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The Supernatural characters belong to Kripke Enterprises and the CW. No money is being made from this story. It is for entertainment only.

European Ghosts

Chapter 2

Longleat

Dean was having a wonderful dream. He was reclining naked on a bed of moss in the middle of an old growth forest. Familiar laughter filled the air and when Dean turned his head he saw Sam chasing a pretty wood nymph through the trees trying to catch her and do what Dean imagined were very raunchy things to the pink cheeked nymph.

"Man, this is the life…the weather is perfect and I'm free ballin' it in the middle of …wait where the hell am I?"

Another very familiar voice suddenly caressed Dean's ear. "Hello Dean."

He turned and smiled at the blue eyed Angel he had many filthy fantasies over. "Hey Cas."

The nude Angel murmured, "I've come to tell you something."

"Oh yeah what?"

"Longleat House stands dreaming in the afternoon sun, foursquare, bold, and confident in its centuries. An English stately home, the longtime seat of the Marquessess of Bath it is noted in modern day for its maze, landscaped parkland and safari park. The house is a crown jewel set in 1,000 acres of parkland landscaped by Capability Brown, with 4,000 acres of farmland and 4,000 acres of woodland. It was the first stately home to open to the public. The tourists parade through its open doors, gawking at this glimpse of a life lived by the privileged from another time. What the hordes cannot see are the lost souls staring back at them from dark doorways and echoing passageways."

Dean's green peepers snapped open and rolled around taking in the MOL man cave bedroom.

Castiel was sitting on the edge of the bed fully clothed. He raked his eyes down Dean's blanketed body and back up again. "Did you hear me?"

Dean rolled on his belly to hide his morning wood and barked, "Get out of here, can't a guy have dreams without you poking around?"

"I…I didn't poke anything. I noticed that your blanket was tented around the area of your groin…"

"Never mind what you noticed virgin. Go bug Sam while I hit the shower."

"Very well."

….

Sam was happily shoveling granola into his mouth while Castiel observed wondering where he put it all.

Dean arrived fully dressed and plopped down on a leather swivel chair. He noticed his little brother's overly happy face. "What's up with you Dimples?"

Sam let out a sigh and closed his eyes, "I had a great dream. I was chasing this gorgeous strawberry blonde through the forest and she was naked." Sam snickered, "The best part was I caught her."

"Great, you get laid and I get a friggin' history lesson. Good for you." Dean scowled at the Angel.

Castiel cocked his head and gave the Winchesters his enigmatic gaze. "Are you both ready for our next European ghost hunt?"

Sam rolled his chair from the table immediately and grabbed his empty bowl. "I'm nice and relaxed and ready for some research. Where are we headed?"

…

While Sam was scrolling through pictures of the impressive building Castiel gave him the same information Dean was given in the Angel induced dream.

Dean for his part was drinking a whiskey smoothie of his own creation and pretending not to listen while Sam added more information about their next ghost hunt.

Sam tapped the screen with a long finger to a painting of a stuffy looking bearded man in fancy dress.

"The house was built by Sir John Thynne and was designed mainly by Robert Smithson, after the original priory was destroyed by fire in 1567. It took 12 years to complete and is widely regarded as one of the finest examples of Elizabethan architecture in Britain. Longleat is occupied by Alexander Thynn, 7th Marquess of Bath, a direct descendant of the builder; however, the peer passed the management of the business to his son Viscount Weymouth early in 2010."

Dean rolled over next to Sam and examined the image, "Nice outfit."

Sam countered with a bitch face, "It was for the time."

Sam dove right back in with another wave of information.

"Sir John bought the property from the crown, one of the many pieces of church property seized from the Catholic Church during the Dissolution of the Monasteries between 1536 and 1541. Henry VIII disbanded Catholic monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland, seized the properties, gained their asses and income under the banner of outlawing the Catholic church and establishing the English Anglican church as the religion of the county. Literally millions of men lost not only their homes but also their incomes and the protection of the only life they had ever known."

Dean handed the tumbler of concoction to Castiel, "Here, this will put some hair on your chest."

Castiel cocked his head and frowned. It drove Dean Winchester crazy in a good way when the Angel did that. "I wanna kiss that little frown right off his…"

Sam elbowed his lost looking brother, "Cas wants to say something."

The Angel handed back the smoothie, "I don't want hair on my chest Dean."

….

In the blink of an eye Sam, Dean and Castiel were standing at the edge of a beautiful lake and across it stood Longleat itself.

Sam let out a whistle, impressed by the stunning structure. "Wow, I thought Raynham Hall was incredible. I can't wait to get in there."

Without a hitch Castiel launched into more information on their ghost hunt. He swept his arm out in a grand gesture befitting the surroundings.

"Is it surprising that it was rumored that the Monks driven from their monastery should lay a curse on the land for all that followed them? The curse laid on Longleat concerned the swans that floated on the Longleat lake. If the swans left Longleat and never returned the family living there would die out and never return."

….

Before you could say boy howdy the trio stood in a large hall surrounded by tourists. Dean clutched their gear bag to his chest feeling like a fish out of water. He hissed in Castiel's ear, "A heads up before you pop us here and there would be nice Cas."

The Angel pressed his lips to the Hunters ear and murmured, "Did you know that gay marriage became legal here on March 28th, 2014?"

A confused Dean answered, "Huh?"

A slight smile passed over the Angels lips, "Nothing Dean, be quiet the tour guide is speaking. You're being rude."

Sam shushed them and the tour guide lost her scowl and continued the ghost tour for the eager visitors.

"The Thynne family was the lucky souls that managed to get a free curse along with their new home. How effective was the curse? It was still functioning in 1916 when the fifth Marchioness saw five swans circling outside her window. One of the swans left and never came back. A few days later the lady was informed that her oldest son, one of her five children, had been killed fighting in France in the First World War. Almost five hundred years is a pretty healthy reach for a curse."

As the group followed she pointed to portraits hung on the walls explaining the stories behind each character in this tragic real life tale.

"There are also a number of lost and pitiful souls who inhabit Longleat's rooms and corridors. One particularly sad ghost roams the bedroom halls at night, knocking just once, on each bedroom door. No one knows who it is or why it knocks but the ghost sticks to its futile rounds night after night."

"The figure of Sir John Thynne, the original builder, is seen in the Red Library occasionally. The attitude of the family is that the man earned the right to enjoy the fruits of his labor but eternity seems to be more of a sentence than a gift."

"Finally we have poor Louisa Carteret, the unfortunate wife of Thomas Thynne, 2nd Viscount Weymouth. How she ever married him was a source of speculation throughout the land. She was young, beautiful and full of life. He was crabbed, ugly and dour. The marriage was not a happy one and the inevitable happened; the lady took a lover."

"It was said that the Viscount caught the young man in the house one night and a duel was fought during which the young man died. The Lord had the body hidden away and from the time of her death to modern day Lady Louisa walks the hall in which the duel was fought. She is known as The Green Lady because of her portrait hanging in the house in which she is wearing a green dress. Ghosts hardly ever present themselves in color. The apparition of Louisa is the usual filmy grey vision".

"Where she walks the corridor is icy cold and there is such a sense of misery and fear that the house inhabitants make huge detours to avoid passing along that hallway."

"The legend took on more life when the present Lord's father had the basement flagstones taken up in preparation for the installation of central heating at Longleat. Under the stones there was the skeleton of a man dressed in finery dating from the Queen Anne period. Even with her supposed lover finally given a Christian burial, Louisa continues to haunt. The grief, fear and misery still hover sickeningly in that corridor." The tour guide stepped her recitation and took a deep breath, a breath that sounded more like a sigh.

Cameras had been snapping the entire time. Every tourist was hoping to capture something supernatural. Castiel for his part stared down a long hallway ending with at a heavy arched door. He nodded to Sam. Sam snapped a photo as Dean secreted his recorder hoping to pick up an EVP.

As the guide and the group of tourists moved off down the hall, heading for the next scheduled attraction, The Winchesters and Castiel faded back into the gloom of the oppressive hallway. No one looked for them and the guide did not appear to be concerned with a head count.

When the last whisper of voices and shuffle of feet dissipated the Winchesters begin an unfettered investigation.

Sam and Dean paced the haunted hallway, one on either side of the wide passageway. Their EMF meters clucked quietly at first, like sleeping chickens. As they neared the arch at the end of the passage however, the meters picked up, chattering and flashing.

A sudden temperature drop sent icy fingers up their spines and something moved away. They turned and let the meters guide them back towards Castiel.

"Sam, Dean," the Angel called. "She is here."

Sam sprinted ahead, his meter going out of its mind as he passed the invisible lady.

"Stay with her, Dean." He called out.

"Shit, Sam." Dean replied. "I think I'm losing sensation in my fingers."

"Hold on Dean. I need time to set up the spell."

Falling to his knees beside the duffle bag at Castiel's feet, Sam pulled out his faithful brass spell casting bowl. He had inherited it directly from Bobby and it was one of his most precious possessions.

He quickly dumped a quantity of dried herbs and a few blessed charms into the bowl, slit his palm for the necessary blood and tossed in a lit match.

The smoke rose immediately and a grim, grey image of the Lady appeared. The younger Winchester chanted an ancient prayer and word by word the lady dimed. Finally he came to the end of the chanted prayer. When he said "Amen" the lady looked him directly in the eyes as if thanking him and completely disappeared. The passageway warmed. The fug of misery was gone.

Sam felt relief wash over him immediately. He wrapped his hand with a handkerchief from his pocket then scooped up the items from the ritual and put them back in the duffle.

Satisfied that he sent another soul to rest Sam got up and turned to see if his brother was ok. Castiel and Dean were gone.

…..

The Angel and Dean were right around the corner. Castiel was holding Dean's hands in his and was peppering his fingers with kisses.

Dean had his eyes closed and head tilted back, "Oh yeah, much better Cas. The tingle is leaving my hands now."

The blue eyed Angel let of the Hunters fingers then leaned in closer, "Is there anything else tingling on your body you think I should kiss?"

Dean opened his eyes and looked his personal Angel in the eye, Castiel his friend and savior, his everything. "My lips…they feel sort of tingly."

Warm breath caressed his ear as Castiel answered in voice like gravel soaked in honey, "Close your eyes."

Dean did as he was told and waited. Soft, slightly dry lips brushed against his in an awkward kiss. Awkward or not the kiss sent a jolt straight to his dick. Dean at first lightly held the Angel then his grip grew tighter and the tenderness turned to something else altogether.

Sam suddenly called out, "Thanks a lot jerks for leaving me out here with a ghost. Where are you?"

Dean opened his eyes to find Castiel standing three feet away with hands neatly folded in front of him.

In an instant the three were back inside the MOL bunker. Castiel handed each of them a cold beer as a reward. "That went very well. Did you both have fun?"

Sam nodded, "Sure until you both left me alone. Where were you?"

Dean chewed his bottom lip for a moment before answering, "I have to drain the dragon."

"You couldn't hold it?"

"Nope."

"You needed Cas to hold your dick then?"

Saving Dean from more questions Castiel answered for him, "I popped Dean over to the nearest public restroom. I couldn't have him soiling one of the antique rugs."

Sam narrowed his eyes as he examined what looked like guilt on his brother's face, "Alright, next time give me a heads up before you guys take off."

Castiel pulled out a little snow globe containing a miniature of Longleat from his trench pocket and handed it to Sam, "A souvenir for a job well done."

"Cool thanks Cas!" Sam left to put it on the shelf in his room next to the one of Raynham Hall.

Now alone with Cas Dean lowered his eyes. "What was that kiss all about?"

Castiel reached out and touched the Humans cheek, "A souvenir of our adventure."

"Oh yeah, what do I get next time?"

"You will have wait and see."

The Angel vanished leaving a very confused Dean Winchester to have a sleepless night.

TBC