It happened so fast, Dean barely had time to register what was going on.

It was a routine hunt; now that the gates of Hell had been closed, the Winchesters didn't have to worry about the bigger baddies throwing a wrench in humanity's plans. It was simply a case of mopping up the remaining low-level demons hunkered down in their meatsuits. Garth had spread the word between hunters and it seems that slamming the gates of Hell shut forever had done a lot of good to the Winchester name. Many hunters forgave the brothers for their part in the apocalypse, although some were still distrustful of Sam for his demon blood binges. If they had known about Cas' part in the Leviathan release it might not have absolved them, but as it was the only person besides the brothers who knew about it was dead. Together with groups of hunters across America and in other parts of the world, the Winchesters were focusing thoroughly on dispatching the last of the black-eyed bastards, occasionally throwing in a salt-and-burn or witch hunt if they came across one although with no demons available to lend their power to the wannabe-occult, the latter was harder to come by, much to Dean's relief.

This hunt was no different. The boys had tracked what they thought was a single, medium-level demon who was hunkered down in North Dakota, not too far from the burned down shell of Bobby's house. What they found in the abandoned warehouse was enough to throw them off their game. Three demons were pacing the cracked concrete floor while another one tortured what Cas confirmed to be an angel for information on how to reopen the gate.

Normally, being outnumbered wouldn't have been an issue but since Castiel's escape from Purgatory, the angel's Grace had yet to replenish. Resigned to a life of not-quite-human, not-quite-angel, he had traded in his trademark tie and trenchcoat for jeans and Dean's hand-me-down shirts and picked up hand to hand combat with ease. Still a terrible shot with a gun however, Sam had found him a pair of rune-engraved sai swords in one of Bobby's old storage units that seemed to pack enough of a punch to incapacitate a demon which gave them enough time to perform an exorcism, while leaving the host's body well enough to recover most of the time. Dean had handed Cas a red bandana and laughed until he cried when he saw Cas wearing it and constantly asked the angel to say things like 'Cowabunga dude' – Cas was not amused.

Despite the number disadvantage, Dean gave the signal for Sam and Cas to enter from the back while Dean distracted the group long enough for Cas to cut the angel loose. Dean was banking on the angel being grateful enough to stick around and help clean house but the plan was ruined when the demon torturing the angel suddenly stopped and snapped his fingers. Two demons disappeared and materialized seconds later holding Sam and Cas. Rushing into the room, Dean found himself surrounded and the leader standing in front of him, smiling evilly.

"Dean Winchester," he said with a purr in his voice, eyes flicking to black as he spoke. "You boys have caused quite a bit of trouble over the past few years, haven't you? Just think of what a reward I will get when I not only reopen the gates of Hell, but make sure the three of you find your way downstairs. I might even be given the honour of working over the angel. I doubt you'll get the choice to climb off the rack again, but I wonder how long little Sammy here will take to break. Anyone want to place bets?"

The ring of demons snickered around Dean and his anger flared at the thought of his brother and Cas being tortured in Hell. He nodded once at Cas and spread his arms in a benevolent gesture.

"Tell ya what boys, you let my brother and Cas go and I promise we won't kill you," he mocked. "We'll only exorcize you, quick and painless. You won't even feel a thing."

The leader laughed. "Oh yeah, and how do you plan on taking down all four of us by yourself?"

Dean grinned wolfishly at them all. "Just like this, asshole."

At that, Castiel whipped out the arm that had snaked inside his jacket, startling the demon just long enough so he could pull the pin and throw the smoke grenade in the air. It went off just as it was beginning its descent and smoke filled the air. The sprinkler system groaned to life and seconds later, the smoky air was filled with screams as the water blessed by Castiel hit the demon's skin. Cas and Sam broke free and began fighting the two demons closest to them. Dean pulled the demon killing knife from its place on his belt and swung at the demon standing to his left.

Already, the short supply of water in the sprinkler's tank was running out and the demon was rubbing blistered hands across her face to clear her vision. She blocked Dean's attack with her forearm and sunk a fist into his stomach. Dean dropped to his knees with a grunt but managed a glancing blow to her torso. A tortured scream from the back of the warehouse, signaling either Sam or Cas' defeat of their demon, distracted her long enough for Dean to rise to his feet and sink the knife into her chest. With a flash, the demon died and the body slid to the floor.

Sounds of a struggle continued at the back of the room and as the smoke began to clear, Dean saw Sam and Cas teamed up against the other demon. Looking around for the leader, he saw no signs of it and headed towards the angel tied up in the chair. Cutting loose his bonds, Dean tilted the angel's face up and lightly slapped his cheek.

"Hey, hey, you're gonna be alright, okay? We got you," he said.

The angel turned his blue eyes toward Dean and slurred, "Dean Winchester?"

"Samandriel? Dude, you have got to be the unluckiest angel I have ever seen," he said with a small chuckle. "C'mon, let's get you out of here."

Another scream at the back of the room meant the third demon had been taken care of. Dean glanced over at the pair, Sam slightly breathless with his hands on his knees, and Cas daintily wiping the blood off his sai. He smiled at the angel when a shadow detached itself from the wall and slammed the silver point of an angel blade into Castiel. The angel looked down in shock as the blade protruded from his stomach and looked at Dean before he collapsed on the ground.

"No!" Dean shouted, reaching behind him for the demon knife tucked into his belt. Like a whip, the arm flicked forward and the knife embedded itself into the demon's chest faster than he could realize what was happening. The body tumbled to the floor with the smug look of victory still on its face.

"Cas!" Dean rushed forward, boots tracking holy water through the ash left by Castiel's wings. "Cas, no, c'mon buddy, don't die, you can't die."

"Dean, it's too late," Sam said, grabbing onto Dean's shoulder with tears in his eyes. "He's gone man."

"No, don't say that Sammy," Dean said kneeling to the ground and pulling Castiel's body to his chest. "We've been through so much, he can't die. He can't, because I never told him. I never told him Sam." Dean's vision blurred and he looked up at his brother, blinking away tears.

Sam knelt to the ground beside his brother. "You never had to Dean. He knew. He always knew. I'm pretty sure he knew before you even did."

Dean choked back a sob and clutched at Castiel's jacket. At the sound of shuffling footsteps, both brothers looked up to see Samandriel making his way slowly towards them.

"You! You're an angel, you can fix him. Bring him back!" Dean demanded.

Samandriel bowed his head before he shook it slowly back and forth. "I cannot, Dean Winchester. Healed him perhaps, although not in this weakened state, but I am afraid that a fatal blow with an angel sword is beyond even my help." He looked down at his fallen brother. "Castiel is gone, Dean. But take comfort in the knowledge that I will tell stories of his bravery and loyalty, for even though he rebelled against Heaven, he embodied the exact purpose we were created for. To love."

Dean gritted his teeth and pulled the angel blade from Castiel's back.

"That's not good enough!" he shouted as he threw the sword at Samandriel. The sword missed its mark by a wide margin, but Samandriel took a step backwards and tilted his head to the side, listening.

"If it is any consolation to you, Castiel is not in Purgatory. Our Father has chosen to give him the respite he earned and will now rest in the arms of his Lord."

"What's that mean? He's back in Heaven? He can just find a new vessel and come back right?" Dean asked hopefully.

Sam looked sadly at his brother. "No Dean. There's no coming back this time."

"Sam is right," the angel said. "Castiel died an angel, but our Father has allowed his Grace to enter Heaven much like a human soul. He will live eternally in a setting of his choice. I believe he preferred the Heaven of a man in a park once, but it may be he has chosen a new place now."

He raised a hand in goodbye to his brother, said farewell to the Winchesters, and was gone in a rustle of wings.

Dean held onto Cas' body until he had no more tears to cry.

/

They gave Castiel a hunter's funeral between the rusted shells of junkers in Bobby's old scrap yard. Dean tied the red bandana across Cas' eyes, and Sam placed the sai swords on his chest, and they watched until the last ember had died out half hoping for another miracle.

Dean drank himself into alcohol poisoning that night, and as Sam watched the nurses pump his stomach full of charcoal, he thought that this was just the first into a long line of half-cocked suicide attempts by Dean now that Cas was dead.

But Dean surprised him when he was released from the hospital. He quit drinking all together, continued to hunt demons without going on a kamikaze rampage and even talked to Sam late at night after a hunt about Castiel. Several months passed, and Sam received more acceptance letters to college and this time Dean suggested it was time for Sam to get out of the life and back into the one he wanted. Sam was suspicious of Dean's motives at first, but Dean seemed genuinely ok. He even suggested that he would retire from the life and get an apartment near whichever school Sam choose, and only go off on the occasional hunt.

"I'm getting to old for this shit Sam," he said. "And you were right, everyone we know is dead. You're all I have left in this world and I want you to be happy. Mom never wanted this for us anyways, and with all the demons locked in Hell, nobody else will have to go through what we went through."

There were holes with that argument, Sam knew. He knew there were still werewolves, and vampires and wedigoes and creatures from people's nightmares still out there, hurting people. But he wanted so badly to get out while he and his brother were still alive, he agreed.

And for a few more months, it was perfect. Dean got a job at a local auto shop and Sam took up his pre-law classes (his tuition only paid partly in fraudulent funds) and sometimes Dean or the pair would take a nearby case if it came up. Garth would drop in unannounced occasionally to see what they were up to, and for all that Dean would grumble about him trying to be the new Bobby and acting like a grade A 'idjit', he smiled more when the younger hunter was visiting and his laughs were just a little less fake.

So of course, Sam wasn't expecting it when Dean didn't come home from a hunt.

/

Dean's only thought as he died was how much more peaceful this death was compared to his others. There was nobody being forced to watch him die, no one to make a deal for his soul, and no collateral damage. The side of the semi-truck was damaged, but unless the trucker was carrying people in the trailer, no one else had to die because of him.

He felt rather than saw someone standing next to him and he struggled to turn his head, crying out in pain as glass dug into his shoulder as he shifted.

"Shh, shh, shh honey, you're okay," a familiar voice said and Tessa's face swam into view. "Don't struggle, it's almost time. And don't even think about running from me. Someone is waiting for you."

Dean whispered an apology to his baby, and then to his brother, and finally closed his eyes.

/

Thanks to Dean's (mostly) legitimate drivers' license – assumed names wouldn't work if Sammy ever wanted to be a real lawyer, but their birthplaces and birthdays had been fudged so they weren't pegged by the FBI – the police officer who attended the scene knew how to get a hold of Sam to deliver the news.

"Was it a suicide?" Sam asked with trepidation.

"Suicide?" the voice on the phone asked. "Not unless he would cut his own brake lines and drive into a semi-truck. No son, unfortunately it looks like your brother was murdered but we don't have any leads. Was there any reason your brother was in town?"

Sam swallowed hard. Dean had been tracking a kitsune down the highway and had stopped overnight at a motel the night before he died. "No, he was just passing through."

"Well then, I'm afraid there's not much else we can do. I'll let you know if anything turns up."

Sam thanked the officer and hung up the phone, staring blankly at the wall.

/

Dean opened his eyes and did a double take. He was standing inside a rundown barn, covered in sigils and protective markings. Thunder crashed outside and lightning lit up the sky. Just as he remembered where he knew the barn from, the doors crashed open and a dark haired man in a trenchcoat marched through, face contorted with anger.

"You…you…you bastard," Castiel spat, as he shoved at Dean's shoulder. "I did not rebel against Heaven and get myself killed protecting you just so you could off yourself at your earliest convenience. How could you?" The last sentence was punctuated with another shove.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa there Cas," Dean said, face split into a wide grin despite the abuse. "I didn't 'off' myself, honestly. It was a car accident. I was tracking a kitsune and stopped overnight at a motel. Someone cut my brake lines, I hit a semi-truck. Bam. End of story."

Castiel blinked and his mouth made an 'O' of surprise. "My condolences."

"Don't think I didn't think about it, after you were gone," Dean continued. "But I figured you'd be pretty pissed if I killed myself, so I kept truckin'. Got Sammy set up in college, started working at a place with benefits, set up a nice insurance policy in case something happened. Only took on a few hunts a month. Kinda hoped my welcome would be a bit warmer though, when the time did come. Thought you might be glad to see me." Dean winked at the former angel and Castiel blushed and looked at his feet.

"Though the circumstances leave much to be desired, I am glad to see you," Cas said, blushing even harder. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," Dean said, grabbing Castiel by the lapels and hauling him in for a bruising kiss. "Kinda upset I didn't do that while we were still alive though."

Castiel looked at him coyly from under his lashes. "Well, we have all of eternity now…"

Dean laughed and pulled him in for another kiss.

/