulders. "I take it you're looking for me?"
"Well, not exactly you, but the magic reversal prune juice you created."
"Uh huh..." She gets up and walks to the fountain and I get my gun ready. "Oh, you poor little boy. I'm just the deliverer. So, those witch killing bullets will do nothing to me. I'm not even human." Without another word she busted the fountain and I dove as far out of the as I could get and thankfully I wasn't sprayed, but Cas was and it was still rushing at him fully blast. I looked up and she wasn't there.
"DAMMIT!" I shouted as I ran to Cas and took him away from the water. "Cas?" I slapped his face lightly and he blinked his eyes open as well as coughing out some water. "You okay, Cas?"
"M-My name isn't Cas..." He stood up frantically and looked at me seemingly confused, and then, all too soon I noticed he started shrinking. I couldn't do anything but watch as Cas turned into what seemed to be a five year old in baggy clothes, ruffled black hair, and the bluest eyes that I had ever seen. Adult Cas' eyes weren't as blue as Young Cas' eyes were at the moment. "My name is Castiel. I...I don't think..." He started looking frantically around and suddenly his facial expression was a mixture of fear and delight. "I-Is this Earth?"
I crouched down in front of him and made sure to holster my gun. "Uh...yeah...it is. Cas...tiel...Castiel...how old are you?"
"How old?"
"Right...um...in human years how old do you think you are?"
"Umm...in human years...I think maybe...five hundred and twenty-four years old. I'm the youngest." He looked around for a brief moment and a puzzled expression appeared and then he looked back at me. "This doesn't look like the earth my big brother showed me a hundred years ago..."
"Well...I gotta tell you something..." I cleared my throat and he tilted his head at me, which told me it wasn't just a vessel thing. It was all Cas. I chuckled lightly and shook my head. "My name is Dean Winchester. You pulled me out of Hell a few years back..."
"Hell!? I-I don't think so!"
I furrowed my brows and tilted my head this time. "Why not?" I wondered.
"Hell is scary! And only the most elite and bravest angels go down there for missions. It also has to be super important for all mankind."
"Well...if you had to...why would you go to Hell?"
"I...If it was someone I cared about...or if it was someone I just met like you...I..."
"Yes?"
"Your soul...it is broken and hurt...you've known a lot of pain...but your soul is also...it's so so strong and pure and honest. You are a kind human who can be selfish when he wants, but wouldn't hesitate to help others. You're a good human. Your soul is warm, comforting, and bright. I don't know why...but it feels like...home. Not heaven...but like a place I belong. I think...if it were for you...I wouldn't think twice."
I could feel myself practically shaking at everything he said and it was a de-aged Cas saying all of those things to me. "W-Why wouldn't you think twice."
He gave a soft sympathetic smile that does not belong on a five year old and he laughed so lightly I almost thought wind chimes had been blowing somewhere nearby. "You don't belong there." He stepped closer and put a hand on both sides of my face and made me look him in the eyes, and that's when I realized that I had looked to the ground. Then, his smile widened. "You are a good man. I see no reason why anyone like you would be down there."
"I...I um...I made a deal with a demon in exchange for my brother."
"Even though it is extremely bad to sell one's soul...that is a very good reason to sell your soul. You are kind, and anyone would be lucky to call you brother. Hey..." He let go of my face and I felt tears run down my face. I quickly wiped them away and he just stood there patiently. "Can we go somewhere warm?"
"Um...you're an angel...you've never gotten cold before..."
He laughed at me and held his stomach to keep himself from falling over. "That's the most ridiculous thing I've heard!"
"What...that you're an angel?"
"No...although...I'm not an angel yet. I'm still a fledgling. In human terms I'm a baby. I get cold all the time, and I have to groom my wings regularly or they won't grow as large as they should, or in a way they should. I also have to stay fed, and I can get wounded easily. When I become a full fledged angel I won't need that. I won't need warmth, food, and I won't be able to be wounded by anything but an angel blade which I don't have ye..." He looked to his clothes and noticed there was something shiny coming put from one of the sleeves. "...Was that my...coat?" He walks over to the coat and holds the angel blade in his hands. He then looks at my clothes, then his, then mine, and back to his. "I...Dean Winchester...was I...am I..."
"You were an adult angel. You pulled me put of hell. You took a vessel named Jimmy and he gave you control of it when he died...so this is all you now...We're like brothers. We came here for to stop a witch but she hit you with some kind of fountain of youth thing...and..."
"And I became younger than you know me...that would explain why this doesn't look at all like the earth I had seen a hundred years ago. How old am I really?"
"Actually...I don't know...All I know is that your over a thousand years old maybe older than that. The year...the year is two thousand and thirteen..."
"I am way older than a thousand years!" His eyes went wide and his face was one of shock. "Wow...so...I'm really not this age am I...?"
"No...buddy...You see...my brother and I call you Cas...it's short for Castiel...are you alright?" I asked as I noticed he was shaking.
"I'm cold...hungry...and afraid. I don't know anything...aside from what you told me..."
"Right...let's go home."
"Home?"
"Yeah...you live with my brother and I in an old men of letters bunker...I'll um...explain more of that later..."
He grabbed my hand and I held his tightly as I could feel his hand. It was like ice.
Once I got him in the car I took my jacket off and wrapped it around him as he sat next to me. "Thank you."
"You're welcome. Now...I need you to stay low. There are people called cops, and they won't like it if you're in the front seat...but this is the closest to the heat you can get right now."
"Okay." He laid down and placed his head on my right leg and all I could do was grin a little, and before I knew it, he was snoring.
I dug my phone out of my pocket and called Sam. "Hey Dean. Did you take care of the problem?"
"No...I didn't...Now...we may have a bigger problem."
"Why are you whispering?"
"Well...apparently that fountain of youth works on angels...and now...I have a sleeping...fledgling on my lap. I'm heading back now."
"Y-You have a W-What!?" I hung up and continued to drive as Cas slept.