A/N: Thank you hellosweetpea and drarryismypassion for your reviews! It warms me heart to see that people think my stuff is worthwhile.
Here is your next chapter!
Chapter Three
"Thomas," she said. "This is right. This is what should be."
Thomas pulled on his golden-brown locks. "I've told you, time and time again, no."
The woman grasped his silk shirt. "Why do you refuse me? Do you find this form unsightly? Does my voice pierce your ears?"
Thomas gave her a once-over. She was beautiful, truly, with sharp cheekbones and full lips, her wide eyes seemingly innocent. Her voice was melodic, drawing the listener in like a siren. But Thomas knew better.
"Abbadon, I can't," he clutched her hand around his shirt. "I am betrothed. And you are…" he trailed off. Abbadon bared her teeth, and for one moment, her eyes flashed black.
Dean sat straight up in bed, sweating through his sheets. His chest was heaving, and he could tell his pulse was faster than it should have been. That dream had been vivid. Really vivid. And weird.
He fell back onto his bed, kicking the sheets off of him and relishing the bit of cool air that came through the thick curtains. He felt… strange. Like he had the regret of a hangover without the pain. And he was a little angry. Extra weird.
He rubbed his eyes and looked around the room. He had realized a few days ago that he still slept on one side of the bed, even when he was alone. That space was empty and sad and damn, Dean needed to see Castiel.
Miles away, Castiel was waking up with the regret and the pain of a hangover. Though Crowley's house was the weird more-space-than-a-tree tree, the sunlight was real, and it streamed inside the window in piercing rays.
Castiel groaned and rolled over. He was going to have to be careful with the Zetaneh from now on.
"Castiel!" Ava sang from the other side of the door. "We have pancakes for you!"
"In a minute," Castiel croaked. There was no more noise, and he was glad that the door was locked. With his magic. He had healed Dean's split lip with his magic before… could he heal himself?
Castiel put one hand on his forehead and one on his stomach, and breathed deeply, thinking about rehabilitation and not being hungover anymore. It must have worked a little, because his headache and nausea subsided, mostly.
With little difficulty, Castiel rolled out of bed, brushed off his pants, and unlocked the door. He followed the scent of fruit and sugar until he was in a room quite like Crowley's 'living room'. It had a long table, and Ava and Bela were happily munching pancakes like they hadn't been shitfaced and dancing their asses off mere hours ago.
Castiel plopped into a chair and begun shoveling the fluffy food into his mouth like there was no tomorrow. Healing himself must have taken a lot of energy, because he scarfed down eight or nine pancakes before Crowley took the plate away.
"Easy, big fella," he said, and Castiel almost growled.
"Sorry we let you get so drunk last night," Ava looked apologetic, but Bela was giving him a shit-eating grin.
"Angel parties can be a bit overwhelming, yes?" she chuckled.
"And Zetaneh's not even the strongest stuff I have," Crowley smiled and Castiel groaned. "Anyway, it's time for us to get you back to Bobby's. Got to go tell the humans about the gracious commanders, hm?" Castiel groaned again, but stood up.
After hugging both Ava and Bela, Castiel trudged outside behind Crowley, stretching his wings in the cool morning air.
"Shall we fly?" Crowley asked.
Castiel rubbed his forehead. "Slowly, please."
They took off, Crowley annoyingly crowding Castiel's space. Instead of taking out his frustrations on him, Castiel focused on the air rushing through his feathers. He would be seeing Dean soon, as they were going to the castle today. He could feel a throb of longing in his chest. Every foot he flew, he could feel Dean come closer and closer.
As soon as they descended enough to see the house, Castiel understood why he felt Dean so strongly. There he was, grinning on the ground outside Bobby's house. "Cas!" he called up to him.
A smile broke out on Castiel's face so huge it hurt. Without even thinking, he folded his wings and dived at Dean, who let out an, "Oh shit!" before Castiel barreled into him. They went sprawling on the grass, Castiel's raven wings wrapping around the two to cushion the fall.
Dean wrapped a strong hand around Castiel's waist and threaded the other through his hair. "I missed you," he murmured before Castiel crushed their lips together. He poured all of his emotions into the kiss, gripping the mark on Dean's shoulder tightly to strengthen the connection. "You missed me too, huh?" he chuckled against Castiel's lips.
"Don't ask stupid questions," he breathed before claiming Dean's lips again.
"Jeez, guys, we're still here," Sam's voice floated through Castiel's hazy thoughts, and he pulled away, cheeks tinted in embarrassment.
Grumbling, Dean kissed him once more on the nose and rolled out of his unfolding wings. "Sorry," Dean scratched the back of his head sheepishly.
"C'mon, Cassie, get your new clothes on before we head back to the castle," Gabe called, already sitting atop Sam's horse.
"Alright," Castiel said, still smiling. "Give me a moment."
Through the window, Castiel could see Dean pull Bobby into a rough hug. His eyes swept around the room as he buttoned the back of his new wing-friendly shirt. Should he take anything with him? The castle had books. He wanted to talk to Sam about the hidden libraries in the secret passageways, and he knew he needed to find Chuck to ask about the various prophecies that recently plagued their lives.
Gabe had graciously made him two more shirts, so he decided to bring those. It was only a few minutes before he was shaking Bobby's hand and being thanked for all of his help.
Dean quietly packed Castiel's shirts, and the angel pulled Bobby aside. "I have a request for you, Bobby."
The older man stuck his hands in his pockets. "Shoot."
Castiel took a deep breath. "Are there any books or papers or anything that talk about angel lineage? Family histories and the like?"
Bobby furrowed his eyebrows. "I'm not sure. Haven't gotten through all the un-translated stuff yet. But I'll keep my eyes open."
Castiel smiled. "Thank you. Hopefully the cypher I made will help you." The cypher was a crude decoder that could translate basic Enochian. Maybe that would be enough.
"Alright, idjits, best be on your way." Bobby shooed them all off the front porch.
Dean was already on his horse, and he smiled down at Castiel. "Wanna ride the human way?" he smiled, holding out a hand.
Castiel made a face, but took his hand anyway. With a subtle flap of his wings and a pull from Dean, the angel sat comfortably behind him. Dean clicked his tongue, and his jet black horse took off at a steady trot, catching up to Sam and Gabe quickly.
"So, Sammy, what's on the schedule for today?" Dean asked, relaxing as Castiel's arms circled his waist. Castiel pressed his forehead between Dean's shoulder blades. Just his presence was comforting. It felt like Castiel had been starving, and Dean was all that sated him.
He had tuned out the talk of scheduling until he heard his name. "…Castiel talk to the council." Sam turned to him. "You talked to the commanders, right?"
The angel shifted awkwardly in the saddle. "Yes." Should he go ahead and tell them what Michael and Lucifer had said? Or was that a strictly council-related matter?
"Cassie?" Gabe snapped him out of his thoughts. "Did everything go okay?"
Sam was staring at him now, and Dean craned his neck to give him a worried glance. "They're, uh, not like I thought they would be," he settled for.
After a few moments of tense silence, Sam and Dean shared a patented Winchester look, and Sam spurred his horse faster. "Where are we going?" Castiel heard Gabe ask Sam as their horse trotted farther and farther away.
Dean turned their horse off the path completely and made for a nearby tree. "Dean?"
"Something's bothering you," the king said, dismounting and tying the horse by the tree. Castiel hopped down, and Dean pulled him to sit against the bark. "Tell me what's wrong."
Castiel squirmed, manhandling Dean under his wing so his feathers could fan out flat against the tree. "They're not good things," Castiel murmured. "I don't even know if I should be telling you at all." Dean raised an eyebrow, and Castiel rolled his eyes. "Of course I'm going to tell you, I tell you everything." Dean's responding grin made Castiel's stony face break.
"It's about that prophecy Chuck gave me a few weeks ago," he sighed. He and Dean hadn't really talked about it. After Castiel's initial freak out, he had avoided the subject. But now that he knew about the curse…
"What is it, Cas? You're staring a hole in the ground."
Blue eyes met green. "Your land is cursed, Dean," he deadpanned.
For a second, Dean just blinked at him. "Run that by me again?"
"Most of the angels think it's just a story, but it says that your land is cursed and-" he swallowed thickly, "it's going to burn, along with everything and everyone in it."
"That's… It's just a story though, right?" Dean's voice was tight.
"I'd like to think it is, but then that line of the prophecy: The blackened blanket 'cross the soil. It sounds a lot like burning land." Dean sat back, denial and despair warring in his eyes.
"Who, uh, who told you?" Dean cleared his throat.
Castiel's head thudded against the tree bark, wing pulling tighter around Dean. "Lucifer did. He's… Dean, he's scary, and not in a nightmare story kind of way. And he really believes the myth. He went so far as to say that Michael wouldn't tell me about the curse so he could take your resources and leave while the kingdom goes up in flames."
There was another long pause from Dean. Then, "Do you believe him?"
Castiel rubbed his eyes. "I don't know. Do you have any books or family histories or journals that would talk about things like that?"
Dean's brow furrowed. "Probably. What was that curse's expiration date?"
"It was cast almost one hundred years ago, so it's supposedly soon."
Dean thought for a moment. "I'm sure Sam can dig up something. We have family personal records out the ass back home." Dean seemed sure now. "Yeah, we can fix this. Curse or not."
Castiel smiled. That was what he loved about Dean- there was nothing too broken to fix. And if it was, he'd try anyway.
He pulled Dean down for a kiss, and the Winchester melted into him. Castiel hadn't realized how tense Dean was until he relaxed, cupping Castiel's jaw and losing himself in their connection.
As if it were a reflex, one raven wing pulled Dean closer, wrapping him and Castiel in a little cocoon of soft feathers. Dean's hand traveled down Castiel's side and brushed the soft downey feathers near his skin.
The one touch sent a zing of heat through the angel. Castiel gave a full-body shudder. He lay his hand over Dean's Mark and felt his arousal double back. Dean pulled away, biting back a moan.
"We're kind of near the road," he swallowed. "However much I really want to…" he trailed off, splaying a hand on Castiel's hip. "We should be in my bedroom for it."
Castiel cleared his throat. "Agreed." If only Dean would let them fly there. It would be so much faster. They got up and brushed off, mounting Dean's horse with barely concealed grins.
"By the way," Dean turned his head towards Castiel, "did you ever figure out that handprint thing? It seems to be, uh…" Castiel chuckled. He didn't know how to put the feeling into words either. But there was a name for that connection, and Castiel's smile faded.
"Don't be mad," he said cautiously, "I didn't know what I was doing when it happened."
Dean pulled back on the horse's reigns, stopping him. "Do I need to pull over again?"
"No, no," Castiel smoothed his hands over Dean's waist. "Keep going." Dean clicked his tongue and they moved again.
"It's called a Mark," he begun. "It happened when I gripped you tight while…"
"While you fucked me into the mattress?" Dean finished eloquently, and Castiel grinned like an idiot.
"Yeah, when that happened. It's full name is a Mating Mark."
Dean was quiet for another minute. "So mating like sex, or the other kind?"
"Crowley described it as angel marriage," Castiel said quietly. "I'm really sorry, Dean, I didn't know what I was doing and I didn't mean-"
"Hey, Cas, calm down," Dean commanded. Castiel took a few deep breaths, steeling himself for a reaction. "Relax, sweetheart, I'm not mad."
"You're not?"
"No." Castiel felt like a weight was lifted from his shoulders, and he sagged against Dean's back. "I honestly didn't think I was going to get married before I met you, and you're the only person I love now," Dean continued. "So I guess that's one less decision I have to make."
"Oh thank god," Castiel buried his face in Dean's hair, placing a kiss on his neck.
"Y'know, back when you were human, I was actually going to propose to you."
Castiel's eyes flew open. "What?" he squeaked.
Dean chuckled and laid a hand over one of Castiel's. "Yeah. I told Jo when she came to the kingdom. She sucks at keeping secrets, and I was just hoping she wouldn't let it slip."
Castiel laughed out loud. That weird conversation with her all made sense now.
Jo grinned widely. "He said some really mushy, un-manly things, for one. But the bottom line is that he's head-over-heels for you. He's even going-" She snapped her mouth shut, eyes going wide.
"What?" Castiel felt a little bit of panic seize in his chest. "He's going to what?"
Jo shook her head. "Not my place to say. But don't freak out," she squeezed his hand, probably seeing the crazed look in his eye. "You'll be fine."
"I think she did almost tell me, but I was clueless." Castiel tightened his hold on Dean. "Do you remember how badly I panicked when she arrived?"
It was Dean's turn to laugh. "You were strung tighter than a bow. Seriously, you looked like you were going to snap at any moment."
"Can you blame me?" Castiel nudged Dean gently. "I thought I'd lost you. I had competition."
"You never had competition, Cas," Dean craned his neck to kiss him once, gently. "And you never will."
Castiel didn't even try to keep the stupid grin off his face. They spent the remainder of the ride in companionable silence. Castiel nuzzled into Dean's thick winter coat, and Dean traced patterns on Castiel's hand. For one tiny moment, Castiel wasn't worried.
As they approached the castle, both men noticed there was something different right away. There were extra guards, and… were those tents put up to the side of the wall?
"What the hell?" Dean asked, urging his horse into a gallop.
"Your Majesty!" one of the guards called, opening the gate. "Good news! We have reinforcements!"
"Reinforcements?" Dean's brow furrowed as he and Castiel dismounted. He handed the reigns to a stable boy and strode towards the castle doors, Castiel following close behind.
The door swung open, and there, talking to several more guards, was a man. He was near Castiel's height with a burly build and a trimmed blonde beard around his jaw. When he turned to the open door, he smiled easily. His eyes were blue and his face was kind, but Castiel was immediately wary.
He glanced at Dean, whose mouth was hanging open. Dean felt kind of weird through the Mark, like stale affection and confusion. Then he said a word that sent Castiel's heart into his stomach.
"Benny?"