Mainline

Castiel stood at the edge of the road alone, his eyes scanning the horizon and how bright it looked in comparison to the thousands of times he'd looked in his past. He'd stopped caring what it looked like a long time ago but now he couldn't look away. The broken worlds were slowly repairing themselves, some had even re-attached to the mainline. Many priests went home once they were able, all sat and waited until their home world had returned.

The only ones left were all the Winchesters, and Michael and Gabriel. "Why don't you two go home?" Sam looked at Gabriel tiredly.

"Ours didn't make it," Gabriel shrugged, "I don't think it's repairable either so… I don't know, I guess we're waiting to see if you guys'll let us come with you." The impish guy grinned up at Sam and for a moment Sam thought maybe he understood why so many other hims ended up with Gabriels.

But it wasn't good enough, not right then.

Dean walked up to Cas' side and took his hand, "We should get going," he leaned over and kissed his partner's cheek, "It's over."

"Something about this bothers me," Cas shook his head and looked down to where they'd last seen their friend jump. "You and I were the ones meant to stop the Void…."

"Says a bunch of crazy spooks with destiny-boners. It's stopped, we were there but Jet's the one that did it, who cares? It's over."

"No," Cas pulled away and walked along the edge, "No there's something else, we shouldn't be priests anymore. We should be normal human beings now but we're not. We're still exactly the same, which makes me think something's wrong."

Sam pulled himself up and went to Dean's side, "What else can you do, Cas? The Void is sealed, it's done."

"There should be something else." Cas snapped and ran his hands into his hair, pulling back his scalp a little as he tugged.

As he paced something around him fluttered and started to glow. It was coming from the worlds that were home to different priests; streams of energy flooded out and surrounded both Dean and Castiel. Sam stepped away but quickly realized that Michael, Gabriel, and both his parents had started to glow the same way, except the energy was leaving their bodies and closed in on Dean and Cas.

The two reached for one another unconsciously, hands grasping as the surge of power went from their heads down to their toes. It became too bright for Sam to see anymore and he had to cover his eyes, he could hear it happening but had no idea what to define it as. Dean and Cas were absorbing the strength of all the other priests, that was his best guess.

And just as it had started it stopped, like so many other things. Sam lifted his head as he felt the strength of both Dean and Castiel together, it was overwhelming and made his body feel weaker. "Dean?" Sam managed the name as he blinked a few times at the two who seemed to be otherworldly for the first time since it'd all began. "Cas?"

Dean was the first one to give him attention, his eyes looked as surprised as Sam felt, it was a relief to know that Dean was still him. Castiel on the other hand took a deep breath and leaned his head back, letting the new feeling course through him for a few seconds, "This," he said and looked at Dean with a half smirk, "is what I was talking about. It is possible."

Dean watched Cas' excitement light up his eyes and smiled back, "What's your plan, Cas?"

"Just let it do what it's meant to, come on." Castiel took his hand and Dean followed him, like he'd followed Cas into so many other things without knowing a damn thing. Castiel would always be better at just letting go, letting the magic flow in him like it was its own sentient being.

Cas looked at Sam and gave him a quick nod, "We'll be right back, okay?"

Sam had nothing he could say so he just returned the nod and watched as Dean and Castiel leapt off the mainline, just like Jet had done some hours before. He closed his eyes and let out a sigh that Mary quickly went to relieve. She wrapped her boy up in a hug and kissed his cheek, "I'm so sorry, sweetheart." She whispered and he nodded again, words caught in his throat.

Dean felt his stomach jump into his throat as he fell, the sensation scaring him shitless. No amount of strength or power would change his fear of flying, and this wasn't even flying, he was falling. "Cas! What's your plan!?" He asked again, this time more frantically.

Castiel reached out ahead of them and a flash of light burst forward. Dean flinched when he felt their momentum jerk a little, like an elevator that reached its floor. And then he realized they weren't moving anymore, his feet touched down on a solid surface while his legs nearly buckled under him. Dean's breathing managed to catch up with him as he inhaled shakily, the strange feeling around him was unsettling. They stood in the deepest core of the Void, he could see monsters frozen in place like they were statues, nothing moved and it was the eeriest thing he'd ever seen.

"This is what I was talking about," Castiel said again as his eyes started to glow, the air around his body vibrated to life and reverberated throughout the Void. "Dean you know what to do, go find him."

Dean's eyes lit up and he looked around quickly, they couldn't have been far off from the Void's core because his best friend was the center of it all. Dean bolted in a direction he didn't understand at first, his instincts had pulled him that way; his senses said go there so he did. Dean wasn't sure there was ever a way to understand the powers that a priest held, each one had been different and he and Castiel were even exceptions to those rules.

There were all kinds of creatures around him, some he recognized and some he had no idea about, but what mattered was that they all faced the same way. Each one angled toward the center and Dean made quick work of hopping over the ones in his way until he reached the still form of his best friend. Jet's body looked relaxed, his eyes were open and his face held a determined expression as he seemed to be looking up toward the mainline. His jaw was tilted upward and that simple fact made Dean's eyes water, Jet would never angle his head down in submission and that was worth a smile.

"Hey man," Dean sighed and reached out to grab Jet's shoulders, "You're not going to get that 'sealed away for eternity' ending you were planning on, I can't let you do that to my brother."

Dean watched the magic unfold without even having to try; he watched life return to wherever his hands touched. Jet's shoulders shifted loosely and Dean couldn't describe the rush of joy that spread through him.

He drifted his hands all the way down his friend's arms, sides, and legs, the energy spread from his touch and soon Jet stood before him, blinking in confusion.

"What just…" he looked around and flinched first at the sight of all the monsters angled his way, "what did you do?"

"Sam asked me to get you home to him, you know I couldn't let him down." Dean grinned and practically jumped onto Jet in a hug, squeezing his shoulders and even nuzzling his cheek a bit. "You're staying this time."

Jet hugged him back and let his head rest against Dean's, "I still don't quite get what you just did?"

"Not quite sure," Dean pulled away with a shrug and clapped his hand on Jet's shoulder, "Cas and I are carrying the strength of all the priests, it's time to take the Void out."

"Then we'd better get the fuck out of here before Cas blows us up." Jet smirked.

Castiel took a shallow breath as the world around him pulsed, the Void's life rushed to him like he were some kind of savior. And in one motion from his arms it was gone, the same force burst outward again in an explosion. In its wake it left desolation of the darkest world, monsters evaporated into nothing and the thick fog was washed away. The flow of energy was like a wave constantly rippling out from one surge after another. It reached further and further out until Castiel felt his own energy leave him; it was a sudden drain and threw him off his power high.

The following moments rushed by like some kind of dream, the mainline above disappeared. Cas felt his body like it was something else, like it wasn't his and he had no control over it. He knew the sensation of running through a portal, of drifting through time and space to another world, but somehow it didn't match up this time. Castiel cried out without his permission, his heart stuttered and all he could think of was his family.

But he didn't have to worry too long, he felt arms wrap around him moments after and he didn't need another second to realize who it was. Cas turned and buried his face into Dean's chest, fingers digging into his coat for dear life.

The dizzying rush didn't last very long, in fact their feet were on solid ground before Dean could properly hold Cas in return. A gentle breeze met their skin and smelled familiar, Dean lifted his gaze to look at the lawn he'd known, the house he and Sam lived in and had left so long ago. They were home.

Sam had covered his head during the awful sensation and felt arms around him as he had before, he thought they were Mary's, that the scent of his boyfriend was a sick joke played by his mind. But when Sam lifted his gaze he once again couldn't breathe.

"Jet?" He asked and felt ill with the thought that he could be imagining him.

"Hey," Jet grinned and leaned down to kiss Sam again, this time he had no reason to let go.

Michael looked at Gabriel and they both had to laugh, somehow they'd made it to the end and even with their homes destroyed they had somewhere to go. Gabriel gave his partner a solid hug, a cheer on the verge from exploding out of his lungs.

John took Mary's hand and took a deep breath, "Feels good to be home," he said with laugh.

"Just imagine The Harvelle's faces when we pop up again," Mary smirked and kissed her husband's cheek.

"Imagine what Christmas dinner's gonna be like, I feel like we should have one of those right now."

"Why not?" Cas took Dean's hand in his, "We should celebrate."

"I have a celebration in mind," Dean grinned and caught Castiel's lips with his, tucking his partner in close to him as they made out. It was warm and welcoming; Cas melted against Dean and let himself forget everything. He could finally relax, he could forget without a consequence.

"I love you," Cas whispered and rested his forehead against Dean's, their smiles only widening the longer they looked at each other.

"I love you too, Cas." Dean cradled Cas' face in his hand, his thumb smoothing over his lover's cheek, "Will you stay with me?"

"Forever."

"Ow! Sorry! I said I was sorry!" Jet yelped and shielded himself from Sam's fists as they beat on him.

"Don't you ever leave me like that again, you dick!" Sam shouted at him as his blows slowed down and Jet managed to get in close again. Sam's head dropped against Jet's shoulder and a shuddered sigh escaped him. "Don't go…"

"I'm here to stay," Jet whispered and kissed Sam's cheek, "Thanks to Dean; he came through like he always does."

Sam smiled and looked over at his older brother who couldn't help but look with the commotion, "Thanks for saving him, Dean."

"I couldn't let you down, Sammy." Dean grinned and looked down at Cas who watched Sam with endearment. "We all made it," Dean laughed and kissed Castiel again, "We're all back, safe and sound."

"With a few extras," Gabriel added and Sam nodded.

"Welcome to the family, guys."

"Don't get too friendly though," Jet warned the shorter male and all the others could do was laugh. Cas pulled Dean over to Sam and Jet and forced a group hug on them.

"I love you guys." He gave them each a quick kiss on the cheek, Sam blushed a bit and laughed.

"Love you too, Cas."

Jet smirked and looked at Dean, the two bumped fists, a sort of welcome back.

Some days later…

Aeterna

Castiel balanced a container of mashed potatoes on top of a lidded pot of meatballs, oven mitts still on his hands as he casually attempted to walk to the living room without dropping everything. Dean snorted out a laugh and took the top container from his boyfriend, leaving Cas with a lighter load and a kiss on his cheek. "Got enough there?"

"No, you guys eat like pigs." Cas retorted with a smile.

"Out of the way, important shit coming through." Jet called as he passed them by with a big oven roaster in his hands.

"Yeah, gotta move for that turkey," Dean smirked and Jet glanced back at him.

"You better be talking 'bout the bird, bro."

"Only if you are."

"Guys," Sam called from the dining room, "table's set and we're all hungry, hurry up!"

"Shut it," Jet nudged him playfully before putting the roaster down. Sam nudged back, a little harder but no less cheerful.

They had a long table ready and set up for a big family feast. John and Mary sat waiting, Mary barely able to stay sitting. She wanted to help her kids out but they insisted on being the ones to treat everyone. Michael and Gabriel didn't complain much, if they didn't have to work then they didn't care.

"So it's been a few days," John looked at the other ex-priests, mostly Michael because he seemed to be the more mature one, "How're you coping with normal life?"

"It's weird," Michael admitted with a laugh, "I had to remember how to make a resume, get used to the way this world does things, I'm just glad we're all helping each other out. I think we forgot how money and currency works."

Gabriel rolled his eyes, "Tell me about it, it's kind of a pain in the ass."

Sam kept his smile to himself, "Dean, Jet, and I have been doing this a whole lot less than you guys. We were in the end stretch there but you've all been in it longer than Cas, right? That means it's been ages."

"Time works differently out there," Mary reminded him, "John and I have only been away from you boys a few decades but in the swing of things it's been so much longer."

Cas and Dean put their items down, the last dishes to reach the table. "I for one am glad it's over," Cas grinned up at them all, "I missed waking up next to my significant other."

Dean kissed him quickly and dropped into his seat, "So who's serving?"

"The chosen ones," Gabriel raised his hands to gesture toward them, "naturally."

"Naturally," Castiel rolled his eyes and stood up, "First I'd like to thank you all," he lifted his glass to the table of men and Mary. "You've all sacrificed something to share in the peace we have today, you've believed in us when we had no idea what we were doing, and you supported us when we needed you. I'm glad I could fight with all of you at my side, thank you everyone. You should all be proud."

They raised their glasses in cheers; the era of fighting was over. It was time to live.