Chapter Ten

It took a few hours for Dean to come down from his high. It felt like he had been stressed and worried and angry and grieving for a lifetime, and to suddenly have his brother home safe and his angel in his arms sent Dean shooting for the moon. He had never been happier, ever. This was the best day of his life, and he was sure nothing could spoil it.

Only once Sam had gone to bed, and Dean finally found the will to stop kissing Castiel for a few minutes to let the guy catch his breath, did he think to ask how Castiel had managed to pull off Sam's rescue.

When Castiel told him, Dean was stunned. And not in a good way.

"You traded what?"

"It was the only way, Dean. That was Crowley's price, and I willingly paid it."

"But your Grace? You gave him your Grace?"

"Yes."

He said it like it was not a big deal, but Dean remembered the last time Cas had lost his mojo. He remembered how utterly helpless the powered-down angel had been, how he had felt useless in the fight against evil, how he had been lost and frustrated. Worse, Dean remembered the human version of Castiel that he had met in the future; the man had been on self-destruct, unshaven and unkempt, drowning in drugs, women and decadence. He didn't want his Cas turning into that. He had told Cas not to change, but now he had, and he hadn't even consulted Dean about it.

"Why, why would you give up your Grace?"

Cas just looked at him. "Do you have to ask?"

No, he didn't. He knew Cas had done it for him.

"Damn it."

"It's okay, Dean."

"No it's not! Do you even know what Crowley wanted your Grace for?"

"He wouldn't tell me. But your brother is home, Dean, isn't that all that matters?"

Although Dean couldn't complain about the outcome, he just knew that Crowley couldn't be planning anything good. "This is going to come back and bite us in the ass, you know that, don't you?"

"We'll cross that road when we come to it."

"Bridge," Dean corrected, almost smirking despite himself at the endearing way Cas messed up human sayings. But then he sighed. "What about you? Are you okay?"

"It only hurt for a moment," Cas answered slowly.

That was good, at least. Crowley could have easily turned the exchange into a torture session by taking advantage of Cas once he was made human, but thankfully the demon tended to be true to his word and stuck to the letter of any deal he made.

This was about more than physical pain, though. "Yeah, but, being human. Isn't it freaking you out?"

"Six billion of you seem to manage. I am sure I will adjust."

"Being human is crappy, though."

"Not in all aspects." He reached out to trail his fingers down Dean's arm, a coy smile curving his lips. "In fact, I have found some things to be immensely pleasurable."

Dean smirked. "There is that." And it was definitely the one thing humanity had that trumped being an angel. "Are you going to be alright with the rest of it, though?" He couldn't help but worry about Cas getting hurt and not being able to heal himself straight away, or Cas having his first nightmare, or Cas catching a cold.

Castiel's face twisted into a grimace. "I dislike needing to urinate."

That startled a laugh out of Dean. "Whoa, overshare, buddy."

"The feeling of hunger, too, is unpleasant, but I find the taste of food far more enjoyable now."

Dean grinned as a world of possibilities opened up before him. "We have got to visit Nanna McPherson's pie shop together some time." His mind conjured up images of snuggling up with Cas in a booth, feeding him mouthfuls of freshly baked apple pie, watching the way his mouth closed over the fork and slowly drew back, the bounce of his Adam's apple when he swallowed and the entrancing way he would lick the crumbs from his lips… "Oh yeah. Soon. Very soon."

"I'd like that."

"Anything else bothering you?"

"Cold and heat are sensations I will have to get used to, and I will need to remember to shower regularly…"

A mischievous smile came to Dean's lips. "I can help you with that." It took Castiel a moment to catch onto his meaning, but then his pupils dilated and Dean had to remind himself that they were in the middle of an important conversation. "Seriously though, Cas, you're cool with this whole thing? I mean, you're mortal now, aren't you?"

"Yes. But that, I do not mind so much."

"Why not?" Of everything, Dean thought that being confined to a human lifespan had to scare Cas the most. But for some strange reason the ex-angel was smiling, as though he was actually happy about having only 50 or so years left to live.

Castiel shifted closer so their knees were touching, and took Dean's hands in his own. Blue eyes sparkled like sunlight glinting off ocean waves. "Because, Dean, it means I will be able to spend my life with you."

Dean's breath caught in his throat.

"If you will have me," Castiel amended.

In response, Dean kissed him.

ooOOoo

Dean lounged in an armchair, sipping 12-year-old scotch and feeling utterly content with his life.

"Any of that left?" Sam asked as he entered the room.

Dean still felt a flood of relief every time he saw his brother and a pang of fear when Sam left his sight, but he was sure that in a few days they would be back to their usual bickering. For now, he just accepted the emotions as after-effects of their ordeal and focused on enjoying Sam's company.

He gestured to the little table in the corner of the room. "Yeah, help yourself."

Sam poured himself a glass and pulled up a chair.

"Where's Cas?"

Dean couldn't help but smile at the mention of his- well, they hadn't really labelled their relationship in generic terms like 'partners' or 'boyfriends' yet, but Cas tended to call Dean his hunter and Dean was content to think of Cas as his Cas, so what the rest of the world viewed them as didn't matter.

"He's outside spending some quality time with the bees." Castiel's fascination with the little insects had come to light during his mental siesta, but even with his sanity intact he still delighted in watching them. Dean wouldn't admit it out loud, but he thought it was cute.

"Please tell me he has clothes on this time."

Dean smirked. "For now."

"Is that all you think about?"

"Mostly, yeah." He couldn't help it. Cas was new to being human, and Dean was helping him explore the best experience humanity had to offer. Regularly. And loudly.

Sam rolled his eyes. "Gross, dude."

Dean hesitated, realising for the first time that this had to be strange for his brother. Dean had always been straight, no question, no experimentation. Falling for Cas had been entirely unexpected, but it wasn't like he was in love with a gender or a body shape, he was in love with Cas. The fact that he happened to be incredibly hot with the most gorgeous eyes in all of existence was just an added bonus. Dean had to wonder, though, if his sudden change in sexual orientation was weirding Sam out. "Do you really think so?"

Sam was quick to assuage his fears. "Nah, man, I'm cool with the two of you being together."

Dean breathed a silent sigh of relief.

"I think it is about time, actually. I've been waiting for you to get together for years."

"Really?" How had Sam known they would end up as a couple when Dean himself hadn't even suspected?

"Dude, a blind man could see the way you guys feel about each other. You just needed a bit of a nudge to see it for yourselves."

"Hell of a nudge," Dean said glumly. He wished it had not taken Sam being abducted to make him realise how much he needed Cas in his life. "I'm sorry it took us so long to save you, Sam."

"You did the best you could. And I'm fine Dean, really I am. It wasn't exactly a holiday in a beach resort, but it was nothing compared to the Pit. Besides, now that the trials have been burned out of me, I actually feel better than I did before Crowley took me."

"I'm glad we found out what the trials would do to you before it was too late." Dean shuddered at the thought that Sam might have unknowingly killed himself in his attempt to board up Hell.

"Yeah, me too." Sam gave him a sly, side-long glance, and a teasing lilt entered his voice. "It would have been a shame to miss my brother getting married, adopting a few kids and growing old with his husband."

Once, Dean had been unable to see a future like that for himself. He had always assumed that he was going to die young, ripped to bloody shreds by one of the monsters he hunted, and he had long since become resigned to his fate. But now he could almost picture it; a nice little house with a backyard to play football in and a sensible family car parked in the driveway, a little tyke chasing bees in the garden as his too-large trench coat trailed on the ground behind him, a blue-eyed girl squealing with excitement in Castiel's arms as he spun her around so she felt like she was flying…

"Oh man, you should see the sappy look on your face right now, Dean."

Dean shook himself out of his daze and glared at his brother. "Shut up, Sam."

Sam laughed, but when the hilarity faded his smile softened. "Cas really makes you happy, doesn't he?"

"I don't think I knew what happiness was until he came along," Dean confessed. "Now that I'm with him, everything just feels… lighter." Like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. "Brighter." Like the sun shone just for them. "Better. I had no idea that living could feel this good. I am, I'm happy Sam. And god help me, I'm turning into a love-sick teenage girl."

"Aw, I think it's sweet, Deany."

Dean swatted Sam's arm. "Respect your elders."

"Technically, I've lived longer than you."

"Years not lived on Earth don't count."

"Well, if you factor in maturity levels…"

"I'm plenty mature!"

"Yeah, yeah you are, Dean… for an eleven year old."

"You're an eleven year old!"

"Witty, Dean…"

The banter came as naturally as breathing to the two brothers. Trading insults and comebacks with Sam, Dean felt like the world was finally back to the way it should be.

That was, until every alarm in the building went off at once.

"Dean!"

Castiel's voice could barely be heard over the din, but Dean was already running. He burst into the main room to find a rash of red lights spreading across the electronic map and every button on every console flashing. His eyes sought out Cas, prioritising his safety over everything else, and located him on the upper landing. Castiel's face had drained of colour and he was pointing urgently out the door, like the threat that had the bunker going wild was right on their doorstep.

Dean didn't hesitated, sprinting up the staircase with Sam hot on his heels. Castiel caught his wrist, fingers tightening over his pulse, and tugged him outside.

A firestorm was raining from the heavens.

"What's going on?" Dean yelled as deafening explosions shook the countryside.

"Meteor shower?"

Castiel shook his head, seeing more than they could even without his mojo. "Angels."

"They're Falling?" Sam gasped. "All of them?"

"What? How?"

"I don't know!" Cas exclaimed. "It shouldn't be possible! To expel the angels from Heaven would take a spell more powerful than any known to man, demon or angel."

A terrible thought occurred to Dean. "But God would know, wouldn't he? And if he wanted it written on the Angel tablet, that means-"

Horror dawned on Castiel's features. "-Metatron knows."

"He made a deal with Crowley, and they stole your Grace. What if it was one of the ingredients they needed for the spell?"

Tears welled up in Castiel's eyes as he watched his brethren fall from the sky. "Then this is all my fault."

Dean grabbed his shoulders, forcibly turning Cas around to face him. "No. Don't you dare take this on yourself. You didn't do this; you are not responsible for the actions of a demon and a traitor. You had no way of knowing what they had planned."

"But they used my Grace-"

"Which you traded for Sam, for me. You had good intentions, and no matter what crap comes from this I am grateful for what you did."

"I – don't regret it… But the fact remains that I contributed to the decimation of Heaven. I have to find a way to make it right."

Dean looked Cas in the eyes. He could read in their depths the grief, the guilt and the determination Cas felt. He hoped Cas could read the admiration, the support and the sincerity in his. "Then we'll do it together."

"All three of us," Sam said.

"You're not alone in this," Dean promised. "We'll deal with it the same way we always do. As a family. Okay?"

"Okay," Cas echoed quietly.

Dean leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips.

"We'll work it out, Cas. You'll see."

Cas shifted so his forehead rested against Dean's. The words he uttered were soft. "I'd be lost without you."

Dean felt exactly the same way about Cas. If the past month had taught him anything, it was how much they needed each other. "Then I guess you're stuck with me."

Despite everything, despite the grief of the moment and the knowledge of the long hard road ahead, Cas smiled.

They had each other. What more did they need?

ooOOoo

The End

A/N: Cue Season 9, with a Destiel twist ;) Thanks for reading all the way to the end! I hope you enjoyed following the story as much as I enjoyed writing it. I'm a sucker for reviews, so let me know what you thought :)