Unexpected Destinies Chapter 195
Title: Unexpected Destinies
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: up to and including Exile on Main St., AU from the end of season 5
Warnings: AU, slash, dub-con
Word Count: 3,638
Summary: Crowley is just finishing up his favorite part of a deal when Dean contacts him.
PRESENT
The man was a devious chap, extremely devious, taking far more care with his deal than most humans that Crowley interacted with did. In fact it had been a few centuries since he'd had a human quite like this. As soon as he'd gotten word of what the man was considering, he'd immediately come up to take over the deal himself. It was one of the many perks and prerogatives of being King of the Crossroads now even if coming here at this time did place him in slightly more danger than if he'd remained in hiding. But then, he knew that Lucifer's minions wouldn't be expecting him to make a move like this and the first item of business that he'd taken care of once he'd wrested the title of king from his competitors after the resulting feeding frenzy that had taken place upon Lilith's death had been to bind all of the crossroads demons to him, thereby assuring him of their absolute loyalty and ensuring that none could betray him, even now when half or more wished to.
So here Crowley was, doing his favorite part of any deal, namely sealing it. A task made all the more enjoyable for the fact that the man was a blatant homophobe. He could all but feel the human's disbelief that he was actually kissing another man and the man's disgust. Unable to help himself (and really not seeing why he should even try), he swept his tongue into the man's mouth. There was an instinctive flinch as the man fought not to pull back and Crowley smiled, savoring his power and the memory of the horrified dismay that had crossed the man's face when he'd shown up to seal the deal instead of the lovely Thalia. It was the little things that often gave him the most pleasure.
The ringing of his mobile phone interrupted Crowley's attempt to decide whether or not to keep kissing the man until the human struggled to breathe. It would be interesting to see just how much the man was willing to take to achieve his goals. Alas, it was not to be.
"I'll be seeing you in ten years then," Crowley said, smirking at the man who looked briefly freaked before backing away quickly. "Ta ta for now."
Crowley waited until the man was safely out of ear shot before pulling out his phone and answering it. "Hello, cupcake, how are you today?"
The pause at the other end made Crowley smile. He so enjoyed toying with the elder Winchester brother. Unlike the younger one, Dean was always a pleasure to tease, not to mention quite easy on the eyes. As so often had happened, he couldn't help but wish that he had been the one to seal the Righteous Man's deal. Now that would have been one that he'd have enjoyed. He'd once considered trying to orchestrate the need for another, less demanding, deal, but not only did he think that Dean would never go for it, but Castiel wouldn't allow it and he had absolutely no desire to be squashed like a bug for messing with an archangel's plaything.
Besides, Crowley could only remember all too well the burn of touching Winchester the last time. He was not stupid enough to think that the same or worse wouldn't happen if he tried to kiss the boy now. Castiel hadn't skimped in the slightest when it came to claiming his little pet and he couldn't help but wonder if Winchester was aware of just how much the once littlest archangel had marked him up for everything supernatural to see. And smell.
"How's that rebellion coming along, Crowley?" Dean demanded.
Abrupt and rude as usual, how boringly predictable. If it wasn't for the Winchesters' annoying little habit of coming out on top, Crowley would never have deigned to put up with such an appalling lack of manners for this long.
"Those things take time and finesse, two things which you know little about, I know, but which exist nonetheless."
"You say time and finesse, but all I hear are excuses and cowardice."
"I've thrown my lot in with you, haven't I, cupcake?"
"Only because your scheming against Lucifer was discovered. Which you did not out of any sense of consciousness or justice, but in order to gain more power."
"No, I did it in order to survive."
"Exactly."
Wait a minute, Crowley had a brief moment of confusion before realization dawned. He'd just been played. By a Winchester.
Shock froze him for only a moment before Crowley scrambled to catch up as he still couldn't see quite what the boy was aiming for here.
"You want to survive and you know that is one thing which Lucifer has no interest in. I believe you even said that he'd start in on you demons once he was done with us humans."
"You try making other demons see that, cupcake. They're so convinced that Daddy dearest is on their side that it's almost impossible to make them see otherwise."
"Try."
The command made Crowley bristle but he tried to channel his anger aside. If all went well then he would have plenty of time to teach the boy a lesson once Castiel's attention had drifted elsewhere or the archangel returned to Heaven. Then Dean Winchester would be his to do with as he pleased and he already had more than a few ideas in mind.
"And say what?" Crowley replied instead.
"That they'll be used as cannon fodder when Lucifer confronts Michael or whatever made you see the truth, I don't care."
Crowley paused. "Are you planning something, cupcake?"
"Just remember that if we fail, then you're on your own, Crowley."
They were planning something. Crowley felt an unusual nervous flutter in his meatsuit's belly that he hadn't experienced in years. It was a mix between exhilaration and horror.
"When and where," Crowley demanded.
"That's need to know and you don't."
"How do you expect me to create a rebellion if you won't tell me when to cause it?"
"I'm sure that you'll hear about it when it happens."
There were times when Crowley had to, reluctantly, admire the elder Winchester brother. Dean was stubborn if nothing else. The fact that the boy had managed to get not one, but two archangels on his side despite God's prophecies attested to that, even if one of those archangels was newly promoted. His suspicions on the other archangel's identity made up for that and so much more.
"I don't think that you understand the blind obedience and loyalty of most demons, cupcake," Crowley stated.
"So, what, they think that Lucifer will show them more regard and consideration than God has shown either humans or angels? Or that they can expect him to stand up for them or even risk himself when God did neither?"
"Dean!" the protest reached Crowley only faintly over the line, but he was pretty sure that it was the other Winchester brother.
It was something which Crowley only noted absently as almost all of his attention was focused on Dean Winchester's electrifying words. He'd never quite thought of it like that before, but it was a brilliant angle. Sure, most demons still wouldn't listen to him, their obedience far too blind or their minds just too dim, but for those that would listen, it was a very convincing point to make.
"Do you really think that would work on someone like Meg?" Crowley replied, not planning on disclosing his thoughts in the slightest.
"Meg's dead. Got herself smited by an archangel."
With that the line went dead but Crowley ignored that to laugh aloud. Meg dead at the hands of one of Winchester's angels. He wished that he could have been there to see it himself.
/
The silence outside was startling but exactly what Gwen was looking for. It was the kind of silence that only the snow could bring after it had blanketed everything in its thick white embrace and after several hours of nonstop snowing, which was exactly what it had done. The new fall crunched satisfyingly under her boots as she made her way to a plastic chair that had been left out on the porch. It was a quick matter to dust it off and claim the seat for herself, which she did, pulling her knees up so she could wrap her arms around them.
The discussion of what would be the best location for their plan was still going on inside but Gwen had left them to it. Her knowledge of global geography was weak at best so she had little to contribute and had decided to use the opportunity to get away from everyone else for a few moments. The images from yesterday's news came back to her once more and she saw again the horrific extent of the damage wrought and it combined with what she'd seen on the news just a few hours ago to give her a chill once more. One of the foreign news stations had gotten hold of some new footage from tourists who'd been filming the cathedral and she'd caught a glimpse of a very familiar figure standing in the foreground. Or at least a mostly familiar figure as there was absolutely nothing at all familiar about the expression that had graced Christian's face. It still made her shiver to think about it.
Logically Gwen had known what it meant for her cousin to have said yes to Lucifer, but emotionally it hadn't really hit her until earlier today when she'd seen Christian's meatsuit and it clearly wasn't her cousin pulling the strings anymore. And the worst thing was that if Lucifer kept pulling stunts like that of yesterday that it wouldn't be long before people caught on and then Christian's face would be forever associated with all of the devil's atrocities.
It would become the face of pure evil.
Just what the hell had Christian been thinking, saying yes to Lucifer? That was the one thing that Gwen just couldn't get no matter how many times she tried to wrap her mind around it all.
Just why?
Sure, Gwen knew that Christian had gotten the wrong end of the stick about certain things like Samuel's death, but even then she just didn't get it. What could Lucifer have possibly told him that made Christian think that letting the devil in was anything other than a phenomenally bad and stupid idea? Especially after all that her cousin had had to say about Sam and Dean's choices when it came to demons and angels, respectively. None of it had ever been good so why had Christian not followed his own advice when it came to the one being who personified both angels and demons?
The crunching of snow made Gwen look up from her thoughts to find Castiel standing a few feet away. She smiled at him for thinking to give her a gentle indication of his presence rather than startling her.
"Am I bothering you?" Castiel inquired.
"Yes, but it's probably for the best," Gwen replied. "I was wasting time thinking about things that can't be changed."
"Oh?"
It was a sound of genuine interest, made as Castiel took a seat on the porch railing opposite her. It was on the tip of Gwen's tongue to tell him that he'd get all wet from the snow, but then she figured that was probably nothing to Castiel. And even if it was, then she was sure that he could simply will it away with a thought.
"I was just thinking about Christian and how he could possibly have thought it was a good idea to say yes to Lucifer," Gwen explained.
"My brother can be quite persuasive, twisting facts and situations around until they suit his purpose."
"Christian was going on and on about how I couldn't see what was going on before my own eyes the last time he called me. He thought that the way that Samuel died was proof that you, Michael and Raphael were manipulating Dean and the rest of us."
"No doubt that is how Lucifer or Simiel made it appear, giving him just enough information to make Christian think the worst."
"Still, it's not like Christian was some naive civilian who didn't know what he was dealing with."
"Yes, but most of what he knew about Lucifer and the Apocalypse came either directly or indirectly from Dean and myself and he didn't trust either of us."
"That's putting it mildly."
"Yes," Castiel agreed with a nod of his head. "Which is precisely why Lucifer was able to make your cousin doubt. The kind of anger and even hate that Christian held for Dean and everything associated with him left your cousin wide open to my brother's manipulation as it meant that he wasn't thinking clearly anymore."
"And so everything that Lucifer said that confirmed Christian's beliefs was seen as proof that he wasn't lying," Gwen realized.
"It is more than likely, yes."
Gwen thought about that for a moment, mulling it over in her mind. It made a bit of sense, but she still couldn't quite connect it with Christian's ultimate decision to say yes to Lucifer and let the devil take over his meatsuit. But then, she didn't think that she ever would, no matter how much she learned of what may have taken place.
"I still don't get it," she finally stated.
"Neither do I."
"How come you're being so calm and rational about this instead of being far more critical? You can never have liked him, not with how he always treated Dean."
"No, but he was your cousin and you liked him."
Gwen smiled, reaching over to squeeze Castiel's bare hands. "You're very good, Cas. Dean is incredibly lucky to have found someone like you."
Castiel acknowledged Gwen's words with a small tilt of his head. Then the angel turned one of his hands in her grasp and warmth flooded her frozen fingers before spreading through her.
"Thanks," she acknowledged. "I guess I better go inside, huh?"
/
As soon as they'd divided up the inspection of the potential locations that had been chosen, Michael flew himself up to his vessel's room. Dean had said something about needing an extra sweater and now he saw his little one pulling one on. As he waited, he brought his hand close to the kalsika out on display and smiled at the strength of the emotions that it radiated.
A snort drew his attention back to his vessel only to find Dean shaking his head. "Absolutely no respect for privacy you guys, I swear."
"It is nothing that I was not already aware of, Little One. Besides, in Heaven such a strong kalsika would be displayed openly for all to see and touch freely."
One of Dean's eyebrows rose. "Wouldn't that be a sign of pride?"
"No, it is deemed a sign of respect for each angel involved, proof of how deep their bond is."
"Oh, well thanks but I'd like to keep it a bit more private than that."
"And so it shall be."
"Let me guess, more meditation practice?"
"Yes, we need to be able to achieve the proper state as quickly as possible."
"Yeah, okay. But if we're going to do it we might as well be comfortable," Dean stated, getting on the bed. "Come on."
The request startled Michael for a moment as he'd come to see the bed as a human symbol of bonding but his little one was sitting on it differently than he'd ever seen Dean do with Castiel. And he had also been invited onto it once before, when his vessel had been recovering from nearly having been unmade by the First Darkness that Simiel had given Samuel Campbell. A little uncertain but remembering how Castiel had been alright with the situation the other time he'd been allowed on it, he approached the bed and them mimicked his vessel's seated pose, figuring he couldn't go wrong with that.
"So just like before?" Dean inquired with some unease.
"Yes, and perhaps we can discover what it is that we have been feeling as of late."
"Yeah, that would be good as it's starting to drive me a little nuts even if it has been very helpful."
"I am wary of believing it all the time though without knowing the source."
His little one's focus sharpened at those words. "You think it could be something that Lucifer or Simiel is doing to lull us into believing it just to use it against us later?"
"The thought had occurred to me."
"It seems a little subtle for Lucifer's tastes."
"True, but not Simiel's," Michael replied and knew from his vessel's wince that Dean was most likely thinking of what she had done with Samuel. "She has always specialized in devising long-term plans with unexpected twists."
"Great, that's just what we need."
/
With that pleasant thought, Dean closed his eyes and tried to concentrate. The worry wasn't a bad thing now as it simulated in some small way what he might be feeling when they actually had to do this for real.
"I'm not really used to doing this," Dean admitted, reaching out to his vessel bond.
"Doing what, Little One?" Michael inquired.
"Preparing like this."
"No?"
"Nah, I'm normally much more of a charge in and get 'em guy."
"That I have no trouble imaging. But even for your bigger hunts?"
"Oh, I'll do the necessary research to know what I'm up against and how to gank it, but I've never really done trial runs before."
"That explains your seeming lack of plan when you interrupted Lucifer and me."
Dean snorted, finding the action oddly distant and he realized with surprise how deeply he'd already sunk into a meditative state. "There was no plan there, none at all. I wasn't just going to abandon Sammy and Adam to the two of you."
A sense of concern washed over him and Dean just basked in it.
"You don't seem one to have given up like that," Michael finally commented.
"At that point I was pretty much at the end of my rope. I'd already made an attempt to get into contact with you to say yes and been thwarted. I didn't really see a way out anymore. Hell, I'd prayed to your Father, that's how gone I was."
"You never let it show. At least not to us, I was sure that you would never say yes."
"Hence the whole thing with Adam?"
"Yes. I should never have listened to Zachariah, but I was getting desperate myself. I thought that I had to face my brother and kill him."
"Yet look at us now. Who'd have thought back then, ay."
"I never would have believed it."
"Yeah, me neither."
The sense of disconnect with the physical world from before was back and Dean knew that he'd achieved the necessary meditative state. That he'd been able to do it while speaking with his friend was a really good sign. In fact it now seemed so easy that he couldn't help but wonder why he'd had so much trouble with it before. Was it really all down to his bond brother being here with him? If so then that was a good thing as Michael would be with him when they needed to do this for real.
"I'm going to try something," Michael said. "It might feel a little weird."
"Okay."
At first Dean didn't feel anything but then there was an odd twitching of their bond as if it were a tightly strung string or wire that was being plucked. It was almost vaguely reminiscent of being tickled and he had to force himself not react to it, not that he was at all sure what he could do.
"What's that?" Dean asked.
"I'm checking the integrity of the bond. If Simiel were to have managed to tamper with it somehow, this would show it."
In that case Dean could put up with quite a lot of it. To distract himself, he tried to watch how his friend was doing it. Zoned out as he was, it was surprisingly easy to do even though they weren't together. As he watched his bond brother work, he could feel the unease rise within him once more. Not wanting to distract Michael, he kept an eye on it, trying to see if he could sense anything from it. Unfortunately (or fortunately), he didn't really have a sense of his bond sister so he didn't really have anything to compare it to. Now that he was focusing so closely on the feeling, though, it did feel vaguely familiar. But only really, really, really vaguely, to the point where it was more almost an instinctive thing rather than a conscious recognition.
It was really bizarre, especially the sense of pride and joy that he experienced as well and it made Dean feel strangely uncomfortable so he slowly backed away from it.
"Dean!" Michael called out, panic tinged. "Little One."
"What? What is it?" Dean replied, suddenly feeling his bond mate scrabbling at their bond as well. "I'm fine."
The transition from meditative state back to normal was both abrupt and quick since Dean could feel his friend shoving him in that direction as well. The moment that he was back, he felt his husband's arms around him, full of tension.
"What happened?" Castiel demanded.
"I don't know, I was checking out bond to make sure that Simiel wasn't behind the vision," Michael replied.
"It isn't her," Dean stated. "I don't know who it is, but it definitely isn't her."
Which meant that they still didn't know whether they could trust the feelings and visions.
A.N.: *looks about sheepishly* I think the custom of a lot of people going on vacation in the same month should be rethought, it's a damn nightmare if you're one of those stuck behind because you don't want to shell out tons of extra money just to go somewhere. So, yeah, illness + lots of work = epic fail.
What little time I had that wasn't devoted to work was all dedicated to my deancasbigbang fic. But that's with my artist and beta right now so I'm back to this fic, as evidenced above (I hope you liked the new pov, by the way). Up in the next chapter, Dean & Lucifer...
Chapter 196
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: up to and including Exile on Main St., AU from the end of season 5
Warnings: AU, slash, dub-con
Word Count: 3,638
Summary: Crowley is just finishing up his favorite part of a deal when Dean contacts him.
PRESENT
The man was a devious chap, extremely devious, taking far more care with his deal than most humans that Crowley interacted with did. In fact it had been a few centuries since he'd had a human quite like this. As soon as he'd gotten word of what the man was considering, he'd immediately come up to take over the deal himself. It was one of the many perks and prerogatives of being King of the Crossroads now even if coming here at this time did place him in slightly more danger than if he'd remained in hiding. But then, he knew that Lucifer's minions wouldn't be expecting him to make a move like this and the first item of business that he'd taken care of once he'd wrested the title of king from his competitors after the resulting feeding frenzy that had taken place upon Lilith's death had been to bind all of the crossroads demons to him, thereby assuring him of their absolute loyalty and ensuring that none could betray him, even now when half or more wished to.
So here Crowley was, doing his favorite part of any deal, namely sealing it. A task made all the more enjoyable for the fact that the man was a blatant homophobe. He could all but feel the human's disbelief that he was actually kissing another man and the man's disgust. Unable to help himself (and really not seeing why he should even try), he swept his tongue into the man's mouth. There was an instinctive flinch as the man fought not to pull back and Crowley smiled, savoring his power and the memory of the horrified dismay that had crossed the man's face when he'd shown up to seal the deal instead of the lovely Thalia. It was the little things that often gave him the most pleasure.
The ringing of his mobile phone interrupted Crowley's attempt to decide whether or not to keep kissing the man until the human struggled to breathe. It would be interesting to see just how much the man was willing to take to achieve his goals. Alas, it was not to be.
"I'll be seeing you in ten years then," Crowley said, smirking at the man who looked briefly freaked before backing away quickly. "Ta ta for now."
Crowley waited until the man was safely out of ear shot before pulling out his phone and answering it. "Hello, cupcake, how are you today?"
The pause at the other end made Crowley smile. He so enjoyed toying with the elder Winchester brother. Unlike the younger one, Dean was always a pleasure to tease, not to mention quite easy on the eyes. As so often had happened, he couldn't help but wish that he had been the one to seal the Righteous Man's deal. Now that would have been one that he'd have enjoyed. He'd once considered trying to orchestrate the need for another, less demanding, deal, but not only did he think that Dean would never go for it, but Castiel wouldn't allow it and he had absolutely no desire to be squashed like a bug for messing with an archangel's plaything.
Besides, Crowley could only remember all too well the burn of touching Winchester the last time. He was not stupid enough to think that the same or worse wouldn't happen if he tried to kiss the boy now. Castiel hadn't skimped in the slightest when it came to claiming his little pet and he couldn't help but wonder if Winchester was aware of just how much the once littlest archangel had marked him up for everything supernatural to see. And smell.
"How's that rebellion coming along, Crowley?" Dean demanded.
Abrupt and rude as usual, how boringly predictable. If it wasn't for the Winchesters' annoying little habit of coming out on top, Crowley would never have deigned to put up with such an appalling lack of manners for this long.
"Those things take time and finesse, two things which you know little about, I know, but which exist nonetheless."
"You say time and finesse, but all I hear are excuses and cowardice."
"I've thrown my lot in with you, haven't I, cupcake?"
"Only because your scheming against Lucifer was discovered. Which you did not out of any sense of consciousness or justice, but in order to gain more power."
"No, I did it in order to survive."
"Exactly."
Wait a minute, Crowley had a brief moment of confusion before realization dawned. He'd just been played. By a Winchester.
Shock froze him for only a moment before Crowley scrambled to catch up as he still couldn't see quite what the boy was aiming for here.
"You want to survive and you know that is one thing which Lucifer has no interest in. I believe you even said that he'd start in on you demons once he was done with us humans."
"You try making other demons see that, cupcake. They're so convinced that Daddy dearest is on their side that it's almost impossible to make them see otherwise."
"Try."
The command made Crowley bristle but he tried to channel his anger aside. If all went well then he would have plenty of time to teach the boy a lesson once Castiel's attention had drifted elsewhere or the archangel returned to Heaven. Then Dean Winchester would be his to do with as he pleased and he already had more than a few ideas in mind.
"And say what?" Crowley replied instead.
"That they'll be used as cannon fodder when Lucifer confronts Michael or whatever made you see the truth, I don't care."
Crowley paused. "Are you planning something, cupcake?"
"Just remember that if we fail, then you're on your own, Crowley."
They were planning something. Crowley felt an unusual nervous flutter in his meatsuit's belly that he hadn't experienced in years. It was a mix between exhilaration and horror.
"When and where," Crowley demanded.
"That's need to know and you don't."
"How do you expect me to create a rebellion if you won't tell me when to cause it?"
"I'm sure that you'll hear about it when it happens."
There were times when Crowley had to, reluctantly, admire the elder Winchester brother. Dean was stubborn if nothing else. The fact that the boy had managed to get not one, but two archangels on his side despite God's prophecies attested to that, even if one of those archangels was newly promoted. His suspicions on the other archangel's identity made up for that and so much more.
"I don't think that you understand the blind obedience and loyalty of most demons, cupcake," Crowley stated.
"So, what, they think that Lucifer will show them more regard and consideration than God has shown either humans or angels? Or that they can expect him to stand up for them or even risk himself when God did neither?"
"Dean!" the protest reached Crowley only faintly over the line, but he was pretty sure that it was the other Winchester brother.
It was something which Crowley only noted absently as almost all of his attention was focused on Dean Winchester's electrifying words. He'd never quite thought of it like that before, but it was a brilliant angle. Sure, most demons still wouldn't listen to him, their obedience far too blind or their minds just too dim, but for those that would listen, it was a very convincing point to make.
"Do you really think that would work on someone like Meg?" Crowley replied, not planning on disclosing his thoughts in the slightest.
"Meg's dead. Got herself smited by an archangel."
With that the line went dead but Crowley ignored that to laugh aloud. Meg dead at the hands of one of Winchester's angels. He wished that he could have been there to see it himself.
/
The silence outside was startling but exactly what Gwen was looking for. It was the kind of silence that only the snow could bring after it had blanketed everything in its thick white embrace and after several hours of nonstop snowing, which was exactly what it had done. The new fall crunched satisfyingly under her boots as she made her way to a plastic chair that had been left out on the porch. It was a quick matter to dust it off and claim the seat for herself, which she did, pulling her knees up so she could wrap her arms around them.
The discussion of what would be the best location for their plan was still going on inside but Gwen had left them to it. Her knowledge of global geography was weak at best so she had little to contribute and had decided to use the opportunity to get away from everyone else for a few moments. The images from yesterday's news came back to her once more and she saw again the horrific extent of the damage wrought and it combined with what she'd seen on the news just a few hours ago to give her a chill once more. One of the foreign news stations had gotten hold of some new footage from tourists who'd been filming the cathedral and she'd caught a glimpse of a very familiar figure standing in the foreground. Or at least a mostly familiar figure as there was absolutely nothing at all familiar about the expression that had graced Christian's face. It still made her shiver to think about it.
Logically Gwen had known what it meant for her cousin to have said yes to Lucifer, but emotionally it hadn't really hit her until earlier today when she'd seen Christian's meatsuit and it clearly wasn't her cousin pulling the strings anymore. And the worst thing was that if Lucifer kept pulling stunts like that of yesterday that it wouldn't be long before people caught on and then Christian's face would be forever associated with all of the devil's atrocities.
It would become the face of pure evil.
Just what the hell had Christian been thinking, saying yes to Lucifer? That was the one thing that Gwen just couldn't get no matter how many times she tried to wrap her mind around it all.
Just why?
Sure, Gwen knew that Christian had gotten the wrong end of the stick about certain things like Samuel's death, but even then she just didn't get it. What could Lucifer have possibly told him that made Christian think that letting the devil in was anything other than a phenomenally bad and stupid idea? Especially after all that her cousin had had to say about Sam and Dean's choices when it came to demons and angels, respectively. None of it had ever been good so why had Christian not followed his own advice when it came to the one being who personified both angels and demons?
The crunching of snow made Gwen look up from her thoughts to find Castiel standing a few feet away. She smiled at him for thinking to give her a gentle indication of his presence rather than startling her.
"Am I bothering you?" Castiel inquired.
"Yes, but it's probably for the best," Gwen replied. "I was wasting time thinking about things that can't be changed."
"Oh?"
It was a sound of genuine interest, made as Castiel took a seat on the porch railing opposite her. It was on the tip of Gwen's tongue to tell him that he'd get all wet from the snow, but then she figured that was probably nothing to Castiel. And even if it was, then she was sure that he could simply will it away with a thought.
"I was just thinking about Christian and how he could possibly have thought it was a good idea to say yes to Lucifer," Gwen explained.
"My brother can be quite persuasive, twisting facts and situations around until they suit his purpose."
"Christian was going on and on about how I couldn't see what was going on before my own eyes the last time he called me. He thought that the way that Samuel died was proof that you, Michael and Raphael were manipulating Dean and the rest of us."
"No doubt that is how Lucifer or Simiel made it appear, giving him just enough information to make Christian think the worst."
"Still, it's not like Christian was some naive civilian who didn't know what he was dealing with."
"Yes, but most of what he knew about Lucifer and the Apocalypse came either directly or indirectly from Dean and myself and he didn't trust either of us."
"That's putting it mildly."
"Yes," Castiel agreed with a nod of his head. "Which is precisely why Lucifer was able to make your cousin doubt. The kind of anger and even hate that Christian held for Dean and everything associated with him left your cousin wide open to my brother's manipulation as it meant that he wasn't thinking clearly anymore."
"And so everything that Lucifer said that confirmed Christian's beliefs was seen as proof that he wasn't lying," Gwen realized.
"It is more than likely, yes."
Gwen thought about that for a moment, mulling it over in her mind. It made a bit of sense, but she still couldn't quite connect it with Christian's ultimate decision to say yes to Lucifer and let the devil take over his meatsuit. But then, she didn't think that she ever would, no matter how much she learned of what may have taken place.
"I still don't get it," she finally stated.
"Neither do I."
"How come you're being so calm and rational about this instead of being far more critical? You can never have liked him, not with how he always treated Dean."
"No, but he was your cousin and you liked him."
Gwen smiled, reaching over to squeeze Castiel's bare hands. "You're very good, Cas. Dean is incredibly lucky to have found someone like you."
Castiel acknowledged Gwen's words with a small tilt of his head. Then the angel turned one of his hands in her grasp and warmth flooded her frozen fingers before spreading through her.
"Thanks," she acknowledged. "I guess I better go inside, huh?"
/
As soon as they'd divided up the inspection of the potential locations that had been chosen, Michael flew himself up to his vessel's room. Dean had said something about needing an extra sweater and now he saw his little one pulling one on. As he waited, he brought his hand close to the kalsika out on display and smiled at the strength of the emotions that it radiated.
A snort drew his attention back to his vessel only to find Dean shaking his head. "Absolutely no respect for privacy you guys, I swear."
"It is nothing that I was not already aware of, Little One. Besides, in Heaven such a strong kalsika would be displayed openly for all to see and touch freely."
One of Dean's eyebrows rose. "Wouldn't that be a sign of pride?"
"No, it is deemed a sign of respect for each angel involved, proof of how deep their bond is."
"Oh, well thanks but I'd like to keep it a bit more private than that."
"And so it shall be."
"Let me guess, more meditation practice?"
"Yes, we need to be able to achieve the proper state as quickly as possible."
"Yeah, okay. But if we're going to do it we might as well be comfortable," Dean stated, getting on the bed. "Come on."
The request startled Michael for a moment as he'd come to see the bed as a human symbol of bonding but his little one was sitting on it differently than he'd ever seen Dean do with Castiel. And he had also been invited onto it once before, when his vessel had been recovering from nearly having been unmade by the First Darkness that Simiel had given Samuel Campbell. A little uncertain but remembering how Castiel had been alright with the situation the other time he'd been allowed on it, he approached the bed and them mimicked his vessel's seated pose, figuring he couldn't go wrong with that.
"So just like before?" Dean inquired with some unease.
"Yes, and perhaps we can discover what it is that we have been feeling as of late."
"Yeah, that would be good as it's starting to drive me a little nuts even if it has been very helpful."
"I am wary of believing it all the time though without knowing the source."
His little one's focus sharpened at those words. "You think it could be something that Lucifer or Simiel is doing to lull us into believing it just to use it against us later?"
"The thought had occurred to me."
"It seems a little subtle for Lucifer's tastes."
"True, but not Simiel's," Michael replied and knew from his vessel's wince that Dean was most likely thinking of what she had done with Samuel. "She has always specialized in devising long-term plans with unexpected twists."
"Great, that's just what we need."
/
With that pleasant thought, Dean closed his eyes and tried to concentrate. The worry wasn't a bad thing now as it simulated in some small way what he might be feeling when they actually had to do this for real.
"I'm not really used to doing this," Dean admitted, reaching out to his vessel bond.
"Doing what, Little One?" Michael inquired.
"Preparing like this."
"No?"
"Nah, I'm normally much more of a charge in and get 'em guy."
"That I have no trouble imaging. But even for your bigger hunts?"
"Oh, I'll do the necessary research to know what I'm up against and how to gank it, but I've never really done trial runs before."
"That explains your seeming lack of plan when you interrupted Lucifer and me."
Dean snorted, finding the action oddly distant and he realized with surprise how deeply he'd already sunk into a meditative state. "There was no plan there, none at all. I wasn't just going to abandon Sammy and Adam to the two of you."
A sense of concern washed over him and Dean just basked in it.
"You don't seem one to have given up like that," Michael finally commented.
"At that point I was pretty much at the end of my rope. I'd already made an attempt to get into contact with you to say yes and been thwarted. I didn't really see a way out anymore. Hell, I'd prayed to your Father, that's how gone I was."
"You never let it show. At least not to us, I was sure that you would never say yes."
"Hence the whole thing with Adam?"
"Yes. I should never have listened to Zachariah, but I was getting desperate myself. I thought that I had to face my brother and kill him."
"Yet look at us now. Who'd have thought back then, ay."
"I never would have believed it."
"Yeah, me neither."
The sense of disconnect with the physical world from before was back and Dean knew that he'd achieved the necessary meditative state. That he'd been able to do it while speaking with his friend was a really good sign. In fact it now seemed so easy that he couldn't help but wonder why he'd had so much trouble with it before. Was it really all down to his bond brother being here with him? If so then that was a good thing as Michael would be with him when they needed to do this for real.
"I'm going to try something," Michael said. "It might feel a little weird."
"Okay."
At first Dean didn't feel anything but then there was an odd twitching of their bond as if it were a tightly strung string or wire that was being plucked. It was almost vaguely reminiscent of being tickled and he had to force himself not react to it, not that he was at all sure what he could do.
"What's that?" Dean asked.
"I'm checking the integrity of the bond. If Simiel were to have managed to tamper with it somehow, this would show it."
In that case Dean could put up with quite a lot of it. To distract himself, he tried to watch how his friend was doing it. Zoned out as he was, it was surprisingly easy to do even though they weren't together. As he watched his bond brother work, he could feel the unease rise within him once more. Not wanting to distract Michael, he kept an eye on it, trying to see if he could sense anything from it. Unfortunately (or fortunately), he didn't really have a sense of his bond sister so he didn't really have anything to compare it to. Now that he was focusing so closely on the feeling, though, it did feel vaguely familiar. But only really, really, really vaguely, to the point where it was more almost an instinctive thing rather than a conscious recognition.
It was really bizarre, especially the sense of pride and joy that he experienced as well and it made Dean feel strangely uncomfortable so he slowly backed away from it.
"Dean!" Michael called out, panic tinged. "Little One."
"What? What is it?" Dean replied, suddenly feeling his bond mate scrabbling at their bond as well. "I'm fine."
The transition from meditative state back to normal was both abrupt and quick since Dean could feel his friend shoving him in that direction as well. The moment that he was back, he felt his husband's arms around him, full of tension.
"What happened?" Castiel demanded.
"I don't know, I was checking out bond to make sure that Simiel wasn't behind the vision," Michael replied.
"It isn't her," Dean stated. "I don't know who it is, but it definitely isn't her."
Which meant that they still didn't know whether they could trust the feelings and visions.
A.N.: *looks about sheepishly* I think the custom of a lot of people going on vacation in the same month should be rethought, it's a damn nightmare if you're one of those stuck behind because you don't want to shell out tons of extra money just to go somewhere. So, yeah, illness + lots of work = epic fail.
What little time I had that wasn't devoted to work was all dedicated to my deancasbigbang fic. But that's with my artist and beta right now so I'm back to this fic, as evidenced above (I hope you liked the new pov, by the way). Up in the next chapter, Dean & Lucifer...
Chapter 196