Hey guys! I'm really sorry, I know it's been ages since I updated but real life had the audacity to get in my way! Ugh, how dare it?!

Anyway, here's the next chapter for Hopeless Romantic 142 because your review was lovely and made me happy ^_^

I don't own Supernatural.

Enjoy ^.^

'Hello, Sam' Castiel said. Sam jumped and stood up from his laptop

'Cas, I need you to find Dean. He ran out last night. His GPS is turned off and I have a feeling that he's going to do something stupid'

'I've already seen him.'

'Where is he?' Sam demanded. Castiel shrugged. He was always a bad liar. The less he said, the less he'd give away.

'He made you promise not to tell me didn't he?'

Castiel nodded. Sam cursed

'Idiot! Well, what's he planning? He just told me not to go after Abbadon and that it had something to do with the trials'

'I'm not supposed to tell you that either' Castiel confessed. Sam ran a hand through his hair and made a noise that was both exasperated and angry.

'Cas, this is important. I need to know!' Castiel just looked at him head tilted, waiting. Sam sighed 'He's gone to kill his own hellhound hasn't he?'

'Are you surprised?'

'No, I'm pissed'.

'Why?' Sam whirled to face him

'Because he promised me, dammit!' he yelled. 'We talked about this and he said he backed my play! And now he's just doing what he always does, sacrificing himself for me, and I'm sick of it! I'm freaking sick of it!'

'He's not doing this to 'piss you off', Sam' Castiel countered heatedly, he always felt the need to defend Dean especially against Sam. 'He's doing this so you don't have to. He's trying to save his brother, just like he's always done. Can you blame him?'

'Yes!' Sam yelled back 'Because I'm not a six year old kid any more! He can't keep doing this! It's selfish!'

'He said you'd say that' the angel mused

'Am I wrong?'

'He doesn't believe so. I do'

'How so?' Sam asked, a warning glint in his eye that Castiel ignored

'I believe that Dean sacrificing his life for yours is a selfless act rather than a selfish one. He would rather die than live without you. And he would, every time. Those aren't just words to him.'

'And yet he expects me to live without him!' Sam argued

'Because he believes that you can' Castiel said sternly, not liking Sam's anger. 'While he was in Purgatory, you lived without him. And before your father went missing you had a normal life. That is what he wants for you, Sam. That is all he wants. Who are we to deny him that?' Sam hesitated for a moment, his face contorted into one of pure sadness

'I'm his brother' he muttered 'and he had a life when I was in the cage; with Lisa and Ben. He can live without me too! If he tried.'

'Lisa and Ben are lost to him now' Castiel said harshly 'through his own choice might I add, because he chose you. He will always choose you.' his voice took on a gentler tone as he continued, remembering 'and you didn't see him, Sam. He wasn't happy. Not completely. There was always something missing, he kept holy water under the bed and a devil's trap under the rug and he was jumpy and had nightmares. He kept looking out the window and just seemed ... empty.'

'You watched him a lot, huh?' Sam said gently. Imagining Dean living a normal life. Considering the happiest he'd ever actually seen his brother was when he was decorating his own room, it was difficult. Cas was right. Dean could never be happy without the hunting, and with the hunting it would be impossible for him to settle down. But that didn't mean that Sam would be okay with him going off to complete the trials and kill himself. After all, Dean had two conflicting sides to him. The side that would hunt 'till he died and the side that longed for a family. But while Sam was in the picture, Dean would never even think about the alternative.

'I have to finish the third trial, Cas' Sam said desperately 'I have to find Abbadon. Dean won't have time to complete all three trials before I can do this last one. Will you help me?'

'I can't.' Castiel said. 'My loyalty is with Dean on this one.' Sam gaped at him

'I thought you liked Dean better than me? But you'd rather he died?'

'I understand Dean better' Castiel clarified. 'He is more determined than you, Sam. He will not back down. He will get himself killed hunting a hellhound unless I help him.'

'He'll get killed anyway completing the trials!' Sam cried

'It will not come to that' Castiel insisted 'I will look for a way for him to complete the trials without the final sacrifice.'

'And if you can't find one?'

'Then I will bring him back' the angel stated, matter of factly

'You really think you could do that?' Sam asked

'I am an angel of the Lord' was all Castiel said, before he vanished.

Sam stood, staring at the spot Cas had been. He ran a hand through his hair. He trusted Cas, he really did. But he doubted that the angel had that kind of juice. After all, if Dean died to close the gates of Hell then the only place for him to go was Heaven. And the other angels were still mad about the whole, Cas going on a murder spree thing. Would he be able to sneak Dean out?

Would Dean want to go; surrounded by his happiest memories? Sam recalled the look on Dean's face as he hugged their mother and was filled with a sadness he couldn't explain. But he was protective of his brother too. Dean forgot that Sam had done his fair share of ass-saving, that Dean wasn't the only one who could stand up and sacrifice himself for his brother, Dean wasn't the only one who cared.

Sam weighed his options; he could go and look for Abbadon, but without Castiel's help that would be a near impossible task, she could be anywhere by now and the more tme Dean had to complete the trials the more determined he would become; however it wasn't like he hadn't done the impossible before; he could look for another demon, any demon. But Crowley had called them all off and short of going to Hell to look for them, he didn't really have anywhere to start.

Or, he could go and find Dean, drag his sorry ass back to Kansas and convince him to let Sam complete the third trial. That would be a real bitch. When Sam didn't want to be found, he just did the opposite of what he would usually do, which evidently didn't work. When Dean didn't want to be found he'd do some things he would normally do, and other things he wouldn't. Which meant that Sam had to guess what he would do and what he would change. He took the impala, obviously, but the impala was impossible to trace, especially if Dean changed the licence plate which he was likely to do. And he would keep checking to make sure the GPS in his phone stayed off. But they were brothers. Sam knew Dean better than anyone. If anyone could find him, he could.

So ... opinions?

I know this chapter is kind of repetitive with the whole sacrificing lives thing but that's kind of how they are, one will nobly sacrifice and the other will jump in last second and it's just a constant sacrificing loop. I wanted to get that across. Hope I did

Please let me know what you think ^.^

Love Tibbins xx