Notes: Okay, I really like this chapter. Hopefully its as good as I thought it was.
Disclaimer: Own it? pchaw, not really, no.
Warnings: This story contains religious themes and undertones throughout the whole story. No offense is meant. It is simply one single view/opinion that someone may have. It doesn't necessarily have to be the authors actual opinion, so if possible I would like to ask for no flames and if you are truly offended then feel free to private message me to share your thoughts and you can skip this story.
CHAPTER 5
Mood completely shattered, both pilots shot out of bed and raced to put on some pants. There were few other bigger mood killers then your lovers little brother walks in on you having sex. Sam knew that Gabriel was more than a little concerned for Cas when he darted out of the room before even bothering to try and find his shirt and Sam followed after, not even caring to button up his own.
It took them a half hour to finally find Cas. They had checked every room on the ship, even the nest and couldn't find him anywhere and Gabriel was seconds away from tearing out his hair and swearing himself to celibacy.
They finally located him behind on the hidden storage panels, cowering in one of the dark corners muttering to himself.
"They say that the sight of the monster would cause his eyes to burn out of his head. Too great and awesome for them to handle….my eyes are in terrible danger."
"Cassy? Castiel, why don't you come out here. We can talk about it." Gabriel pleaded, one arm outstretched to his little brother.
Cas backed up further away, "No! I can't. It hurts."
Joining Gabriel in the opening Sam tried to coax him out, "C'mon Cas. It's okay. If you come out we can talk about what you saw. It could help you feel better," he offered gently.
"No! What has been seen cannot be unseen," he sobbed and buried his face in his knees.
Gabriel chuckled softly, "I get it kid. I bet if Dean had seen what you just did, he'd be right in there next to you. But you should come out anyway. There could be icky spiders in there."
"And we'll make sure that you never walk in on something like that again, I promise." Sam said.
"I doesn't matter…It'll still be seared into my brain forever more."
Sam and Gabe exchanged looks, "Please come out Cassy-bear. I've got your…um, book here."
Finally Cas looked up to where Gabriel held out the sopping bible and reluctantly started to crawl out. He carefully made sure not to come in contact with any part of Gabriel's skin as he gingerly took back the book, not sure if his brother had time to wash his hands before coming to find him.
"I am glad that I am not blind because of that. It would have been most cruel for that to be the last image that I remember," he shared with them, not making any sort of eye contact with either of them.
It was at that moment that Dean and Balthazar came back to the ship to great them.
"Honey, I'm home!" Shouted a somewhat swaying Balthazar.
"Yo, Sam, Gabe. What's with the suspicious state of undress that you've got going on? Trying on a new dress code?"Inquired Dean.
They both sent him twin bitch faces.
"Dean, where have you been? Bernoulli's chomping at the bit. He says that he wants his merchandise yesterday," stated Sam, ignoring Dean's earlier comment.
Dean flinched, "Yeah, well, we still have a few wrinkles to work out on the deal it seems."
Slurring horrible, Balthazar had gone up to greet Castiel, breathing foul alcohol stained breath into his face, "Hello, Cassy-dear! Did you…hic…know that Chuck is a bon..bona fide folk hero? He's…got…hic…got a song and evry…everything."
"Balthazar, I believe that you are intoxicated. I'm sure everything will be fine in the morning," Castiel murmured, poking his brother's nose.
Dean moved up next to them, "He has indeed been drinking, but I'm afraid that he isn't spouting amusing alcohol induced hallucinations."
"You mean that, Chuck…our Chuck is a somebody here?" Gabriel gasped. Balthazar snorted unattractively and started laughing again merrily.
"Yes, indeed. We came here to tell you the news and invite you back to the bar. Balthazar here is going to cool his heels and keep an eye on the ship, so if you two want to drink nasty ass concoctions and party with the rest of us, then feel free to come along. Meanwhile I could use Sam's help in finding a way to work around this mess. You three in?"
His answer was three very enthusiastic nods from each of them and after making sure that Balthazar wasn't about to pass out in the hold they were walking down the ramp to head back to the party, Sam and Gabriel rubbing shoulders on the narrow path, and Dean guiding Cas with a hand at the small of his back.
"To Chuck!"
Bobby had lost count of how many toasts there had been this night. It had gotten to the point where he was beginning to wonder if there was any more alcohol to be had and that the patrons were just too drunk to notice that the bartender had switched to pond water. The preacher had cut himself off after Dean had left to keep an eye on the Impala's writer/mechanic. He seemed to be enjoying himself quite a bit, but something was nagging at him.
All around the bar he had been hearing drunken stories and accounts about how Chuck's book had changed the way of living in this town, and from what he had gathered so far was not in an entirely peaceful way. However, it could have just been alcohol induced exaggerations, but something about the fierceness in some of the men's eyes reminded Bobby of the time before he became a preacher.
The preacher's stiffness did nothing to dampen Chuck's spirits this night. He was floating on his own cloud nine as people praised him for his work.
"To the teachings of Chuck!"
"To me!" He lifted his glass high over his head, some of the beverage sloshing out and wetting his hair, but he hardly noticed as he called for another toast, "To the Mudders!"
An answering loud cheer followed him and raised their glasses for what was probably the hundredth time that night, "To the Mudders!"
All night he had listened as so many people, men and women, young and old, would come up to him and tell him how his teachings had given them strength, given them hope, shown them the light, shown them the way…It was all a little overwhelming at first. But these people were grateful to him for so many different reasons. He could see and feel the love that they had for him pouring out from their eyes. Not for the first time that night he wondered what his writings had done for them that he deserved all of this.
Dean had come back into the bar a while ago with Gabriel, Sam and Castiel with him, nodding to Chuck as the writer remained at the front of the bar, still surrounded by the town folk. Chuck had glanced over at his crew a few times in the last few hours, making sure that his friends were enjoying the party and were getting the best treatment.
At first they had all sat down with Bobby and Meg and seemed to talk business for a while. The three newcomers had all been formally introduced to Mudder's milk and each had the exact same reaction as the others earlier….except for Cas who held the mug with both hands and after his first cautious sip had started knocking them back like a pro. Dean and Meg seemed to take it as some sort of personal challenge and the "business meeting" had dissolved in less than an hour to rowdy drinking game.
Chuck had been distracted for a bit after that as more Mudder's came off of a night shift and entered the bar to see if the rumors had been true and that the hero Chuck had returned to them. Another hundred toasts later, Chuck blearily glanced over to the table where his crew had been before.
Meg seemed to have decided to take a nap and was leaned against the wall, her mug barely staying held in her hand by lax fingers. Bobby was still in his seat, eyes robotically scanning the crowd. He appeared relaxed enough though as he talked with Sam and Gabriel who were laid back together against the wall of the booth. They didn't appear to be talking about anything important or serious going by the casual and laid-back postures, so Chuck didn't think that he was needed for the moment.
Earlier there was a small mishap when a happily buzzed Castiel was asked for a dance by a few of the local girls. He had smiled at them and looked like he was about to agree when he took notice of Dean's face. It had gone from cheery to suspicious in a matter of a few exchanged words and Chuck could see even from a distance the Captain's knuckles turn white where he was gripping his cup perhaps a little too tightly.
Dean had been acting funny ever since the Bela thing and had started to keep after Cas even more than before. The scuttle bug on the ship was two theories for the behavior. Gabriel reckoned it was Dean still being pissed off that some girl was able to plant one on Cas and now Dean was worried about Cas wandering. Sam's theory was similar only Dean was more worried of Cas being taken advantage of because of his blessed naivety. Whatever the reason, Cas seemed to pick up on Dean's change of mood and sent them away with probably something really odd judging by the bewildered looks on their faces as they left the crew's table.
Now looking around, Chuck frowned a little when he couldn't spot his Captain and Castiel at first glance. They were no longer at the table with the rest of the crew. He hoped that they hadn't left because they were bored, or something had upset Cas, but then he shifted and caught sight of a familiar trench coat draped over the back of one of the bar's couches behind the pillar.
There were Dean and Cas, blissfully blitzed out on the couch talking together, practically sitting in each other's laps and a pile of empty mugs on the floor in front of them.
Dean was warm, that's the only word that he could come up with to describe himself in his inebriated state. He had been talking to Cas for the last two hours or so about whatever came to mind. Stupid little stuff that he never had gotten a chance to really talk about before since in the past the conversations the two had had were on the serious side. It was nice to see this side of the other man. Completely relaxed, not looking behind himself as if waiting for a Garrison soldier to nab him, not in pain from whatever the deal with his back was, and not frantic about…anything.
It wasn't as if nothing had ever happened to Cas. He was still spouting crazy talk, and some of his smiles were a little too dazed for Dean to totally forget what had happened to the other man, but for now it was just them and no one else. Even Sammy had slipped from his mind.
"You know, I've saved lives. Dozens, maybe hundreds. I saved people during the war, whole towns that the Garrison was set to destroy. Whole towns! One town even named a bar after me. The Win...Whinchester. I haven't even had time to go back there and drink at my own bar yet." He slurred out, sounding incredulous at the very thought of not drinking there.
Cas was just staring at Dean, attention solely focused on the Captain. It might have looked a little weird or creepy to anyone else, but Dean was used to it by now.
"Hmm…more bars sounds nice…"he purred contently. Neither of them had taken notice at how close they had gotten to each other. Dean had his back leaned up on the armrest of the couch while Cas was stretched out next to him, practically curled up with him like a cat.
"You know…hic…I bet that if we go back to that town, I'll get a nice welcome like our Chuckie did here. Free booze for all ya." He gestured absently with one hand. Cas chuckled and sat up with his mug raised.
"To Chuck then. I don't know what he did, or why I'm drinking poison, but…I'm a fan of his work none the less. May he inspire hundreds more," he went to drink out of his mug in the traditional sipping after making a toast, only to find that his mug was empty.
He turned to Dean, a ridiculously serious look on his face, "Dean…Dean, I think someone must have drunken from my cup. I don't remember finishing it."
Dean giggled, "Dude, no way. You've been holding that in your hand for the last half hour."
The other man's eyes widened in wonder, "Then this person is of true skill. Perhaps he deserves my drink as a reward for such stealthy feats."
That earned a hearty laugh from Dean, "Oh man, I still can't believe that you told those girls that you couldn't dance with them because you were concerned about invasive microbial insects."
Cas gave him a serious look, "I have to be concerned. I only have this one vessel and it would not have been very responsible of me to let it become host to whatever those women could have been fostering."
Dean snorted into his mug, choking on his last swallow, "You're pretty funny, Cas."
"And you're…pretty."
Pause.
"What?"
"I said you're pretty," he stated more firmly, "You look very nice on a daily basis, especially after you work in the engine room for a while and get grease all over."
"Dude, you don't call a dude pretty."
"Damn pretty then?"
Sam watched from his spot back at their table as his brother and Cas happily talked about whatever with smiles on both of their faces. He, Gabriel and Bobby had come up with a simple plan finally of how to get the goods out of town without too much attention drawn to them and Sam was about to go let Dean in on it when he spotted them on the couch together.
It seemed that whatever had been holding Dean back from moving forward with Cas had been pushed away or dealt with at this point. Maybe it was the tongue loosening of alcohol, maybe someone had finally said something...whatever it was, it looked like things were finally happening, but knowing Dean, come the sober morning it would probably be one of those two steps forward, one step back things.
Sam had been staring for a while and he jumped a little when Bobby tapped on his arm, "I think it's time to get out of this nuthouse. I believe we've got some planning to work out."
Gabriel whined and turned back from where he too had been watching Cas and Dean, "Now? Things are going so well! Our babies have finally hit puberty!"
Bobby sighed and glanced over at the couple on the couch and then over to Chuck, "Yeah, it seems like everyone is having a good night."
Sam looked up with sad and pleading eyes, "Maybe they should stick around to make sure that Chuck isn't swallowed up by his adoring masses."
Bobby knew that he wouldn't be able to argue with either of them at this point, so he reluctantly gave in a bit, "Fine. They can stay here, but you have to fill Dean in on the plan before we leave. I don't care what you interrupt. He's the Captain and he has to know."
Both of the pilots grinned and Sam got up to go comply with the compromise.
He headed over to the back of the couch where he quickly whispered the tentative plan into Dean's ear. His brother pondered on it a moment before nodding, giving consent and then waving as Sam walked off for the night.
Dean turned his attention back to the man pressed up against him. Cas was looking up at him with such intensity that it almost startled him. Luckily they were both plastered enough that they could fall right back into the moment before Sam had dropped in. Dean smiled at Cas and took another big gulp of his Mudder's milk, wondering when it had stopped tasting like horse piss.
All of a sudden Cas' gaze dropped to his lap and Dean frantically assumed that something had bothered Cas and was about to sit up when he started to speak low, the gravel in his voice sounding less rough than usual, "Dean, I wanted to thank you for…for everything. I wandered into your path, drenched, confused….unclothed, and you took me in and took care of me. I hope you know what that means to me."
The honesty in his voice gave Dean pause. He jumbled it around in his intoxicated mind for a moment before snorting and slapping Cas on the back affectionately and making both of their drinks slosh dangerously, "Dude, don't worry about it. You're like family now! I'd piss on you if you were on fire!"He said seriously.
Cas looked up from his lap smiling in open wonder and adoration, "Dean, that is the kindest thing that anyone has ever said to me," he whispered and then frowned as if thinking very hard about something, "Dean…I think this is an appropriate junction, so I'd really like to exchange saliva with you right now," he slurred.
Dean's eyes widened comically, "Cas…that is the sexiest thing anyone has ever said to me," he slurred back. They both stared at each other for a moment, slowly moving closer. Dean's eyes closed half-way, as did Cas'. They moved closer until they were a breath away and that was when Cas felt Dean slip away, pulled under by the heavy weight of alcohol on his eyelids. Dean was unconscious, fast asleep.
Castiel sighed, half in disappointment and half in fondness as he saw the lines around Dean's eyes fade and his whole body relaxed underneath him. Slowly Cas laid a lingering kiss on Dean's forehead before pulling back and resting his head on Dean's chest, ready to wait the night through in this spot until the Captain awoke again. It was a shame that twice now Cas had only been able to share a kiss with Dean while he was not aware. He didn't know why he wanted to so badly. Half the time he was still unsure if this was the real life, or just a fantasy world he had created in his mind to escape the Host. Why was he so drawn to this man? Why was he prepared to give everything for him? Why was he so ready to put all his trust and faith into Dean?
He had no answer to his own questions. He glanced around the noisy bar, keeping a lookout for any trouble that might bother his sleeping charge. Seeing nothing he rewared himself with another long stare at the Captain and watched as his chest rose and fell in a comforting pattern.
In a swell of emotion he reached out a hesitant hand to softly stroke the side of Dean's face, "I'll watch over you," he whispered. And he felt as Dean sighed heavily in his slumber in response.
Ha ha ha, The Winchester XD Greatest bar ever. I really hope you guys liked this chapter as I had a ball writing it. Lemme know what you think =)
