CHAPTER FORTY-TWO: Dean, Interrupted

Sam, Mary, and John rushed back to the house, the angel having told them it was an emergency. They found it odd that the others had left without them, but thought nothing of it until they stepped foot in Bobby's house.

Castiel was standing, leaning against the door frame that led to the kitchen and Jo was sitting on the couch, though she looked uncomfortable.

Ellen and Bobby still weren't home from their own hunt they had decided to go on, so it had been an awkward day and a half for Cas and Jo after having to hear Dean screaming.

"Where's Dean?" Sam asked, not liking the way the angel seemed regretful and the fact Jo cringed when he used his name.

Cas straightened as he made eye contact with Mary. "May I speak to you? Privately?" He stressed the last part of the sentence because he figured Sam would end up hating him if he were to explain it to the youngest Winchester.

The blonde demon seemed uncertain, glancing at her son and husband before nodding and following the angel to the basement.

Although irritated, the boys tried to rationalize that there was a good reason.

"You okay, Jo?" John asked, walking over to her.

"Yeah, Gordon didn't do me any favors." She joked, chuckling humorlessly. "How did things go on your part?"

….

"Now, I need you to listen to me and not let your feelings cloud your judgment." Castiel urged, walking to the panic room door.

Mary eyed him quizzically as he opened the hinge to allow her to be able to look in the room without the actual door being open. Her breath caught in her throat.

Dean was lying down on the cot, one hand attached to handcuffs. He was cradling his head, knees brought up to his chest with his eyes squeezed shut. Of what she could make out of his face, there was dried blood coating most of it and his lip was split.

Dean was quiet until something must've alerted him of their presence when he suddenly looked up. "M-mom?" He rasped before letting out a chilling cough.

Mary was alarmed to see blood now on the sleeve of his gray t-shirt he had coughed into along with the pillow that was splattered with crimson droplets.

"What happened to him?" She demanded, referring to Dean's current condition and the state of his face.

"I did." Cas said simply, his tone giving Mary a bad feeling.

She quickly shut the small opening, feeling sick to her stomach. She felt tears well to her eyes but she pushed them down, trying to listen to the angel explain what had happened with Gordon. Once he was finished, Mary crossed her arms to hide the shaking.

"So, what? You're punishing him? Why is he coughing up blood?" Her questions came out in a rush, wanting answers.

Castiel shook his head. "The Mark of Cain has started taking over, if it hasn't already. You can't think of this as Dean being locked away because that is not your son." He tried to explain it in the best way possible but Mary still seemed frazzled. "The coughing is his body telling him that if he doesn't go out and cause carnage, the Mark will kill him. He may sound like your Dean, but if I were to let you in there, there's no guarantee you will come out."

Mary rubbed her temples as she tried to take all the information in. That had to be her Dean in there, right? He can't be gone…

"This is why I originally wanted to bring him to Heaven so that we could prevent this. Now I believe the angels will just try to kill him." Cas hesitated, not use to feeling human emotions. "I will not allow that." He added to reassure Mary he wouldn't be taking off with her son anytime soon.

"So what do we do?" She asked quietly, this whole thing completely new to her.

Castiel sighed, not entirely sure himself. "First, we make sure he does not get to the First Blade. I hid it when I raised him from Hell but the Mark will be pushing him to track it down and to use it. But, once he gets that cursed weapon, there will be almost no going back." He paused, considering their options. "We have some time to figure out our next move before the Mark starts to really take its toll on Dean, so for now I suggest researching-"

The angel was cut off by the middle Winchester starting to scream, Mary instantly rushing towards the door.

Cas grabbed her by the wrist, talking into her ear quickly and sternly. "He's hallucinating, nothing you can do will help."

She let the angel drag her away from the door, feeling absolutely helpless before turning to face him. "What can I do to help?"

"Help me tell Sam."

…..

"Please! Stop!" Dean screeched as Alastair drove his fist into the gaping hole in his abdomen, grabbing hold of anything he could to cause damage and tugging.

"Did you really think you could escape me, Dean?" The snarky demon quipped, removing his hand agonizingly slow before resting his bloodied hand on the white cot, leaning in close. "You Winchester's really don't live up to your reputation."

"Leave me alone!" He yelled before Jo approached the bed with the demon killing knife in her hand. "Jo, I'm so sorry. Please don't do this." He begged, the blonde's eyes becoming enveloped with black as she rested the tip of the blade above his heart.

She didn't seem sorry as she eyed him with pity. "You're a monster. You'll be treated like one." She spat, venom lacing her tone right before she plunged the blade into his chest.

Dean squeezed his eyes shut, letting out a blood curdling scream before he realized nothing happened. His eyes slowly opened to see an empty room, the cot and his chest thankfully unharmed. He was covered in sweat, his collar of his shirt completely soaked.

He was breathing hard as he stared at the ceiling with wide, scared eyes. He didn't know what was happening to him but if he had to guess, it had to deal with the thing that was burning his arm.

The eldest demon sat up the best he could, gripping his right forearm with his free hand as the pain increased. He clenched his teeth to keep from crying out, a blinding pain shooting through his body before it was too much.

He lost consciousness soon after, only to be woken up by Sam shaking his shoulders.

...

Cas had just opened the basement door when he was confronted by a distraught Sam, obviously the sound of his brother screaming causing him distress.

"Sam, back up." The angel ordered when the youngest Winchester tried to shove his way downstairs.

"What's going on?! Mom, what's happening to him?!" He barked, locking eyes with Mary.

She stepped around Castiel, placing a firm yet gentle hand on her son's chest to have him step back. Complying reluctantly, Sam went to stand by John who was crouched next to Jo, examining the cuts and bruises on her back.

The older hunter rubbed Jo's shoulder before standing up and crossing his arms, wanting an explanation just as bad as his son.

"The Mark has begun taking control of Dean." Cas began, making eye contact with Sam. "I need you to stay calm and allow us to talk or I will be forced to incapacitate you." He threatened, not in the mood to deal with the hormonal pair in front of him.

Jo remained quiet, sitting on the couch with a distant look as the angel explained what had happened with Gordon and why he had snapped, Sam and John glancing at the blonde hunter when Cas told them what Dean had done to her.

The more the angel talked, the more the demon's brows would furrow as he listened. He could feel himself getting more and more pissed off, not believing his brother would be capable of anything like that.

"It is wise to keep Dean down there for now until we figure out our next move." Castiel finished, looking back and forth between the father/son pair.

John clenched his jaw, his gaze resting on Mary. "Is this true?" He asked, trying to ignore the screaming of his eldest son from below.

Jo heard her name being yelled and winced, knowing Dean probably felt guilty for what he had done. She shifted uncomfortably, wishing she could go talk to him.

Mary nodded somberly, a frown plastered to her face. "He's screaming because he's hallucinating. We just have to... ignore it."

Everybody agreed that it was in Dean's best interest to figure out all they could about the Mark of Cain. Without wasting much time, the group began to research.

...

They hadn't heard anything from Dean in awhile so Sam decided it'd be safe to go down and see his brother.

He used the excuse he needed to shower. He even went as far as to go to the bathroom, shut and lock the door, turn on the water, all just to make the illusion he was indeed, in the shower.

He quickly vanished and reappeared in Bobby's basement, taking extra care to be silent. He walked up to the panic room door, opening the small latch to peak in. His eyes widened in shock when he saw Dean convulsing on the bed, the cuffs starting to wear his wrist raw.

Sam yanked open the door and rushed over to his brother, shaking his seizing form.

"Dean, come on man, wake up!" The demon pleaded, gripping his shoulders tight.

After a moment, the middle Winchester's body came to a halt, his eyes opening to find his brother right there.

"Sammy?" He asked, confused. "You shouldn't be down here." He chastised, pushing the youngest demon away from him as he moved into a sitting position.

Sam just shook his head, rolling his eyes a little. "Cas is overreacting." As if just noticing the battered form that was his brother's face, he gestured towards his bottom lip. "Did you get ran over by a bus?"

"Word of the wise, don't piss off the nerd angel." He quipped, groaning when he adjusted his position and the cuff dug into his wrist. "Speaking of, pretty sure you're gonna be next if Cas catches you down here. I'm dangerous." He added that last sentence at the end much quieter with forced lightness as he met Sam's gaze.

The taller of the two gave him his signature bitch face before replying. "It's probably that angel brainwash, he can't help it. But it doesn't matter, he hid the First Blade which-"

"Wait," Dean interrupted, his eyes were kinda glassy and the green was much duller, but Sam could still say that this was his brother. "Cas hid the blade? Do you know where?" He questioned, a longing in his tone.

The younger demon looked taken aback before he responded. "Uh, no. He didn't say."

"Sammy, listen to me." The middle Winchester persisted, leaning forward. "You have to get it for me."

Sam scoffed. "Why- Dean I don't think that's a good idea." He stated, panic creeping into his voice.

"Sam, it hurts." He reasoned, the word 'hurts' filled with such torment and suffering, Sam almost caved. Dean brought anguished and tired filled eyes to meet his brother's hazel. "The Mark, it's burning my fucking arm. It's whispering in my head, causing me to see things. But if I get the blade-"

"I think that is quite enough." Castiel was standing at the doorway, looking extremely displeased with the youngest Winchester. "Sam, may I talk to you?" He asked, the request more of a demand.

The long-haired demon smiled awkwardly at his irritated looking brother before Cas let him out of the devil's trap, resealing it once he was away from it. With a flick of his wrist, the angel shut the panic room door with a clank before he turned to face the demon with a look of absolute ferocity.

"I had to talk to him Cas." Sam quickly said, his tone full of sorrow as he stood there.

All the anger seemed to drain out of the angel. He ran a hand down his face, a gesture he doesn't remember learning. "Get upstairs." He said halfheartedly. Although Castiel was not use to the concept of human emotions yet, he was able to grasp the concept of family and how much it meant to the Winchester's and the others in this house.

Cas had begun to feel like a part of the family as well, Mary was always kind to him and Jo even started to joke with him ever since he brought her back to Bobby's. His relationship with Dean was much different than his with Sam's, but he felt like he and the younger Winchester had a mutual respect for each other. But, then again, he didn't hear what Sam had said about him to Dean.

Overall, as Castiel made his way upstairs, he had a new sense of determination to save the eldest Winchester at whatever cost.

...

It was probably close to about three in the morning when John realized he and Mary were the only ones still up. However, his wife was only awake because she couldn't sleep.

He yawned, trying to blink away the sleep that was desperately pulling at his eyelids. He flipped to a page labeled 'Knight's of Hell" and felt his stomach drop as he begun to read about the horrendous acts they had committed.

Before he could become too involved in the reading, Mary strolled over and wrapped her arm around his shoulders, planting a kiss on the top of his head. "Why don't you go to bed? It's late." She offered, rubbing his arms.

John didn't even respond as he let his head drop into his hands, a sense of defeat inching it's way into his gut. "I gotta save him." He whispered with desperation. John knew he and Dean had come a long way this past year and he couldn't help but feel ashamed about his behavior when he had first met his son. He couldn't even imagine thinking things like that about him now.

Sensing that he wasn't in the mood to talk or to listen to her advice, Mary just squeezed his shoulder reassuringly before picking up a book and plopping down on the couch.

...

"Get your hands off me." Meg hissed, pulling herself free of Alastair's grasp once they arrived at Crowley's office. She sat heavily in one of the plush seats, fuming with anger as they waited.

After a few moments, the King walked in and greeted her before taking a seat at his desk. "I have a proposal." He started off, mischief glinting in his eyes.

Meg flicked an eyebrow up, waiting with a smug look on her face as Crowley proceeded. "How do you feel about taking a vacation up top?"

Meg huffed with impatience. " Listen, after a year of being tortured, I'm not really in the mood for your theatrics, so if we could get this moving." She quipped, cockiness radiating off of her.

The King looked amused as he leaned forward, clasping his hands together on the desk. "I need a spy, and you my pet, are the best option I have."

...

TBC

Please continue to read and review so I know you're opinions on how the story is developing. Thanks for reading, it means a bunch. Special thanks to ncsupnatfan (I feel like you should never cross Dean. No matter the circumstances.), Nina Ferraro (So many questions haha but I'm glad you like it!), babyreaper (Yeah, Greg kinda sucked. But, unfortunately he will be coming back along with his crew.), Sanna Black Slytherin (I'm not sure how to take your review, if it should be positive or negative.), Guest (I'm so glad you like it! Thanks for reading!), and 1983Sarah (I am a fan of the MoC storyline as well and I'm happy you like my spin on it!) for reviewing! You guys are awesome. I hope everyone has a good weekend!