Dean yawned loudly, scrubbing at his face to wake up some as he stumbled down the hall towards the kitchen of the bunker for some breakfast. And by breakfast, he meant a cup of coffee. And maybe some pie. He, Sam, and Cas had just gotten back from a hunt late last night and Dean was needing some caffeine to feel remotely like a human again. The case had been an odd one and Dean was glad it was over.

Dean glanced down at his watch and groaned. It was nearing 1 pm. Dean couldn't remember a time where he'd slept in so late. But he supposed it was because he was driving all night, arriving back at the bunker some time between 5 and 6 am. He'd barely managed to stay awake long enough to clean the blood off of himself before passing out on the bed.

Before he was able to make it to his coffee, his vision was filled with a bright, white light, and Dean snapped his eyes closed reflexively, covering his eyes with his hands and felt like he was falling for a second before he regained his balance. Dean shook his head to clear the dizziness away. Had he hit his head too hard last night, and he just didn't notice until now? If so, that was pretty worrying.

Then Dean realized that he wasn't in the bunker anymore. He looked around quickly and found himself in a cage in the corner of a room that he hadn't seen before. The only furniture in the room besides the cage was a metal table in the middle with handcuffs attached to the center, like what's in police interrogation rooms. There were no doors, and no windows, all four walls made of cement, a dark gray, leaving a creepy, cold feeling.

"Dean?"

Dean spun around and heaved a sigh of relief.

"Sam."

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"Nah, I'm fine. Do you know what happened? Where we are?"

"No clue, but it can't be good. I mean, what could possibly capture us just like that," Sam snapped his fingers for emphasis. "I suppose it could be something like an angel, they can fly other people around like that, but we should've been able to see them when they appeared before we taken, or after, when they left us here. You were here first, did you see anyone when I was brought here?"

"No," Dean grumbled "I was trying to figure out where I was." He turned to survey the room, hoping to see something he didn't before.

Dean shoved at the bars of the cage, but they didn't budge. He looked for the door or gate or whatever to open and close the cage but he couldn't find one.

"How the hell…?" Dean trailed off, before he noticed something. "Where's Cas?" Dean asked, trying to keep the panic out of his voice.

"Crap. No idea. I was with him having breakfast back in the bunker when I was poofed. Maybe he's okay. Maybe they didn't get him."

"Or maybe they took him somewhere else and doing something horrible to him," Dean growled out, angry at what the creature could be doing to Cas without him there to protect his angel.

"No, no," a new voice said. "I was just wanting a moment to speak to him alone without you two insufferable humans interfering."

Dean could hear Sam's hatred when he spoke coldly. "Lucifer."

"Hiya, Sam. Miss me?" Lucifer chuckled and waved. "I kinda missed you too, you know. Didn't have anyone to play with," Lucifer pouted. "But that doesn't matter now, I've got a new toy."

Lucifer was standing on the other side of the table and beside him, handcuffed, was Cas. There was no chair, so Cas was leaning down at an awkward angle, forearms resting on the table. His face was dirty and sweaty and there was some blood dripping down from his temple, past his cheek.

"Cas!"

"I'm okay," Cas whispered in his rough voice, his bright blue eyes locked on Dean's.

"Aww, how adorable. So caring of each other. Which is unfortunate for you because yes, he's okay… for now. You see, you three keep irritating me, and getting in my way, spoiling my plans! So I decided to take matters into my own hands, do something to put you lot out of the game for a while. You break my toys, I break yours. It'll take a lot of time and care to fix it, so to speak. You'll be out of the game long enough for me to have some fun."

"Let. Cas. Go." Dean growled.

"Hmm, let me think. Nope! Man, you'd almost convinced me there!" Lucifer laughed. "Anyhoo, you've been annoying me, and I'm putting that to an end. Now."

Lucifer put his hands on Cas' back between his shoulder blades and closed his eyes. Lucifer started speaking words that Dean hadn't heard before, his voice growing louder and louder until he finished in a shout. Their two bodies started to glow a bright white light, so bright, that Dean had to close his eyes and turn away.

Dean could hear Cas shouting, screaming as if in pain, and Dean almost turned to look, to find some way to help Cas out, but he knew that if he did, he'd be blinded, and would be even less help.

When the light went away, Dean turned around and gasped.

Cas had huge, black wings sprouting from his back that filled the room. The wings were dirty, there were bare patches where the feathers fell out, and the ones around the edges looked burnt, but nevertheless, Dean knew without a doubt, that they were the most beautiful things he had ever seen.

"Cas," Dean breathed out, tearing his eyes away from the wings to look at his best friends face. Dean was horrified to see that there was sweat pouring more freely now, a pained look on his face as Cas was gasping, breathing hard.

"Yes, Cas always was a bit of an outsider with his black wings. Not a colour most angels have, usually they're more, hmm, how do I put it, elegant, graceful colours, like white or gold. More beautiful. Cas was one of the few with black wings, which is seen as abominations. Disgusting things."

"What?! No, they're not abominations, they're beautiful!" Dean yelled at Lucifer.

"Glad you think so. Now normally, humans can't see an angel's wings, as they are too magnificent to be perceived by such petty things, like the likes of you, and are kept on a different plane of existence. But lucky you, I manifested them on this plane so you could really see what I am doing. You'll appreciate them more when they're gone." Lucifer grinned wickedly and Dean's blood ran cold.

Lucifer once again placed his hands on Cas' back, at the base of his wings. Lucifer closed his eyes and concentrated.

Then Cas let out a blood curdling scream that chilled Dean to the bones. Cas kept screaming and screaming and screaming and Dean was shouting and he could hear that Sam was shouting beside him but as if at a distance, hard to hear over his blood pumping, nothing but a white noise and Dean was angry, Dean was angry at Lucifer, angry at how he was hurting Cas. Dean's Cas. Dean was throwing himself at the bars of the cage over and over and over, needing for them to budge. Needing for them to move, to open so that he could get to Cas, so that he could stop Lucifer from doing whatever what he was doing to hurt Cas. Dean didn't even know what he was shouting, just knew that he was. He could feel his throat getting sore, but all he could hear was Cas screaming and screaming and screaming and then Cas was crying and crying and crying. Crying loud, anguished sobs that broke Dean's heart.

Cas' legs had given out and he was held up a few inches from sitting on the ground by the handcuffs attached to the table. The skin around his wrists were red and cut and bleeding. Cas' head was resting against the table as if too heavy for him to hold up and he was sobbing.

"CAS! CAS! CAS! LUCIFER! LET CAS GO NOW! LET ME OUT! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?"

Cas' wings were gone as if they were never there in the first place, and Dean wondered if he had just imagined them.

"I cut off dear Cassie's wings," Lucifer said calmly.

"You WHAT?"

Lucifer rolled his eyes. "Are you deaf as well as dumb and incompetent? I said I cut them off. They're gone. Poof. No longer exist."

"You monster. You don't even deserve the worst torture known to any being that has ever existed. You deserve less than-"

"Yes, yes, yes," Lucifer cut him off. "Blah, blah, blah, don't care. I'm out of here. Bye, have fun." And with that, Lucifer was a gone as suddenly as he had appeared.

"YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Dean yelled and gave a final shove on the bars and stumbled when the whole side of the cage swung open like a door with no resistance.

Not bothering to find out why, Dean ignored the cage and ran over to Cas. Dean quickly opened the cuffs, and immediately Cas' body fell the last few inches to the floor and he started to fall over, going with his body's momentum and gravity, as he continued to sob, body trembling violently.

Dean grabbed his shoulders to steady him.

"Cas? Cas?" Dean brushed Cas' hair out of his face. "I'm here, I'm here. I'm here, buddy. I've got you, he's gone. He's not going to hurt you anymore. I'm here."

Dean pulled Cas' in to him, his head in the crook of Dean's neck, arms wrapping around Dean's waist tightly. Almost too tightly, but Dean didn't care, Cas' comfort came before his own. Especially after what just happened. Dean would give anything to help ease the pain Cas was suffering.

Dean's eyes had closed when he pulled Cas in, one hand around the small of his back, and the fingers of the other were woven in through Cas' hair. His soft, soft black hair that Dean dreamed of running his fingers through some times, and of gently, playfully tugging other times.

Dean's chin was hooked over Cas' shoulder, and when he opened his eyes, he saw the extent of damage that Lucifer inflicted onto Cas.

His back where his wings had been was all bloody. There was torn skin and there were a few feathers left protruding out of the open wound. Dean subconsciously tightened his grip on Cas as he stared at Cas' back.

Cas' crying had lessened some, enough for him to gasp out Dean's name.

"Shhhh, shh, baby. Don't speak," Dean whispered, not aware of the affectionate nickname that slipped out.

"Dean, I can't- I can't feel my wings. I can't- they're-" Cas broke off in renewed tears.

"Shh, baby," Dean pressed a kiss to the top of Cas' head. "It's gonna be okay. I'm here. I've got you," Dean continued to cradle Cas in his embrace, whispering sweet nothings and comforting words until Cas stopped crying a long while later.

Dean felt little puffs of air on his collarbone and when he looked down, he saw that Cas was asleep.

"We need got to get him out of here."

Dean looked up, startled. He'd forgotten that Sam was there with them.

Sam crouched behind Cas a placed a hand on his shoulder.

"We need to get his wound cleaned and bandaged up before it gets infected."

Dean nodded and looked down at Cas. Sam cupped Dean's cheeks and wiped away tears that Dean didn't know were there.

"Hey, he's going to be okay, Dean. I promise you. You know he will be. He's strong. He's a fighter. And when we're all good and ready, we'll go find Lucifer and make him pay for what he did. Okay?"

Dean took a deep breath and stood up, holding Cas bridal style in his arms, not wanting to let go of his best friend for even a second.

"Let's go home."