Dean sat down on the edge of his bed and shuddered. When all of this is done , Dean thought, I'm gonna pick out a new room .
Sam carried in a folding chair and set it up on one side of the bed. Castiel pulled the rolling desk chair over to the other side of the bed.
"Why does this feel like an intervention?" joked Dean, weakly.
Sam smiled. "Because it is one, dude."
"Dean, you need to try and get comfortable, " Castiel said as he sat down in the desk chair. Remove your shoes, perhaps? Would you like a blanket?"
"Nah, I'm fine Cas," Dean said as he tugged off his boots. "Maybe some music? That usually helps."
Sam strode over to the stereo and started looking through Dean's extensive audio cassette collection.
Dean pulled his legs up onto the bed as Castiel rolled the chair a little closer. Castiel looked straight into Dean's eyes and got caught there. He swallowed.
"Dean, I need to tell you something."
"Yeah, Cas?" Dean said softly.
"If you let me in, you will… see me differently. I will no longer be a shade."
"That's the idea, right?"
"No. I mean yes. I mean… Dean Winchester, you will see ME. All of me. My real form. It will be filtered significantly by your subconscious, so I do not believe I will blind or deafen you…"
"Wait, what?" Dean's voice was edged with concern. "Blind? Deaf? Should I be worried?"
"No, Dean, it is okay," Castiel reassured. He rested a hand on one of the arms Dean had crossed over his chest. "This is not without precedent. My concern is that I will frighten you. Dreams are raw. Barriers are bent, broken, or non-existent."
"I've seen 'Big Bad Castiel', and I've seen worse." It was Dean's turn to reassure his angel. "You have my permission, Cas. Bring it on." He smiled weakly, and heard the sound of a cassette being inserted into stereo. With a click, a very familiar guitar strain floated through the room, followed by flute.
Dean rolled his eyes. "Really, Sam? Really? Stairway?" Dean groaned.
There's a lady who's sure,
All that glitters is gold,
And she's buying a stairway to heaven.
"What?" Sam shrugged. "It seemed appropriate."
"It has a pleasant tune," Castiel commented.
"Well, if the angel approves, then I guess Zepp it is," muttered Dean amusedly.
"Lay back, Dean," purred Castiel reassuringly. "Try to relax."
In a tree by the brook
There's a songbird who sings
Sometimes all of our thoughts are misgiving
Dean was worried, but he was also tired. Exhausted. But Sammy was there, and Castiel had a plan. It was beginning to become difficult to keep his eyes open.
Ooh, it makes me wonder,
Ooh, it makes me wonder.
Dean let his defensive posture relax, letting his arms fall to his sides. Sam took a seat in the folding chair on the other side of the bed.
"Sammy," Dean murmured as his eyes drooped, "are you just gonna watch me sleep all creepy-like?" A smile crept across his face as Castiel winced.
"Ouch," mouthed Sam to his angel friend.
In my thoughts I have seen,
Rings of smoke through the trees,
And the voices of those who standing looking.
And with that, Dean started to softly snore. Castiel looked upon him with pity. Castiel did not need sleep, but he knew fear, and he knew exhaustion, and he knew his Dean had endured more than enough of both.
"Now what?" whispered Sam, not wanting to disturb his brother.
Castiel did not raise his protective gaze up from Dean. "Now we wait for him to dream."
"How will you know when it starts?" Sam asked.
"I will be able to feel it. His suffering. Then I will join him. Time passes much more quickly in a dream than when one is conscious, so Dean may experience many things before I can find him."
"Like in Hell," Sam added.
"Correct," Castiel replied, still looking down at his friend. "And even if he starts dreaming, I will not know to join him until it becomes… emotional."
"Will you be asleep, too?" Sam wondered aloud. "What happens if something goes wrong?"
"I will not be asleep, but I will not be fully present here. You should be able to rouse me if need be."
Yes, there are two paths you can go by,
But in the long run,
There's still time to change the road you're on.
Castiel's eyes flicked up to meet Sam's. "It is starting." With that, Castiel sat up, closed his eyes, and Sam resigned himself to waiting.