Chapter Nine

Dean groaned as he untangled himself from his blankets the next morning. He was prepared to face a stone faced Adrian, but was greeted with an empty bed. He looked at the clock. Huh…he must have really been pissed to get up early.

Dean closed his eyes and tried to focus on the task at hand. He had to ace the make up exam. That exam had to be his only focus. Nothing could get in his way…

Who the hell was screaming?

Dean scrambled to his feet and opened up the door to his room. The wails sounded like they were coming from the bathroom at the end of the hall. Just as he took a step out of the room Adrian came running down the corridor like his hair was on fire.

"RUN, DEAN! Strigoi!" Adrian exclaimed at the top of his lungs.

"What? Is Belikov staging an attack on a guardian that wasn't at the party last night?" Dean asked. Technically the field experience still had two weeks left. "Way to rub it in my face," he said.

"NO, YOU FUCKING IDIOT! THERE'S STRIOGI ON CAMPUS!" Adrian yelled. He pulled on Dean's arm, forcing him to run alongside of him.

"How could there be Strigoi here? The whole place is warded to protect us!" Dean exclaimed as he and Adrian ran around the corner.

"I don't know! I just know what I saw and we're in fucking trouble!" Adrian yelped as the boys ran smack into aforementioned Guardian Belikov.

"Into the dining hall now," Belikov ordered the two boys, shoving them outside as he ran in the direction they had just come from.

Dean paused for a second and Adrian grabbed his arm again. "Move it, Dean!" Adrian said.

A few minutes later the boys found themselves inside the very crowded dining hall with one hundred plus of their terrified fellow classmates.

"SAMMY!" Dean called out. He needed to find his brother.

Within seconds he was met with a call of, "DEAN!" Adrian turned and spotted Sam in the corner of the room with Jill Mastrano.

"Thank god you're okay," Dean said as he gave him brother a tight embrace.

"Is it true…are there really Strigoi on campus?" Sam asked. At the mere mention of Strigoi Jill started to whimper. Sam wrapped his arm around her as Adrian relayed the events of the morning in great detail.

Dean craned his neck, scanning the room looking for Cas. He was mad at him, but…technically he was still in charge of him. Yeah, that's why his heart was practically in his stomach over the fact he didn't see him.

He knew it was stupid…beyond stupid, but he had to find him. With the chaos going on in the dining hall it was easy for Dean to sneak out. The campus was eerily quiet as he made his way back towards the dorm. He slipped inside the building and crept up the stairs to the floor Cas lived on. There was a chance he was still in his room. There was also a chance he was already in the dining hall and Dean was an idiot. There was also a chance…Dean didn't want to think about that.

Once he was on the fourth floor Dean carefully scanned the hallway. There didn't appear to be any Strigoi lurking. He jogged to Cas' room and pushed on the door. Locked. He didn't want to make any noise by knocking but he had to find out if he was inside.

"Cas? Cas? It's Dean. Are you in there?" Dean hissed, checking over his shoulder. No reply. "Cas! Come on…if you're in there you need to get out." Still no reply.

Just as Dean was about to leave the door creaked open a sliver. "How do I know it's you?" Cas whispered. All Dean could see was his left blue eye through the slot.

"It's me, you asshole…we have to get out of here," Dean snapped. "I didn't come up here to save your sorry behind only for you to play twenty questions."

"Yeah, it's you," Cas replied. He slipped out of the room and hugged him tightly and Dean found himself holding on just as securely. "I saw one."

"Well, let's not see one again," Dean said. He let go and grabbed his hand as he guided him back towards the staircase. "Just wait here…I'm going to check…"

Dean's sentence was caught off by Cas' scream. Coming right towards them was an unholy creature of the night. There was no way they could out run him. They'd have to stay and fight.

"Cas…" Dean said slowly.

"Huh?" Cas whimpered.

"I know we never got around to this during our lessons…but DUCK!" Dean exclaimed as the Strigoi came for them and Dean took him down at the knees as he lunged.

The Strigoi tripped, clearly not expecting Dean to react. Dean tried to pin him down to the ground, but the creature was much stronger and easily pushed him away like he was a doll. Dean was in primal mode right now. Cas. Cas. He had to protect Cas. They come first. Cas comes first.

Dean scrambled to his feet and lunged at the Strigoi causing him to stumble forward. The momentary loss in footing gave Dean a chance to reach for the stake he was carrying in his back pocket. He had never used one on anything but a dummy before, but…well, there was no time like the present.

"Dean! Look out!" Cas cried as the Strigoi, who had now regained his balance, swiped his long nails at Dean's skin causing blood to start falling from his neck.

Dean knew if the Strigoi started to drink he was a goner. He needed to distract him. How the hell was he going to do that?

Luckily he didn't have to figure it out as a fireball whizzed by his head and ignited the undead terror on fire.

"Stake him, you idiot!" Cas exclaimed.

Without another moment's hesitation Dean plunged the stake deep into the heart of the Strigoi. Within seconds the creature vanished into a fine dust.

It was over. He had done it. They had done it.