Wow guys I'm really sorry for not updating these days! I'm caught up with SAT classes, but today's a free day, so I finally have time to update my story! Thank you all for being so nice in your reviews and being so patient c: I promise to make it up to you with more progress in the story, woohoo! And I'll also be working on my high school AU on the side, though I'll probably publish it once the entire story's done. Yes it will be super exciting and fun. Also, I decided to make this story a Romance/Adventure. Does the theme of adventures fit this story? I think it does... Ah well.
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"Dean, should we really trust this guy?" Sam asked as they made their way down from the tower. The two brothers had opted to descend via the way they came up: by sticking their daggers into the tower's cracks and slowly clambering down. Castiel was still inside the room packing up his things, but assured them that he would soon follow.
"Do we really have any other options?" Dean replied as he dug his knife into another break in the stone. "We can always splash him with holy water and run the usual drill while he's asleep. Or just leave him in the middle of a monster-filled forest."
Sam rolled his eyes and they continued their steady climb down the tower without another comment. Once they hit the grass, the brothers looked up towards the open window where Castiel stood, holding a rope in his hand.
"Anytime now, princess!" Dean called up impatiently.
Castiel looked hesitant to leave, eyes flashing back to take one last look at his home. He sucked in his breath and then threw the rope down, waiting until it was hovering just above the ground. He gave it an experimental tug, and then proceeded to slide down, stopping directly above the ground. Still clutching onto the rope, Castiel slowly lowered his feet, staring intently at the earth as if he was trying to count every single blade of grass below him. When he finally alighted on the ground, he murmured a barely audible "Fascinating."
Once the rope was cut and stored inside a bag, the trio made their way to the horses, still safely tied to the nearby trees. At least, the two brothers headed to the horses. Their new companion stopped every step or so to ogle at the plants.
Castiel was squatting by a dandelion that poked out from underneath a bush by the time the brothers were ready to go. He was gently prodding at the little flower, watching as the white fluffs take off into the air when Dean coughed loudly.
"You know, if you stop to stare at every single plant we pass, this is going to be a very long journey," He drawled.
"My apologies," Castiel said as he rose to approach the two. "I have never seen such a wide variety of plants, and I have only studied those inside my home." His eyes darted back to the tower for a split second.
"So you've really never left your tower?" Sam frowned. He thought Castiel's mom would at least leash him up and take the guy on walks or something, but it actually seemed like he never got to step out of that wretched building.
Castiel only shook his head.
"That's… Gotta be lonely." Yeah, Sam may have been known as the studious brother, but it's not like he was good at sharing feelings. So the issue with the tower, no matter how weird it was, was immediately buried and neither brother expected it to resurface for quite some time.
"So are we ready to go?" Dean said as he swiftly mounted Impala.
"Yeah, we're pretty much packed up." Sam nodded, then jumped up onto his own mare.
Castiel, on the other hand, was directing his attention to Impala, gently patting the black steed's nose as he marveled at the horse.
"Uh, Cas," Dean leaned sideways to look at the other man. "We ready?"
Castiel looked up at Dean, and then glanced at each horse in a confused manner. "Should I walk?" He asked. Dean rolled his eyes.
"Sa- John, share the saddle with Cas." He ordered, but Sam only gave Dean a disbelieving look.
"What?" He didn't seem to sit well with that idea. "Dude, you're the one who's always crowing about how amazing Impala is and how she can take the weight of three men. You share the saddle with Cas."
Dean gave his brother a glowering look, but Sam knew that he would never deny how awesome his baby was.
"Fine," Dean grunted, resisting the urge to flip Sam off. "Cas, get up here."
Castiel only looked more confused as he tried and failed to lift himself up onto Impala. Dean bit back a frustrated growl.
"Of course I get stuck with the guy that can't ride a horse." He muttered to himself as he hopped off Impala. "Here, lemme help…"
Dean tried to help Castiel onto the horse, valiantly trying to ignore how awkward their actions must have looked and the grin that must be on Sam's face and Christ, it's like Dean can actually feel his brother's big goofy smile. It took a while, but by the time the sun was gone, they were finally both on Impala and actually ready to go.
The walk in the forest was silent asides from the clip clop of the horses' hooves, and Castiel held his arms lightly around Dean's waist. Dean was just glad that it was dark, since he didn't even want to know the color of his face right now.
"Do you really have to cling on to me?" He whispered after a very tense few minutes of silence.
"I have never ridden a horse before." Castiel stated matter-of-factly. Dean sighed. Castiel took the break in the silence to start musing. "I wonder how my mother is…"
"Somewhere far, far away, I hope for your sake," Dean muttered back. Castiel fidgeted, his mind riddled with guilt over his lie, and they slipped back into silence.
Some time during the group's trudge through the forest, Dean felt a weight on his back. He struggled to twist his head back, only to get a face full of dark hair.
"Dude, get off me," Dean hissed, but Castiel didn't move. "John!" Sam lifted his head wearily to look at his brother. "Is this guy asleep on me?"
Sam squinted his eyes, long adjusted to the dark. "I think so…" Sam said unhelpfully, and then jerked his horse to a stop when they heard the crackling of twigs nearby. "Robert…" Sam's voice was suddenly cautious.
Despite the possibility of them being in danger, Dean shot Sam an irritated glance. His brother had the irritating habit of making up the lamest aliases for Dean. Robert was just one name on a long list.
"Well, I guess that it's a signal that we should stop and make camp for the night." Dean announced, easing Impala into a halt.
He shrugged his shoulders in an effort to get Castiel to wake up. The man lurched backwards, nearly toppling off Impala. Castiel looked at his surroundings in a disorientated fashion.
"Wake up, Cas. We're gonna shelter here for tonight." Dean said, and Castiel blindly nodded in agreement.
The brothers quickly dismounted from their horses, while Dean had to stop and help Castiel off Impala. As Castiel tied the horses to a nearby tree, the brothers took pouches from their sacks and started scattering a white substance in a large circle that encompassed them and the horses.
"What are you doing?" Castiel asked as he watched the two brothers.
"We're scattering salt." Dean said flatly, not looking up from his work until he and Sam were both finished.
Castiel tilted his head to one side, confused. "Why?" He prodded on.
"Seriously?" Dean looked incredulous. "You live in the middle of a friggin' paradise for monsters, and you don't know?"
Castiel only frowned. "Monsters?"
Dean groaned, obviously not in the mood to explain, then looked at Sam for help.
Sam only shrugged. "Y'know, bears and big animals like that. Salt's great for driving off bears." He lied easily. Castiel lived in a damn tower for all his life, it's not like he was an expert in wildlife. At least, Sam hoped.
Castiel's frown only deepened at this flimsy lie, but he accepted it with a nod and settled down on a nearby log.
Dean and Sam exchanged looks, with Dean shooting Sam a 'bears, really?' glance and Sam responding with a 'hey, he believed it!' look.
Castiel was awakened some time in the middle of the night by the rustling of leaves. He couldn't exactly pinpoint the location, but the noise was dangerously close to him. He blindly reached out for the nearest body next to him, which happened to be Dean.
"Ugh… Whu?" Dean clearly sounded annoyed when he was roused from his slumber, batting Castiel's hand away. "Whaddya want, Cas?" He groaned.
"I don't think the salt worked." Castiel said in a very worried tone. That woke Dean up. The man immediately sat up, one hand flying out to touch a dagger that was kept nearby.
The rustling only grew louder, and Castiel was quickly scooting closer to Dean, who was in the process of waking his brother.
What none of them expected to pop out of the dark was a rabbit, bushy, grey and peering at them with beady black eyes.
Nobody moved for a minute, and then Dean let out a snort. "Well, that was a waste of-"
He was immediately cut off when the rabbit let out a terrifying half-snarl half-hiss and flared previously hidden wings, and wait, did that thing have antlers sticking out of its head?
Castiel instinctively jerked back in shock. It's not like he got to see a mutant were-rabbit every day.
"It's a wolpertinger!" Sam yelled, jolting up with a dagger in his hand. As the rabbit, no wait, wolpertinger, leapt for the three men, Dean's dagger was slashing in the air, connecting with the creature's throat. The wolpertinger emitted a gurgled sound, falling to the ground with a sickening thump.
Castiel watched in stunned silence as Dean got up and kicked the dead creature out of the salt circle in a very calm manner, as if he did this every day. Sam watched Castiel, feeling slightly concerned about his current state of mind. Of course they were going to run into monsters inside the forest, but Sam didn't expect it to be so soon. And he certainly didn't expect their first encounter to be a wolpertinger. Like, seriously? Couldn't it be something less insane? Maybe a nice vampire. Those seemed much more believable when compared to a damn flying rabbit with antlers.
"Look, Cas, I know this seems a little-" He started.
"What was that?" Castiel asked, eyes fixed on the dark and limp form that lay outside the circle.
"A wolpertinger." Dean stated as he headed back towards the two other men, settling back into his previous sleeping spot before Castiel had rudely awakened him. "They originate from Germanic folklore, and they're pretty easy to kill."
Castiel only looked bewildered. "I don't understand." He mumbled. Folklore? Doesn't that mean these things weren't real? Castiel certainly didn't remember reading about winged rabbits that were out for blood.
"Well, the whole creatures of the night thing? Vampires and werewolves and all those big bad monsters that come out once it's dark?" Dean said. "Yeah, it's real. It's all real."
"My mother always told me to not be afraid of the dark." Castiel murmured.
"Don't be afraid of the dark?" Dean scoffed. "Are you kidding me? You should always be afraid of the dark."
Sam frowned at his brother. Now was not the best of times to tell someone that everything nasty that he had ever heard of actually exists, but Dean was never the tactful man.
"But we're safe now," Sam interjected. "And that's what matters." He glared at his brother, but Dean replied with a 'what did I do?' look.
Castiel only nodded, and the group went back to sleep. Hopefully, no bloodthirsty bunnies would rouse them from their dreams for a few more hours.
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Yes, I had to include that rabbit scene from Tangled. Ahaha... Anyways, as usual, reviews are very much appreciated. They battle with my laziness, in fact.