Castiel felt shock ripple through him as his father explained Azrael's past. The idea of angels mating with anyone was already taboo, but with a human? It was practically unheard of! Gabriel was uncharacteristically quiet, denoting his own hidden opinion on the subject.
"Thanks Dad." Said Gabriel quietly.
"Sure. Call me if you need me."
"We will."
"Oh, and Castiel?"
"Yes?"
"You find that piece of trash and bring my grandson back safe."
"I will." He promised. Chuck smiled.
"Good. Goodbye boys."
"Bye."
They hung up the phone. For a few minutes they were unsure of what to do with themselves. That is, until Castiel's phone rang. Thinking it might be his Dad again, he put it on speaker and answered it.
"Hello?"
"Daddy?" Came the timid whimper through the phone line.
All at once the mood in the room shifted. It went from being slightly confused to anxiously quiet. No one dared to make a peep. In the sudden quiet, they all heard Castiel's breathing hitch at the familiar sound. It was Dean, that was certain. He took in a deep breath, then spoke.
"Hi buddy."
"Daddy, I don't know where I am. I'm scared." He whispered. Castiel shut his eyes. This was tearing him apart inside. It felt like someone had punched him in the chest, ripped his heart out, tore it up, and poured acid on it for good measure. He tried to steady himself and be strong for his son, knowing he would only get more upset if he heard him stressed.
"It's okay to be scared, bud. Don't you worry, Daddy's going to find you. Everything will be alright." He promised.
Dean erupted into a fit of coughing so intense that Cas worried he might get sick. His fears were confirmed when he heard the telltale signs of him getting sick. He winced when he realized that Dean was sobbing as he gasped for air. He could hear voices in the background, murmuring their anger.
"I want water." Dean asked innocently. No one ever spoke a reply, but he heard the unmistakable sound of a palm making impact with his cheek. It startled him so much that he flinched away from the phone hard enough to make Gabriel reach an arm out in case he fell over. There was a brief moment of quiet before Dean burst into tears again. Castiel felt emotion overtaking his reason. Fiery anger unlike anything he had ever felt blazed bright inside of him.
"Shut up!" Called a voice over the phone. Never before had Cas wanted to reach through the phone and hold his son so badly. Suddenly, he heard struggling over the line. Dean started screaming.
"Help me! Daddy! Daddy!" The screams grew fainter and fainter until they were inaudible. Then, a voice came over the phone, laughing heartily.
"You son of a-"
Gabriel coughed, reminding him that Sam was still present and possibly teetering between mindsets after hearing some of this call.
"What did you do to him?!" Castiel demanded, voice shockingly calm.
"Nothing. He just needed to calm down. Hello Castiel."
"I assume you're Antson."
"The one and only."
"Why have you taken my son?"
"That's for me to know and you to find out."
"Tell me where to find you."
"Now that would ruin all the fun! Talking to your son was a free pass, but the rest you have to figure out on your own. See you later, pretty boy."
"Wait-"
The dial tone blared at him. He sighed in exhaustion.
Castiel set his phone down, eyes staring blankly at the device. He put a hand over his mouth, unable to speak. There weren't words for what he was feeling right now. The heartbreak, the fear, the fury, and the confusion all mingled together in a cocktail of emotion that he had no name for. His skin was blanched white with fear. Gabriel had never seen him so shaken.
"Cassie?" Asked Gabriel, carefully. Cas remained silent. "Cassie, there was nothing you could have done. You could not have stopped this from happening."
"Dean's a fighter, Cas. He could have-" Sam began, but Castiel cut him off.
"I know what you're going to say. That Dean could have gotten away from them. Well you're wrong. When I put him down for a nap he could barely sit up on his own. His fever was 102 degrees. He was on the verge of hallucinating. He was so weak... there was no way he could have escaped."
Sam was quiet.
Claire stared at the angel in disbelief. Castiel was a parent? And of a full grown man no less. She wanted to find words to explain her feelings, but nothing came out. She had no idea how deep this ran, or what it could have felt like. But she remembered what it was like to have a real father. She supposed Dean had never had that experience based on how he was raised. Seeing Castiel as a father made her nostalgic for her own father, and she hated the fact that he was technically sitting right beside her but that she couldn't talk to him.
Abruptly, Castiel got up from the couch and went into the nursery. He flung the closet door open, pushed the clothing aside, and stared.
There, leaning up against the wall, was Azrael's scythe. He stared at it for a moment, faltering on his decision. But all it took was one replay of Dean's screaming for him to reassure himself that he had made the right decision. He gripped it in his hand and took it back to the living room.
Gabriel looked at his brother with both curiosity and worry. That call had really shaken him up. He wanted to ask if he was okay, but he knew it was a moot point. Instead a different question came out.
"What are you doing with that thing, Cassie?"
Castiel turned to look at him, eyes blazing with righteous fury.
"I'm going to hunt that SOB down."