Chapter 4: Game plan

Shaking his thoughts, he heard Dean begin their game plan.

Castiel was a little startled when Dean pointed directly at him.

"This is Castiel. He's a new addition to the camp, some of you have met him. Be nice." His voice was stern and strict. No one said anything as there were nods seen throughout, the people Castiel hadn't met yet.

Dean shot him a smile and he felt his core warm up. That smile really did a number on him, and it really confused him. Castiel wasn't sure what it was, and it just made his head ache thinking about it. Turning his focus back to that beautiful man, he paid close attention.

"Alright. So we obviously need to have an outing today. I wanna take Cas along, to see how he is in action. Hopefully we won't have to fight or anything but hey, you never know what those Croat's are up to. Anyway, we'll head to Lawrence and check a few of our old houses and if we have time we can stop by a nearby gas station, maybe it has something of value."

Dean paused, looking through the crowd of people. Castiel felt a little nervous. His specialty wasn't fighting… and it seemed to be a norm here that the women healed while the men did the brawn work. Fidgeting his hands, he avoided Dean's gaze. He would talk to him before they head out.

"Okay! We will head out in a half hour, get your things ready for an outing! Sam, Cas, and I will be fighting on the front, I'll have Garth scout the area real fast, making sure there aren't too many Croats around. I'll have Benny and Andrea search mostly for medical supplies, and any others will just search for anything useful. Any odds and ends you think might help. There is another camp along the way, so we'll have to sneak by. That means Garth will have to keep his goddamn trap shut, kay?"

All eyes turned to Garth as a bright smile enveloped his face, giving Dean a thumbs up with no care in the world. He was weird, Castiel wanted to avoid him at all costs. After he convened the meeting, he gave Dean a small smile as he walked over with Sam.

"Hey Cas. Sorry for throwing you in, but I need to see what you can do." Castiel shook his head and responded,

"No it's okay. But I'm… I'm a better medic than a fighter." He waited for the disgusted look to plague the pretty face in front of him, but he just shrugged and nodded. Castiel was a little surprised.

"Works for me. We need more medics anyway. But you're still on the front with us. But you and Andrea are our only medics on this outing, so stay sharp. Nodding, Castiel felt a little giddy inside and he couldn't place why.

A half hour later, everyone was geared up and ready to go. Andrea had given Castiel a small first aid satchel that he had easy access to, and Dean gave him a silver gun with a white handle, similar to his and Sam's.

After loading it and getting familiar with the gun, Castiel was ready. He was given easier clothes to maneuver and he hoped they found some more clothing. He couldn't use Dean's forever, even though he wouldn't complain if he had to.

Dean assembled everyone, it was a team of about 10 people. Garth, Benny, Andrea, Sam, and Dean were the only ones he'd met formally. The others seemed a bit weary still. As they left camp, Castiel noticed how everyones demeanor had changed.

Except Garth. He was smiling and seemingly giddy. He assumed that Garth was left behind on a lot of missions, but Bobby wasn't feeling well. Dean gave Garth a go to and he snuck ahead, he was stealthier than Castiel would have thought.

Soon enough, he came back, his previously smiling face was now drowned with confusion. This was worrying. He shared a few words with Dean, causing that freckled face to scrunch up in confusion as well.

Motioning them closer, they gathered around him. He was like a beacon and everyone gravitated towards him. He informed them that the nearby camp was empty. Like it had been empty for awhile, Garth suggested the Croat's got them.

"Change of plans. Let's ransack the camp. Garth said that it has been empty for a while, so we can scavenge their old clothes and what not. I doubt there's much good food left, but let's get in there before the Croats realize we're there."

Everyone nodded as they moved out once again.

When they came across the camp, everyone scrunched their faces. It was disgusting. The smell, the rot, and worst of all, the corpses.

The ones who didn't make it through the infection.

There were rare cases where it was too much for some people to handle, even though all it really did was fill you with an incredible fire of rage that couldn't be put out. The Croatoan virus was a nasty monster to humanity.

Luckily, none of the Croat's seemed to stay back to wait for stragglers, for it was deserted. Castiel gulped as he felt Dean's hand on his shoulder. Snapping his head up, he watched those dazzling green eyes turn stony. Emotion raked through them as he clenched his fist.

"Lets just get this over with. Benny, you go with Garth and check out their food stock and whatever else they have over there, and before you complain, Andrea is coming with us three, since I wanna keep the medics close by."

Garth agreed happily as he beamed at Benny, who was upset, but didn't want to cause any problems. Andrea on the other hand was less amused. "Don't I get a say in this?" Her voice snapped at the three and Castiel couldn't help but flinch.

It reminded him of home…

Dean just shot her a look and she was complacent. The four of them headed towards the first aid station, hoping to scavenge as much as they could. Luckily, the male cabins were located near the station, maybe they could actually find Castiel clothes to fit.

Entering the first aid, they had their guns out and cocked, ready to fire if needed. It was tense as they entered, Dean first, then Sam, then the other two. Castiel could feel the tension in everyone and he hated it.

It was uncomfortable, but as soon as they realized there was no threat, it relaxed a tiny bit. Dean gave the go to and Castiel and Andrea were both on top of things, picking up what they could. They found a lot more than they had expected.

There were herbs Andrea had never seen before, so she was hesitant to take them. Dean told her to take anything they could and they'd have a closer inspection later. Castiel wanted to enlighten them, there were so many new things now. But he guessed that they were on the low about everything.

Castiel grabbed what he could and shoved it into his empty bag. The two had bags full of assorted plants. These would be helpful for treating physical wounds. A smile played on Castiel's face, which caused Dean to raise an eyebrow.

Though they soon left the building, Dean never had the chance to ask his question as they entered the male cabin, only to see a bloody, beaten child covered in blood, which if Castiel had to guess, was his own.

Dean froze up, cocking his gun at the child, who was barely conscious. Castiel examined the boy with his eyes. He looked to be about 10 years old, if that. His breathing was ragged and he wouldn't live much longer if they didn't act now. His eyes were half closed, and his body was nonstop trembling.

Without much thought, Castiel rushed over to the boy, causing worried sounds to come from the people by him. Setting the boy's head on his lap, he examined his eye closely. Dean was about to speak when Castile interrupted him.

"He's not infected." He quickly removed the child's clothing and examined his wounds. He had lacerations all over his body, though no bite marks. This wasn't a Croat attack. Grabbing a towel from his first aid satchel, he wet it with his own water, washing away the blood from the wounds.

Soon enough, Andrea was on the other side, helping to clean the wounds. Castiel noticed a huge gash across the child's shoulder and immediately set out to find a needle and some thread in his satchel. Grunting when he couldn't find any, his eyes drifted to the mini sewing kit Andrea had found.

"Needle and thread. Now." Without question, Andrea handed him the kit with wide eyes. She obviously didn't understand what he intended to do. He pulled a few of the herbs from his kit and sorted through them, handing them to a confused Andrea.

"Grind those up and it'll make a paste. Use that as ointment to tend the smaller wounds. Quickly." Fumbling with her hands, she grinded it up with the hilt of her gun. Castiel got to work as well. He took his lighter out and burned the tip of the needle, sanitizing it.

It was going to hurt, but the child would live. Expertly threading the needle, he began to close up the giant gash on his shoulder. The child's labored breathing became steadier as he wasn't losing as much blood now.

Castiel finished sewing the wound and his shoulders sagged slightly out of relief. He soon wrapped his fingers around the child's wrist, taking his heartrate. Thankfully, it slowed down to a more manageable pace.

"Cas?" Turning at the sound of his name, he met those dazzling green again. His fierce blue eyes now trembled slightly. He hoped that Dean wasn't angry. He would have a lot of explaining to do.

"How'd you know that kid wasn't a Croat?" Those green eyes searching his own endless blue for answers, finding none. Sagging his head, he bit his lip.

"I can explain when we are in the safety of camp." He wished his voice was firm, but it trembled slightly. He really didn't want to get kicked out now, it'd only been two days. Avoiding eye contact with Dean, his hand trembled as well as he motioned for Andrea to help pick the child up.

Not saying anything, Dean just nodded as he and Sam split up, picking up odds and ends. A few minutes later, Dean nodded to everyone and they exited the building. Calling Benny on his phone, Dean had them come back a little early.

As they met at the middle of the camp, Benny opened his mouth for a snark comment, but then he saw the child and his eyes turned stony. Garth on the other hand, seemed totally unaffected. What was wrong with this guy?

Castiel sighed as he felt Dean's gaze linger on him. He could also feel Sam boring holes into his skull. It was uncomfortable. Keeping his head low, Dean lead them out of the camp and back to their own safety.

Since they returned early, it seemed to worry and shock people. Castiel didn't hesitate once they reached camp, he booked it to the first aid with Andrea barely keeping up.

He could hear people whispering and once again he felt his throat close up on him.

He didn't want to be an outcast again.

Meanwhile, Dean watched Castiel run off and headed towards Bobby's with the provisions. Seems like Benny and Garth raided their library, they had a bunch of books, whether or not they were good was another question.

Dean had also found a dresser full of clothing, he'd have to portion the women's out, but it seemed like he'd give these ones to Castiel. Some of the shirts might be a bit big, but nothing was going to fit right until he got some skin on those bones.

Shuddering at the thought of a shirtless Castiel, he wasn't sure if it was a good or bad thing to think about. They only found a few unopened cans of beans, which wasn't a surprise, since the camp had long been deserted.

He had no idea about the medical supplies they collected, because Castiel seemed to know more than anyone here. He'd have to sit him down for a talk later. Once they sorted everything out, Dean headed towards his cabin to drop off the clothing while Sam went to drop the little food off.

Dean's thoughts once again strayed to the seemingly fragile Castiel. He couldn't keep those blue eyes out of his head. He plagued his thoughts. Letting out a disgruntled sigh, he set the folded clothing on Castiel's bed, where his eyes lingered a moment too long.

Giving up, Dean scratched the back of his head as he almost ran to the first aid cabin, almost running Sam over on his way out. A disgruntled Sam was about to yell at Dean when he noticed how fixed he was on getting to his destination. A small smile played on Sam's face as he entered the cabin again.

Slamming the door open with more force than he meant, Dean watched Castiel jump a little.

"Didn't mean to startle you. How's the kid?" He asked, leaning against the wall, crossing his arms. He watched as Castiel seemed to avoid looking at him. He didn't turn his head or even acknowledge Dean.

Biting his lip, Dean saw Andrea and motioned for her to leave. She didn't stall as she went off, probably looking for Benny. Walking over, he sat in the chair across from Castiel, whose eyes were now fixed on the sleeping child in the bed.

Those entrancing blue eyes were trembling with fear. Why was he afraid? Dean tried to search them for answers, but he couldn't find any. Before he had a chance to speak, Castiel blurted out, "I'm sorry please don't kick me out."

A little taken aback, Dean gave him an unbelieving look. Wetting his lips, he let out a short laugh. "Is that what you're so scared about? That I'm gonna kick you out? Hell no." His voice was firm as he tried to reassure him.

"Cas I couldn't kick you out even if everyone hated you." Why was he saying this? Dean couldn't find the answer himself, and it worried him. What exactly were these feelings for Castiel? He wasn't sure if he really wanted to find out.

Finally, Castiel looked at Dean, their eyes meeting. They both froze for a moment, reeling in this unknown feeling pooling in their stomachs. Dean refused to acknowledge the feeling while it confused Castiel. It felt like there were tiny butterflies fluttering around his stomach.

For a moment there was another silence as Castiel seemed to examine Dean's face. Feeling the heat rise in his cheeks from being so heatedly watched, Dean cleared his throat before speaking.

"We need to talk about today." Castiel became tense again as the subject was brought up again. Letting a sigh escape he realized he'd need to tell them certain things if he wanted to stay.

"…Okay. In Topeka, things are a lot more advanced than out here. First aid mostly. We've found ways to… prolong the infection." He watched Dean's face twist in confusion.

"It's… Horrible. People are forcibly infected and we… we… experiment on them." He took a gulp of air, his voice becoming shaky and his whole body trembling. The look on Dean's face was enough to send him over the edge.

"We… Had no choice… Micheal…" The name got caught in his throat as he almost choked. All the disgust was gone from Dean's face, it was now full of worry. Castiel was having another panic attack. He started choking on his sobs as memories flooded through him.

Dean quickly wrapped him up in his arms, rubbing his back gently. He was trying to sooth him, to calm Castiel down.

"Hey hey… Shhh…" He held Castiel tight in his arms as he felt his stomach twist at Castiel's pain. Whoever made him feel like this was going to pay. Dean felt the anger rising in him and he had to quell it for the moment.

Topeka was obviously on a whole other level than they were, and they probably weren't the only ones who were doing such… terrible things. Poor Castiel was thrust in the midst of it all, probably forced to do things he didn't want to do.

Dean felt the sobs slowing and Castiel's breathing become steadier and the trembling began to slow down. His heart ached as Castiel's hands tightened around Dean's arm. His breathing finally steadied as his usually fierce blue were now a dull blue.

"…I'm sorry." Dean froze. Castiel was apologizing for having a panic attack. Biting his lip, almost causing it to bleed, he gave him a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry about it. Just… Talk about it when you can. Don't push yourself alright?" He still held Castiel in his arms when they heard a knock on the door and someone clearing their throat.

Sam.

Dean sighed as Castiel scrambled out of his arms. Fucking Sam had to go and ruin the moment. He watched Castiel scrub at his face, trying to erase the fact that he was crying. He felt so vulnerable. But Dean's arms were so warm and soothing…

Shaking the thoughts, he focused his attention on the child, who seemed to be stirring now. Sam came to check on the child and was confused as to why he was dealing with a very irritated Dean. Castiel refused to look at Sam, for he'd know that he was crying.

Crying was a sign of weakness, and Castiel didn't want to show weakness to anyone.

Except for Dean.

A/N: UGHH, I hope I wrote that okay ; ^; It was my first outing/kindanotreally action scene. Also very little fluff in here, but it'll get better later! I can't wait to delve into Castiel's story! I'm so excited to write more for this story! I hope you guys stick around for more!