December 1st

Genre: Hurt/Comfort

Rating: K+

None of them expects what they find when they arrive at the old churchyard after a massive disturbance in the angel radio. The place is havoc: all the trees in 30 meter radius have crashed down in a perfect circle and black scorch marks adores the stones.

And in the middle of it all, among the head stones, sits Adam leaning against a charred rock and a couple of meters away from him stands the archangel.

"He's fine," Cas says quietly, although Adam can still hear them, he just pretends to be more interested in the furniture of the kitchen.

"There are scars in his soul, but someone has already partially healed them. That's why he's in a better condition than Sam was." The angel glances at the door. On the other side of the bunker, Gabriel is having his own conversation with his brother.

"Great," Dean mutters. "But that doesn't change anything. He has to leave."

"No."

They both turn to look at Adam, who has suddenly stood up from his chair at the counter. He looks challenging at them. "He stays."

"Sorry, Adam, but that fucker is not gonna stay under this roof as long as I have any say to it."

Adam's expression doesn't budge.

"For my part he can crawl back into the hole he came from."

Adam keeps his eyes stead at Dean. "He stays."

Dean is the first one to look away.

Hell changes people. Dean has already learned that the hard way, but it still doesn't make it any easier to see the haunted look that stays behind his brother's eyes.

Whatever Castiel might have said about the scars being already healing, they are still there and visible. At the morning, Adam appears into the kitchen wrapped in one of Sam's old thick hoodies but still looking like he's feeling cold. And on his heels comes Michael.

Neither of them seemed to care nor notice the awkward atmosphere that enters the room with them. Kevin tries to give Adam a tentative smile but the boy doesn't seem to even notice it, concentrating to pick his toast.

Sam glances at the archangel, who leans to the counter behind Adam, and gives Gabriel a look, but the other angel pretends that he doesn't see it. He has been abnormally quiet this morning, refusing to tell what he and Michael had talked last night.

As the day goes on, it doesn't come any better. Adam doesn't speak unless spoken to and he flinches for any sudden noises. He just wanders around the bunker the angel always a few meters behind, attached to him like a second shadow.

It's the second night when another shoe finally drops.

The walls of the bunker are thick, but they only muffle the scream that shakes Dean awake. He blinks against the light when he steps into the hallway and pushes Michael aside from Adam's door. He crouches next his brother's bed and shakes him a little. "Adam, wake up."

"What's happening?" Sam, Cas and Gabriel have also arrived and look confused from Dean to Michael, who looms at the doorway.

"He's having a nightmare."

Cas steps into the gloomy room. "Maybe I can help." He sits on the other side of the bed and lays his hand on Adam's forehead. There's a moment of silence, but then Adam screams again, his eyes springs open and Dean has to hold him down so that he doesn't fall out of the bed attempting to get away from Castiel's touch.

"What the hell was that?" Sam asks from behind them when Adam's breathing has calmed down a bit but he hasn't stop shivering.

"There's a possibility," Gabriel starts and he already sounds sorry, "that in the Cage his soul learned to react to an angel's Grace in a certain way. Apparently it doesn't matter whose it is."

Dean has to take a breath before turning around. Even dazed-looking Kevin has joined the crowd at the door, but Michael has conveniently disappeared.

It is close to midnight, the wind howls outside, and the rain beats metal. Everyone has already gone to bed, but Dean is still up doing research about healing scars of a soul. It has been over a week and Adam still has nightmares every two or three nights. Sam had suggested that one of them should sleep in his room, but Adam had rejected it immediately announcing that he would bar the door if they would even so much as try it. And since the angels' help is out of the question, all they can do is to try to wake him up from his nightmares. After the first nightmare, he hasn't luckily seen Michael hovering around Adam's room.

He has his papers and folders spread on his bed when suddenly the lights flicker off. Dean raises his eyes to the dark ceiling. Something has cut the power. He fumbles through a few drawers for an old flashlight.

In its orange beam, he peeks into the black hallway. Apparently, the whole bunker was dark. Probably a lightning had burned the fume. Where the hell in this place even has a switchboard?

He walks along the hallway, but stops suddenly noticing that one of the unused bedrooms' doors is ajar. Cautiously he pushes it completely open pointing the beam inside. The room is empty, but someone has taken the duvet and the pillows from the bed. He pulls back into the hallway to check the rest of the doors. They are closed.

He's standing at Adam's door. The boy hasn't sounded to have nightmares yet tonight, but he decides to make sure of it. He slowly opens the door: the room is quiet, apart from even breathing. But then the light reaches the bed and he knows where the blanket and the pillows have gone.

There, nested among them, sleeps his brother clutching like a lifeline to the archangel, who in turn has wrapped his arms possessively around him. He seems to be in a deep sleep. Dean stands there for a moment resisting an urge to drag the angel off his brother and kick him out into the storm, but eventually he sighs frustratedly and turns around closing the door softly behind him. Everyone has their own ways of healing their scars, and if this is what works for Adam, then so be it.