He woke up in a white room. Frowning, Dean blinked several times. 'Room' wasn't exactly appropriate to describe where he was. The word described a solid structure, an enclosed space with walls and a door. There were no walls, or ceiling, really. In every direction there was just whiteness, the floor solid beneath him as he pulled himself into a sitting position, trying to force his brain to process whatever had happened to land him wherever he was.

They'd been fighting a battle…

He shot to his feet with sudden, dawning horror. He'd died. No, no, he couldn't die! Cas! And Sam! They needed him; Cas needed him. He'd promised never to abandon the angel, and neither Heaven or Hell was gonna steal him away from the angel now that they'd finally gotten together. He wasn't going to make Cas live through his greatest fear of being left alone, the thought of what the angel must be going through making him feel sick.

Whirling around frantically, he came to a sudden stop at the sight of the man standing before him, as though waiting to be noticed.

The man- God- smiled warmly. "Hello, Dean."

Dean swallowed thickly. "I'm dead," he said.

It was part panic, part uncomprehending bewilderment. It didn't make sense and needed to be fixed. He couldn't be dead. This needed to be fixed, be undone, made as though it had never happened.

God stepped forward, his form shifting slightly as he did, so that he looked similar yet different than he had a moment ago. "Yes. You fought bravely and died a hunter's death."

Raising a hand, the blond shook his head. "No, you don't understand," he exclaimed. God arched a brow, and yeah, it probably wasn't a good idea to snap or raise your voice at God. He purposefully tried to make his voice more neutral, beseeching. "I can't be dead. My brother and Casneed me. I need them." He shook his head. "I don't want my own Heaven and a false version of them, I just want them."

Breathing in deeply, God placed an arm around Dean and began leading him gently, fingers squeezing the hunter's shoulder.

"I want to show you something."

They walked a few paces before God swept a hand across the air like he were wiping steam off of a mirror. Before their eyes, a series of images appeared, like surveillance feeds. The bottom one showed his blood-covered body still on earth, cradled in Cas' arms. His skin was disturbingly pale, the blood that should have given his flesh color covering the pavement instead. The angel looked fierce and devastated in one; tear streaked though he was, he was demanding that the demon kneeling beside them must be able to do something. Sam was yelling the same thing at Michael, fists curled in the front of the archangel's jacket, but he just shook his head, neither he nor Crowley meeting their gazes.

In the background, Meg was irate and throwing an absolute fit, hurling or hitting whatever she could get her hands on. Then suddenly, they were all yelling at each other in a mix of desperation and hopelessness, as grief and the sense of being wronged grew to a boiling point.

Dean's green eyes drifted to the other video feed that showed Gabriel, Anna, and Lucifer attacking a delicate looking gate that shimmered like mother of pearl. The angels flew full force into the gate and fired concentrated beams of smiting power at it, doing everything to get past the gilded blockade that looked as though it should have shattered under the simplest of their attacks. Dean had never seen any of them look so terrifyingly furious.

"You've inspired them to attack the very gates of Heaven- their home- to try and retrieve your soul," God stated softly.

The hunter looked at him in shock. "That's Heaven? They're attacking Heaven?"

The being beside him shrugged. "Well, I suppose they have good reason to angry. I did ensure they wouldn't be able to save you as you lay dying, and when they failed, they immediately came to retrieve you." He shook his head. "I wouldn't allow that either."

Dean looked at Him, brows drawn together. "But… why?" Seriously, as many times as they had come back to life, and considering they had just saved the freaking planet, Dean thought he'd fucking earned another free pass when it came to dying.

God inclined His head toward the images. "Because you needed to see. Because they needed to learn." Rather than being angry that the angels had launched an assault on their home, a fond smile teased the corners of His mouth, eyes on the screen before He turned his back, motioning for Dean to follow. "There's something else I want to show you."

With one last lingering look over his shoulder at the images of his friends and family in the grips of their grief and rage, Dean hurried to catch up with the father of the angels.

"You see, Dean," He began, "you and your brother are the product of something very special."

"Making us the perfect vessels for Michael and Lucifer," the younger of the two recited. His eye roll was automatic and he immediately flinched, gazing worriedly at God.

The man beside him smiled in amusement as they walked through the white void. "Do they look like they need you or your brother to walk the earth?" He questioned, arching a brow.

Confused, the hunter shook his head. "Yeah, but that's because you did that. Gave them vessels they wouldn't burn through."

"Because their motives for being on earth changed," He pointed out as the white darkened, became a swirl of dim light and shadow, then into obscure shapes around them Dean couldn't make out. God snapped His fingers. "Let's have a little light," He said, and Dean wondered if He wasn't being ironic.

Sconces on the walls illuminated, Dean turning in surprise at the round room they found themselves in. Above them was a half circle walkway and iron stairs leading down, the walls lined with outdated instruments and panels. In the center of the room was a large under lit table and world map. Further in and through a stone archway, lights flickered on revealing an extensive library and massive telescope.

Baffled, Dean looked to the man beside him, noting His appearance had shifted again. "What is this place?"

Moving over to a table with a chess board apparently in mid-game, God idly moved one of the pieces. "You see Dean, your mother was the product of a famous line and legacy, but so was your father, though he never came to realize it." Folding His hands behind His back, God began a slow circle around the room as He explained. "There weren't always only hunters fighting back the monsters of the night. Once, they held a tentative alliance with the Men of Letters, scholars and researchers who dedicated their entire lives to the study of the supernatural. Admittance into their ranks was a privilege afforded by bloodline, passed on from father to son. John Winchester was meant to inherit this legacy, but your grandfather, Henry Winchester, was killed in 1958 by the demon knight Abaddon, as were all the active Men of Letters.

'Your father was meant to become one of the Men of Letters. Your mother a hunter. These two factions that had had a tenuous, yet mutually beneficial partnership for centuries would finally be joined through the tying of the bloodlines. That was the purpose of bringing your parents together, not so that you could be the vessels of Michael and Lucifer. You were meant for something better than being the pawns in my children's squabbles."

Dean snorted, casting his eyes away and down, one hand reaching out and fiddling with some of the pieces on the map on the table in the center of the room.

"Hunters are dying off," God said. "Their isolation even from each other is causing too many to die young when had they had better information, more backup, if they were plugged into a better network of hunters… they would have survived, lived longer, not left orphaned children behind. Humanity would be safer if the soldiers on the front lines had more reliable information and better training."

Frowning, the blonde raised his head, suddenly lost in the conversation. "That I well know. It's all I seem to see. Tell me something I don't know."

God spread His hands, gesturing to the base around them. "This is your inheritance, Dean. Yours and Sam's." The hunter blinked. "This is a place of study and education. A safe harbor and refuge. This is where you and Sam were meant to make a difference. It has many, many secrets and rooms and levels to explore and discover, so I'll leave that to you rather than spoiling the fun." He offered a one-sided smile, looking amused and fond. "This is where you find your balance, Dean."

Even as He said the words, He held out a hand, an open box in His palm with a complicated key in its center. He offered it to the elder Winchester.

Dean stared at the key, and then his eyes drifted up to the man offering it. "I'm dead," he said simply.

Amusement stretched God's mouth into a grin, His shifting eyes warm and teasing. "When have you ever been known to stay dead, Dean Winchester?"

Dean's eyes flew open as his body sucked in a sharp gulp of breath, his body rising up with the effort, like he were bursting through the surface of water after nearly drowning. He gasped and sputtered, hearing sudden exclamations of surprise as hands grabbed ahold of him. He flailed against them instinctively, disoriented and blinking rapidly, trying to bring the world that seemed to lurch and spin around him back into focus.

"Dean! Dean! Calm down! It's us!"

That voice Dean would always know even if he died a thousand times and lived a million years.

"Sam," he croaked, voice a rasp.

Then he suddenly had an armful of Sam Winchester, all long limbs and enormous body, nearly threatening to squeeze the newly given life right back out of him.

"I'm alright, Sam," Dean said, holding back tightly, remembering the expression that had been on his brother's face in the aftermath of Dean's demise. "I'm okay."

The taller male leaned back, glaring fiercely even with the tears in his eyes. "You were dead, Dean. Dead! You've been dead for hours! Tessa vanished and wouldn't come back, nothing the angels tried worked, Crowley couldn't do anything, and Lucifer and the others couldn't even getinto Heaven to retrieve you-"

"Yeah, I saw that," he croaked, throat feeling raw and parched, making him glance around hopefully for a canteen of some kind, but finding nothing.

"-What the hell, oh God," Sam paled in horror, before turning to look over his shoulder, screaming. "Cas! Lucifer! Guys! He's alive! Dean's alive!"

Feet pounded the pavement as the younger Winchester helped his brother to his feet, the hunter noticing for the first time that one of his hands was clenched into a fist around something solid. The key, his mind told him.

Sound jerked his attention away again. When he looked up, he faltered as he saw Castiel come to a skidding stop around a corner a few feet away from him, blue eyes wide with shock, then narrowing furiously as he stalked forward in such a way, Dean took an involuntary step back, suddenly questioning what had happened in his absence that he hadn't seen.

Then Cas threw his arms around him and hugged him tightly, practically growling in his ear, "If you ever do that to me again…"

He didn't get to finish the threat, because all of their allies were suddenly crowding around them then, the angels' raking their gazes over Dean and demanding explanations, and Castiel reluctantly pulled away, just as Sam pulled an equally shocked, then darkly furious looking Lucifer aside, the hunter speaking in low tones, one hand lightly encircling the angel's wrist while the blond glared off to the side, fists clenching and unclenching by his sides.

It reminded Dean of what Savvy had said once: about just because they hadn't understood God's actions at the time, didn't mean they wouldn't understand eventually. And while he understood that better now, he could also relate to the anger of being left in the dark as well, of feeling helpless and wronged. He glanced at Castiel. Of feeling abandoned.

Offering a smile, Dean turned and wrapped his arms around the angel sticking closely by his side, rubbing a thumb soothingly back and forth as Castiel clung back and shook in his arms, the filth covering both of them inconsequential at the moment.

Dean's resurrection and their victory in battle was undermined by the losses they had suffered, and the number of dead they still had to contend with, as only Dean was brought back to life. Those who had fallen where lined up in two rows, humans and demons alike, all lain in similar poses, hands folded over their chests and eyes closed. Savvy and Meg were carrying the last body over as Dean looked on, Cas by his side and holding his hand, in his other hand, Dean still held the key God had given him, his grip on it tightening almost painfully as their remaining allies gathered around.

With all the bodies of the fallen collected, Gabriel snapped his fingers, making a pyre platform appear, the bodies neatly arranged on it. Crowley and Lucifer both swept out a hand, flames swelling to life under the pyre and quickly engulfing it while the survivors looked on, grim-faced and silent, and right there in the middle of Detroit… they gave them all a hunter's funeral

Silence settled heavily over them, weighing them down with the sense of loss, of so much willing sacrifice for the sake of themselves and the world. The heat of the flames was uncomfortable, but Dean didn't back up or look away.

"This can't happen anymore," Dean heard himself say. Sam and Cas both glanced at him from either side. The blond hunter did look away then, down to the key in his hand. "I'm tired of funerals and losing allies." While the two men on either side of him considered the key curiously, Dean looked back to the billowing flames, face set in a hard expression. "We have a new mission now, and it's one I'm all for."

One Year Later…

At the sound of approaching footsteps, Dean glanced over his shoulder to see Sam making his way down the line of cars in the bunker's garage.

"Hey," he greeted, snatching the bottle of water out of thin air his brother tossed him. "What's up?"

The taller of the two shrugged, hooking a thumb over his shoulder. "Meg called. She's bringing you her bike to work on and tune up. Said it took a few hits in a fight she recently got in."

Nodding, Dean took a long sip of water, before inclining his head toward the stairs leading to the upper levels of the facility.

"How are things in there with the newest arrivals?"

The younger Winchester glanced back. "Fine. Krissy wanted to go ahead and sit in on some classes, so she's with Naomi right now." He looked back at the blond. "And I think we got Kevin settled and assured nothing bad is going to jump out and bite him just because he knows angels and demons exist now. He's already appropriated a few books for his room to start looking over or translating."

"How did Men of Letters even document some of these books if only certain types of prophets can read them?"

The other man shook his head. "I'm sure it was a safety measures to keep it from falling into demonic hands. Kevin is gonna sit in on Cas' class today. We're still working out his schedule for his other courses in both the supernatural and academic. Kid's a genius and way ahead of the others, so I think he'll be mostly studying on his own, with the instructors having to prepare a special curriculum just for him." He pinched his lips, considering. "We get any more students, we're gonna have to find more teachers."

They had just over fifty students enrolled in their academy, ranging in age from fourteen to forty, and all being housed and taught in the multi-story building connected to the MOL base by a hidden and magically protected passageway none of the students knew about, though, naturally, the school had a normal entrance, as well.

As of current, most of their instructors were angels, save for Ash, who taught Chemistry and Computer Sciences, just as the majority of the others also taught more than one subject due to the limited number of teachers.

Scratching his jaw, Dean said, "Well, I think Lucifer is almost finished creating his syllabus, so we'll be able to add that to the available courses, which will take some of the strain off Cas trying to combine and simultaneously teach two subjects in the same course load." He shook his head. "I still can't believe the devil's teaching a literature course."

The works being taught were far from that of Shakespeare and Twain, though. The Winchester Gospels had, unfortunately, been the first books Lucifer included as part of his teachings, with the entire works of Frank L. Baum being added after the accidental release of both Dorothy and the Wicked Witch inside the bunker.

Dangerous and scary witch aside, Dean had thought both Sam and Charlie's complete and utter fangirling over the brunette woman was hysterical… until he'd seen how utterly and dangerously jealous Lucifer was getting as he watched the same display, only seeming to relax once Sam happily dragged him off to start searching through the archives for records of other books based on hunters in both their reality and other universes, talking animatedly about all the possibilities for learning such records of history would provide.

Dean's brother was such an uncontrollable nerd.

Thinking of the archangel that would soon be teaching alongside his other siblings, Sam's gaze grew distant, whole body seeming to relax as he shook his head. "I think he's going to end up being a favorite teacher. He has this way about him when he's teaching that is mesmerizing." He inhaled and blew out a breath, a faint flush coloring his cheeks. "And that's not even taking in to consideration hearing him read loud." A shudder visibly passed through him. "He's really good at it."

Snorting, Dean turned away. "If it can put that look on my face, I don't want to hear him read. Hey, Benny," he called out. The vampire working under one of the cars let out a sound of acknowledgement. "I'll be upstairs a minute."

The other man made another noise and the two Winchesters headed back up the stairs into corridors of the bunker, through a hall of bedrooms and offices, toward the library where Becky and Samandriel-or Alfie, since it was too confusing to have two Sam's in the bunker- both had stations set up, books and papers sprawled around them. Becky was busy researching for her first book to be published under her own name, Chuck had started a new book series not involving the Winchesters, and Alfie worked with Sam to try and learn everything the Men of Letters had to offer. They were forever finding new rooms with files and archives and books to go through, stairwells that had been magically sealed off and bespelled so as to go unnoticed by human eyes, and lead down to even more levels within the base, to laboratories and a hallway with one long, massive window looking out into the depths of the nearby waterway, which apparently, housed several breeds of merpeople in a multitude of colorings.

Continuing through the halls, they passed Savvy, who had a bag slung over her back, heading back the way they'd come, with Harley by her side.

"Where are you off to?" Dean questioned, pivoting to watch her.

She faltered, turning back around to face him. "Charlie called. She and Dorothy need people to help with aid efforts after an attack in the Emerald City. The rebellion is mostly under control, but some of the witch's followers are still causing problems, one last focused effort. It sounds pretty bad. I'll be in Oz a few days." She hooked a thumb over her shoulder at the gilded mirror hanging on the wall. "Contact me by mirror if you need something."

He nodded to her. "Be careful."

Adjusting the straps of her bag, she nodded and patted her thigh. "Always. C'mon, Harley."

He pointed toward the library. "You told Becky you were leaving right?"

Her brown eyes glanced toward the room, sighing resignedly. "Yeah. She's not entirely happy with me." Her eyes flicked back to the hunter's. "She writes all the adventures, but never gets to experience them. She feels a bit left out."

"Are the two of you okay?" Sam questioned worriedly.

She waved him off. "We're fine. Great, actually. She just worries. She knows we're doing the right thing though, and she agreed that they need all the help they can get. Next time, she just wants to come with on the adventure." She turned away again. "Sarah called as well, has a urn she thinks houses a goddess and is bringing by for y'all to research. I left the message by the phones. Ellen called to check in, too. See you guys later."

In the year since they'd saved the world, the hunter community had been completely reformed into something far more organized and efficient, even with the expansion of their efforts to help out in the only other realm they could easily travel back and forth between: Oz. They'd also had no more trouble from hunters apparently thinking the Winchesters were out to create their own kingdom, but being that they had so many connections in places both High and Low, the false rumors and slander against their names had been straightened out pretty quickly. That can happen when you have the Morning Star, the other archangels, and even the King of Hell on speed dial.

Even after a year, it was still odd for Dean to see the easy camaraderie and subtle affection that passed between Sam and Lucifer, even angels had had to learn prophecy was not always what they interpreted it to mean, save for the part about their being one human meant just for them.

Lucifer was still reserved and crept in like a shadow, never seeming to miss a single thing that took place in the bunker, but the dangerous tension in his body was gone, a smile curving the corner of his mouth more often. Sam was clearly happy, and despite his reservations, Dean couldn't really argue with their relationship when he saw the effect they both had on the other one. It was still weird as hell to eat breakfast across the table from the angel, but he'd also gotten used to it. Granted, they were by no means the example of a normal or entirely healthyrelationship; they both seemed to get off on the knife's edge they walked, but they worked.

Much like the newly renovated hunter community worked: that is, much to everyone's surprise. The bunker was a hive of activity, a labyrinth of floors, levels, corridors, and rooms that had automatically made them the heart of the hunter network, with other hunters spread out across the country- like Bobby, Ellen, and Garth- as branches of the main.

Though he hated to admit it, they owed their current success- for lack of a better term- to the Ghostfacers, of all people. The infuriating and interfering team had learned of the government clearing out Detroit, of the terrorist attack on the city that had left the heart of it in shambles, and had hacked into every security camera the city had to offer, putting together a video of the battle for earth that went utterly viral in seconds.

Sales for the Supernatural books had gone through the roof and calls had begun pouring into Bobby's at all hours of the day, hunters across the world suddenly all being put in contact with each other, eventually their kids being sent to the Winchesters for education.

Granted, the government had turned around and taken down the video, claiming that it was a hoax, but the Major had warned them ahead of time that they would have to. Civilians were best left in the dark, lest they go looking for trouble. Taking it down didn't get it out of circulation though, and those in the life knew better than to believe the news announcer claiming that the video was a doctored prank.

There was no shortage of work to be done now. Hunters were constantly calling in needing research information or potions and charms. Every week, Jody seemed to show up with a new kid to enroll in the Hunter Academy. Monsters still preyed on innocent people. And, despite Crowley's alliance with the Winchesters, demons were allowed to come to earth and cause chaos as they pleased, but at their own risk. Crossroads deals were still booming, but when humans agreed to the deals willingly, knowing full well what they were getting into, the Winchesters couldn't really interfere- except to maybe try and get the angels to start answering more prayers and handing out a few more miracles, getting to the desperate before the demons did.

As they reached the main intersection, the brothers parted ways, Sam moving to go return Sarah's and Ellen's calls, while Dean headed into the kitchen for more coffee, already making a mental lists of the repairs and tune-ups that needed to be done that day and prioritizing them.

He faltered in the door way of the kitchen, gaze locking on the man standing at the counter fixing his own coffee with one hand, and looking over something on the reader in his other.

Castiel was dressed in slim cut slacks with a dress shirt and waistcoat that accentuated the curves and lines of his body, making him look cultured and high class, and so totally polar opposite from Dean. He felt his heart clench tight, affection swelling at the sight of the former angel completely oblivious to his scrutiny, reading over God only knew what. It could be anything from a news article to fanfiction about the two of them. Dean had learned about that particular little secret of Cas' completely by accident, and Heaven help him, if it didn't make him love the angel more. How had Dean's life ended up like this? So perfect most days he hardly believed it himself, was grateful every day for it.

Cas was stirring his coffee using one of those hazelnut wafer sticks when Dean came up behind him, wrapping his arms around the other man's waist. The former angel-turned-educator started in surprise, then relaxed, lips curling as he set aside his coffee and e-reader to pivot so they were facing each other. Dean's mouth immediately sought his in a lingering kiss, earning a sound of surprise that quickly became a pleased hum, Cas' hands running down the hunter's sides, settling on his hips.

Dean broke the kiss, their lips just a breath apart as Cas chuckled lightly.

"Good morning to you, t-"

"We should get married," Dean interjected. Cas' eyes widened and Dean grinned, leaning in again to steal his breath away with desperate kisses before touching their foreheads together. "What do you say?"

Chuckling, Cas shook his head, voice filled with warmth as he spoke, "Do you really have to ask? There's nothing more I want than to always live by your side."

Grin stretching even wider, Dean whispered, "Then let's get married."

End