Unexpected Destinies Chapter 97
Title: Unexpected Destinies
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: up to and including Exile on Main St., AU from the end of season 5
Warnings: AU, slash
Word Count: 2,931
Summary: Bobby ponders about Christian and Sam before Dean and Castiel arrive.
PRESENT
Bobby had to forcibly remind himself why he couldn't just shoot Christian Campbell. It wasn't often that the desire to intentionally harm or even kill a human being came to him, but when it did, it did so big time.
Like right now.
It was all that Bobby could do not to reach for his gun as the guy continued to argue with Samuel about why calling Dean and Castiel had been a bad idea and how they should leave now before they showed up. Inevitably his anger slowly began to transfer itself to Sam as he knew that the Campbell idjit had gotten all of his ideas and opinions about Dean from the Winchester idjit. He just didn't get what Sam had been thinking and still was, acting the way that he was. Yes, he could freely admit that he'd gone along with Sam's plan not to tell Dean about his return. Therefore he knew that he couldn't say much about Sam's actions on that front, but that particular incident was only the tip of the iceberg.
Lord knew that Bobby hated to admit it, but he'd always worried that Sam took a bit too much after his father for his own good and the boy was only proving him right with all he said and did now. With how good Dean had turned out and the boy's sharp improvement after John's death, he'd hoped that Sam would come out from under his papa's shadow as well but it seemed not to be the case even with all of the time the idjit had spent with his mother's family as of late. Ironically enough, if anything, they'd only brought out more of John in the boy instead of his momma.
"You know, given the way that Castiel reacted when Sam insulted Dean, I really don't think that you want to be caught doing so by him, Christian," Gwen stated. "Which means you should probably shut up now before they arrive."
"She's got a point," Sam said. "Cas has always been quite sensitive when it comes to Dean."
From the play of emotions on Christian's face, Bobby could tell that the man's initial reaction was along the lines of the fact that he didn't care what Castiel thought, but then he obviously thought the better of it. At least the man wasn't completely hopeless though he wasn't holding his breath for any genuine sense either. Besides, a healthy respect for the supernatural was something any good hunter needed to have or they simply wouldn't last for any amount of time. As it was, he still wasn't convinced that Christian wouldn't get himself smited by Castiel sooner rather than later. From what little he'd seen during Dean and the angel's last visit, Castiel was as fiercely protective of the boy as ever, if not more so given the new aspect of their relationship. And he still couldn't quite believe that!
"Well this is sober."
The sudden statement made everyone jump and given Dean's huge smile, Bobby knew that had been the boy's exact intention. He shook his head in disapproval but Dean's smile was contagious and he couldn't help but return it a moment later. Clearly he was turning into a sap in his old age, but so what? He'd honestly been afraid that he'd never see that smile again, at least not directed at him, so he knew it'd be enough to make him cave on many an issue in the near future. He could only hope that Dean didn't realize that or he'd be totally screwed.
"Dean!" Sam exclaimed, whirling around from the sink at which he'd been standing.
"Sam."
"Where the hell did you find a pristine Led Zeppelin tour shirt?" Christian demanded.
"Huh?" Dean replied before glancing down at what he was wearing. "Oh, this? Cool, isn't it?"
"It's amazingly well preserved," Bobby admitted quickly, slightly afraid of Christian's reaction.
Now that he was looking at it and paying attention to what Dean was wearing, Bobby noticed something else weird. Once again the boy was wearing a necklace with a pendant around his neck. It hadn't struck him as odd before as it was something Dean had done ever since he was a boy until just before what they'd thought was the end of Apocalypse, but now he saw that it wasn't what he'd at first assumed it was. It wasn't the pendant he'd given Sam all of those years ago, but rather a different one and not something he recognized. A quick glance at Sam showed that the boy had also noticed it if the tight expression was anything to go by.
"It's not," Dean stated.
"What?" Bobby questioned.
"Well preserved. The shirt's simply brand new."
"Wait," Samuel interjected, looking at Christian. "I thought you said Led Zeppelin broke up in nineteen eighty after the death of Bonham?"
"They did," Christian confirmed. "And they don't make tour shirts anymore, so it can't be new."
"I didn't say it came from now," Dean replied along with another huge and easy smile. "Just that it was new."
"I don't get the distinction," Gwen stated just as Sam gasped.
"Oh you didn't! Dean- Cas, tell me you didn't let him convince you to take him back in time just to buy a t-shirt!" Sam exclaimed.
Bobby nearly choked on his coffee as he realized that Sam was right. Time travel was exactly what Dean had been implying but surely the boy hadn't done that. Dean hardly ever asked for anything for himself and even then it was always small things that were easy enough to get like beer, pie or burgers, or things for his car. Despite that, a part of him almost wished that the boy had asked for it as it would mean that Castiel had gotten him comfortable enough to start being a little less self-sacrificing and maybe a tinsy bit selfish.
"No, I didn't," Castiel replied. "I decided to take Dean back to see a Led Zeppelin concert and then he got the shirt."
"You took him back for a concert?" Samuel demanded incredulously.
"It was my birthday present and it was awesome. Led Zeppelin rocks!" Dean declared.
The angel was head over heels, Bobby realized with a start, amazed now that he'd never come to that conclusion before despite noticing the inhuman loyalty and devotion to the idjit. Castiel was completely gone on Dean and would do anything the boy asked and even what the eldest Winchester couldn't ask for. It should have been a scary thought, the mere idea of such a powerful supernatural creature as an angel doing whatever a human wanted, but he knew if anyone could be trusted not to abuse that power it was Dean. Well, not to really abuse it anyway as he wouldn't put it past the boy cause mischief with that kind of power, but nothing serious, not Dean. He'd be the first to admit that things could have changed since he'd last spent a significant amount of time with the oldest Winchester, but things could not have changed that much, never that much. Not with Dean and his angels.
How did he ever get himself into these kinds of situations anyway? Bobby was only all too aware that only a few short years ago that if anyone had told him about Dean and the boy's angels he'd have thought them insane or assumed they were referring to the women Dean always slept with. Yet now look at them. It did prove his belief though, that Dean had a genuine heart of gold buried under that gruff and smartass exterior of his.
"Are you kidding?" Sam demanded. "Or are you really saying that, in the middle of the Apocalypse, you guys stopped to go to a stupid concert?"
"Hey!" Dean protested. "Led Zeppelin's not stupid! Besides, this was before the Apocalypse restarted."
"It was also shortly after Dean and Michael performed the Rite of Contressa on Lucifer," Castiel added. "Dean deserved to take a day off."
"What on Earth is the Rite of Contressa?" Gwen inquired.
"It's the reason why you have not had to worry about Lucifer wanting one of you as a vessel before now. It rendered him unable to take one."
"Kinda like an angelic impotency spell," Dean stated gleefully. "And boy let me tell you, Lucy was pissed when we performed it!"
"I can well imagine," Bobby said. "I've never heard of this rite before, any chance you can tell me more about it?"
A quick, wordless glance passed between the two of them before Dean nodded. "Later."
"Thanks."
"Good. Now, why'd you need to see us?"
"We've been performing the cleansing spells on Sam as requested," Samuel began which caused Castiel to frown as he titled his head, observing the younger Winchester.
"He is still tainted, we cannot perform the spell with him in this state," Castiel stated bluntly.
Sam flinched and Bobby frowned at how unaffected Dean seemed about his brother's plight. He knew things were bad between them but it said a lot that the boy wasn't instantly in uproar about Sam's state. Not that he thought it was a bad thing per se. God knew how often he'd lamented about Dean's seeming inability to hold even a simple grudge against his brother especially when one was more than called for, but man was it weird to see.
"That's just it, we've been performing cleansing spell after cleansing spell but they don't seem to be working," Samuel said.
"How do you know that?" Dean asked.
"Because they still hurt!" Sam exclaimed.
"Of course they still hurt and they will continue to do so for some time," Castiel stated calmly. "Until enough of the taint is gone for them to only sting."
"Why is it taking so long?" Samuel questioned.
Bobby winced at that, knowing what was coming. The angel had never really possessed any tact.
"Because of the amount of taint Sam had and still does," Castiel responded bluntly. "He was an abomination."
"I'm not that bad!" Sam protested.
"Oh for!" Dean exclaimed. "You slept with a demon, Sam, and voluntarily drank her blood. Did you really think that wouldn't have any long term effects other than the blood addiction?"
"In addition to which both your body and soul went to Hell after having been so fully exposed to Lucifer," Castiel added. "All of these things would have left you very tainted on their own, but combined..."
"Whoa, wait, hold on and go back there for a second," Christian interrupted. "Did you just say that he slept with a demon? Knowingly?"
Bobby could tell the moment Dean realized exactly what his cousin was asking and the boy turned to Sam, furious.
"You told them about what happened to me and what I did in Hell but you neglected to mention Ruby?" Dean exploded.
"It wasn't important," Sam stated.
"Not important?"
"It's over, ancient history and all of that. I learned my lesson and saw no reason to bring it up again."
"But you thought what happened to me was?"
"It changed you, Dean! Ever since you came back you've been different."
"Yeah, I learned that I'm capable of committing great evil and that there's darkness in everyone whether it be you or me or the fucking hottie next door. I learned caution and prudence!"
"No, Dean, you lost your nerve and what made you the hunter that you once were."
He was already halfway out of his seat by the time Castiel appeared between Sam and Dean, and Bobby sighed with relief. As fragile as their relationship was just now he didn't think it would survive a fistfight, not that it was going to survive much longer anyway if Sam didn't keep his mouth shut and learned to think before he spoke. Dean's words about evil and darkness were running around his head, but he pushed them aside for later, there were more important things to deal with now. Like making sure Castiel really did manage to cool Dean down enough because if it came to a fight he had no doubt whatsoever whose side the angel would choose and an ass or not, Sam didn't deserve to get smited.
Whatever Castiel was saying seemed to be working as Dean relaxed incrementally and Bobby dearly wished that he could hear what was being said. He couldn't, however, as the two were standing so close together that there was hardly any space between them and the angel was whispering. Whatever it was, it got Dean to back down though he still stood stiffly and was clearly enraged at his brother. Sam, for his part, looked more annoyed than anything else, though he thought he could detect both contempt and disgust there as well and it made him want to hit the young man himself. Was Sam really so convinced that he could take his brother in a fight? After all of the times that his brother had trumped him in the past?
"I take it Ruby is the demon you slept with, huh, Sam?" Christian sneered, his disgust and contempt now squarely on the other Winchester brother.
"Christian," Sam sighed.
"No, really, I want to know what could possible make you fuck a demon."
"It was a mistake-"
"I'll say!" Gwen interrupted. "I mean, come on! What were you thinking?"
"They have a point, Sam," Samuel stated.
"Okay, how about you guys all do your sharing and caring later," Dean suggested. "It's a long story and all that jazz."
As if to illustrate his point, Dean waved his hand. There was a flash of silver and before Bobby could react, Samuel was out of his seat, had grabbed Dean's hand and twisted him arm around. Then there was a flash of movement, a cry of pain and the next instant Samuel was pinned to the kitchen wall with an angel sword at his throat and a visibly enraged Raphael in his face. He blinked a few times to make sure that he was really seeing what he was and no sooner had he done that then the controlled pandemonium broke out. Christian, Gwen and Mark were on their feet with their guns drawn and even Sam looked tempted to follow suit though the idjit knew how useless that was when it came to angels. And where the hell had Raphael come from anyway? He knew the archangel hadn't been there a moment before, or at least he hadn't been able to see him. Castiel had already confirmed though that angels were capable of hiding themselves from human perception, which was clearly what had happened here. The question was, had Dean not trusted them or had the archangel acted independently?
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait, everyone calm down," Dean ordered loudly to be heard above the shouts of the others. "Raphael, let him go."
"He attacked you," Raphael snarled.
Shit, any hope that Bobby might have had that this particular angel might be a bit more level headed went right out of the window with that tone of voice. Was there an angel out there other than Lucifer that Dean couldn't wrap around his little finger if given enough time? Or perhaps that was the real answer to this whole mess, locking Lucifer up with Dean for an extended period of time. He'd almost pity the poor angelic bastard. Almost, though Castiel might get jealous and that thought really shouldn't amuse him as much as it did. Dean had been a bad influence on him, clearly.
"Yeah, I'm not so sure about that," Dean replied and looked down at his wrist where Bobby could now see a silver and decidedly feminine looking bracelet adorned with protective charms. "Let him go, Raph. Please."
Bobby closed his eyes and mentally counted to ten. Raph? Christ but Dean was incorrigible and God only knew how that boy had survived nicknaming not one, not two, but three archangels and then using those nicknames with at least two of them. It was nothing short of sheer insanity and should have been tantamount to nothing less than suicide. And yet here Dean was, not only hale, whole and happy, but obviously respected enough by said archangels to be listened to, not to mention the fact that the archangels obviously felt protective of the boy.
Only Dean could manage that, Bobby thought with a smile as he looked at the boy. Lord knew the idjit had wormed his way past his defenses long ago, though Dean seemed to be completely clueless as to his abilities in that respect and he couldn't help but wonder how many broken hearts Dean had unknowingly left in his wake. Though given the one that he hadn't broken, he still held out hope that the boy might come to see his own worth. After all, who else managed to make one angel fall in love with him and two archangels completely alter their stance on the Apocalypse?
"Samuel?" Sam asked once Raphael had released the old hunter and stepped back though his sword remained out and ready. "What just happened?"
"The bracelet," Samuel replied, stepping forwards towards Dean despite the fact that the boy was flanked by not one but two angels, neither of which seemed particularly pleased with him.
Perhaps the boy's idiocy had come from both sides of the family and not just John's as Bobby had always assumed.
"That, it's..." Samuel continued before tearing his eyes from the bracelet and looking right at Dean. "That's Mary's, isn't it?"
"Yeah," Dean confirmed.
Chapter 98
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: up to and including Exile on Main St., AU from the end of season 5
Warnings: AU, slash
Word Count: 2,931
Summary: Bobby ponders about Christian and Sam before Dean and Castiel arrive.
PRESENT
Bobby had to forcibly remind himself why he couldn't just shoot Christian Campbell. It wasn't often that the desire to intentionally harm or even kill a human being came to him, but when it did, it did so big time.
Like right now.
It was all that Bobby could do not to reach for his gun as the guy continued to argue with Samuel about why calling Dean and Castiel had been a bad idea and how they should leave now before they showed up. Inevitably his anger slowly began to transfer itself to Sam as he knew that the Campbell idjit had gotten all of his ideas and opinions about Dean from the Winchester idjit. He just didn't get what Sam had been thinking and still was, acting the way that he was. Yes, he could freely admit that he'd gone along with Sam's plan not to tell Dean about his return. Therefore he knew that he couldn't say much about Sam's actions on that front, but that particular incident was only the tip of the iceberg.
Lord knew that Bobby hated to admit it, but he'd always worried that Sam took a bit too much after his father for his own good and the boy was only proving him right with all he said and did now. With how good Dean had turned out and the boy's sharp improvement after John's death, he'd hoped that Sam would come out from under his papa's shadow as well but it seemed not to be the case even with all of the time the idjit had spent with his mother's family as of late. Ironically enough, if anything, they'd only brought out more of John in the boy instead of his momma.
"You know, given the way that Castiel reacted when Sam insulted Dean, I really don't think that you want to be caught doing so by him, Christian," Gwen stated. "Which means you should probably shut up now before they arrive."
"She's got a point," Sam said. "Cas has always been quite sensitive when it comes to Dean."
From the play of emotions on Christian's face, Bobby could tell that the man's initial reaction was along the lines of the fact that he didn't care what Castiel thought, but then he obviously thought the better of it. At least the man wasn't completely hopeless though he wasn't holding his breath for any genuine sense either. Besides, a healthy respect for the supernatural was something any good hunter needed to have or they simply wouldn't last for any amount of time. As it was, he still wasn't convinced that Christian wouldn't get himself smited by Castiel sooner rather than later. From what little he'd seen during Dean and the angel's last visit, Castiel was as fiercely protective of the boy as ever, if not more so given the new aspect of their relationship. And he still couldn't quite believe that!
"Well this is sober."
The sudden statement made everyone jump and given Dean's huge smile, Bobby knew that had been the boy's exact intention. He shook his head in disapproval but Dean's smile was contagious and he couldn't help but return it a moment later. Clearly he was turning into a sap in his old age, but so what? He'd honestly been afraid that he'd never see that smile again, at least not directed at him, so he knew it'd be enough to make him cave on many an issue in the near future. He could only hope that Dean didn't realize that or he'd be totally screwed.
"Dean!" Sam exclaimed, whirling around from the sink at which he'd been standing.
"Sam."
"Where the hell did you find a pristine Led Zeppelin tour shirt?" Christian demanded.
"Huh?" Dean replied before glancing down at what he was wearing. "Oh, this? Cool, isn't it?"
"It's amazingly well preserved," Bobby admitted quickly, slightly afraid of Christian's reaction.
Now that he was looking at it and paying attention to what Dean was wearing, Bobby noticed something else weird. Once again the boy was wearing a necklace with a pendant around his neck. It hadn't struck him as odd before as it was something Dean had done ever since he was a boy until just before what they'd thought was the end of Apocalypse, but now he saw that it wasn't what he'd at first assumed it was. It wasn't the pendant he'd given Sam all of those years ago, but rather a different one and not something he recognized. A quick glance at Sam showed that the boy had also noticed it if the tight expression was anything to go by.
"It's not," Dean stated.
"What?" Bobby questioned.
"Well preserved. The shirt's simply brand new."
"Wait," Samuel interjected, looking at Christian. "I thought you said Led Zeppelin broke up in nineteen eighty after the death of Bonham?"
"They did," Christian confirmed. "And they don't make tour shirts anymore, so it can't be new."
"I didn't say it came from now," Dean replied along with another huge and easy smile. "Just that it was new."
"I don't get the distinction," Gwen stated just as Sam gasped.
"Oh you didn't! Dean- Cas, tell me you didn't let him convince you to take him back in time just to buy a t-shirt!" Sam exclaimed.
Bobby nearly choked on his coffee as he realized that Sam was right. Time travel was exactly what Dean had been implying but surely the boy hadn't done that. Dean hardly ever asked for anything for himself and even then it was always small things that were easy enough to get like beer, pie or burgers, or things for his car. Despite that, a part of him almost wished that the boy had asked for it as it would mean that Castiel had gotten him comfortable enough to start being a little less self-sacrificing and maybe a tinsy bit selfish.
"No, I didn't," Castiel replied. "I decided to take Dean back to see a Led Zeppelin concert and then he got the shirt."
"You took him back for a concert?" Samuel demanded incredulously.
"It was my birthday present and it was awesome. Led Zeppelin rocks!" Dean declared.
The angel was head over heels, Bobby realized with a start, amazed now that he'd never come to that conclusion before despite noticing the inhuman loyalty and devotion to the idjit. Castiel was completely gone on Dean and would do anything the boy asked and even what the eldest Winchester couldn't ask for. It should have been a scary thought, the mere idea of such a powerful supernatural creature as an angel doing whatever a human wanted, but he knew if anyone could be trusted not to abuse that power it was Dean. Well, not to really abuse it anyway as he wouldn't put it past the boy cause mischief with that kind of power, but nothing serious, not Dean. He'd be the first to admit that things could have changed since he'd last spent a significant amount of time with the oldest Winchester, but things could not have changed that much, never that much. Not with Dean and his angels.
How did he ever get himself into these kinds of situations anyway? Bobby was only all too aware that only a few short years ago that if anyone had told him about Dean and the boy's angels he'd have thought them insane or assumed they were referring to the women Dean always slept with. Yet now look at them. It did prove his belief though, that Dean had a genuine heart of gold buried under that gruff and smartass exterior of his.
"Are you kidding?" Sam demanded. "Or are you really saying that, in the middle of the Apocalypse, you guys stopped to go to a stupid concert?"
"Hey!" Dean protested. "Led Zeppelin's not stupid! Besides, this was before the Apocalypse restarted."
"It was also shortly after Dean and Michael performed the Rite of Contressa on Lucifer," Castiel added. "Dean deserved to take a day off."
"What on Earth is the Rite of Contressa?" Gwen inquired.
"It's the reason why you have not had to worry about Lucifer wanting one of you as a vessel before now. It rendered him unable to take one."
"Kinda like an angelic impotency spell," Dean stated gleefully. "And boy let me tell you, Lucy was pissed when we performed it!"
"I can well imagine," Bobby said. "I've never heard of this rite before, any chance you can tell me more about it?"
A quick, wordless glance passed between the two of them before Dean nodded. "Later."
"Thanks."
"Good. Now, why'd you need to see us?"
"We've been performing the cleansing spells on Sam as requested," Samuel began which caused Castiel to frown as he titled his head, observing the younger Winchester.
"He is still tainted, we cannot perform the spell with him in this state," Castiel stated bluntly.
Sam flinched and Bobby frowned at how unaffected Dean seemed about his brother's plight. He knew things were bad between them but it said a lot that the boy wasn't instantly in uproar about Sam's state. Not that he thought it was a bad thing per se. God knew how often he'd lamented about Dean's seeming inability to hold even a simple grudge against his brother especially when one was more than called for, but man was it weird to see.
"That's just it, we've been performing cleansing spell after cleansing spell but they don't seem to be working," Samuel said.
"How do you know that?" Dean asked.
"Because they still hurt!" Sam exclaimed.
"Of course they still hurt and they will continue to do so for some time," Castiel stated calmly. "Until enough of the taint is gone for them to only sting."
"Why is it taking so long?" Samuel questioned.
Bobby winced at that, knowing what was coming. The angel had never really possessed any tact.
"Because of the amount of taint Sam had and still does," Castiel responded bluntly. "He was an abomination."
"I'm not that bad!" Sam protested.
"Oh for!" Dean exclaimed. "You slept with a demon, Sam, and voluntarily drank her blood. Did you really think that wouldn't have any long term effects other than the blood addiction?"
"In addition to which both your body and soul went to Hell after having been so fully exposed to Lucifer," Castiel added. "All of these things would have left you very tainted on their own, but combined..."
"Whoa, wait, hold on and go back there for a second," Christian interrupted. "Did you just say that he slept with a demon? Knowingly?"
Bobby could tell the moment Dean realized exactly what his cousin was asking and the boy turned to Sam, furious.
"You told them about what happened to me and what I did in Hell but you neglected to mention Ruby?" Dean exploded.
"It wasn't important," Sam stated.
"Not important?"
"It's over, ancient history and all of that. I learned my lesson and saw no reason to bring it up again."
"But you thought what happened to me was?"
"It changed you, Dean! Ever since you came back you've been different."
"Yeah, I learned that I'm capable of committing great evil and that there's darkness in everyone whether it be you or me or the fucking hottie next door. I learned caution and prudence!"
"No, Dean, you lost your nerve and what made you the hunter that you once were."
He was already halfway out of his seat by the time Castiel appeared between Sam and Dean, and Bobby sighed with relief. As fragile as their relationship was just now he didn't think it would survive a fistfight, not that it was going to survive much longer anyway if Sam didn't keep his mouth shut and learned to think before he spoke. Dean's words about evil and darkness were running around his head, but he pushed them aside for later, there were more important things to deal with now. Like making sure Castiel really did manage to cool Dean down enough because if it came to a fight he had no doubt whatsoever whose side the angel would choose and an ass or not, Sam didn't deserve to get smited.
Whatever Castiel was saying seemed to be working as Dean relaxed incrementally and Bobby dearly wished that he could hear what was being said. He couldn't, however, as the two were standing so close together that there was hardly any space between them and the angel was whispering. Whatever it was, it got Dean to back down though he still stood stiffly and was clearly enraged at his brother. Sam, for his part, looked more annoyed than anything else, though he thought he could detect both contempt and disgust there as well and it made him want to hit the young man himself. Was Sam really so convinced that he could take his brother in a fight? After all of the times that his brother had trumped him in the past?
"I take it Ruby is the demon you slept with, huh, Sam?" Christian sneered, his disgust and contempt now squarely on the other Winchester brother.
"Christian," Sam sighed.
"No, really, I want to know what could possible make you fuck a demon."
"It was a mistake-"
"I'll say!" Gwen interrupted. "I mean, come on! What were you thinking?"
"They have a point, Sam," Samuel stated.
"Okay, how about you guys all do your sharing and caring later," Dean suggested. "It's a long story and all that jazz."
As if to illustrate his point, Dean waved his hand. There was a flash of silver and before Bobby could react, Samuel was out of his seat, had grabbed Dean's hand and twisted him arm around. Then there was a flash of movement, a cry of pain and the next instant Samuel was pinned to the kitchen wall with an angel sword at his throat and a visibly enraged Raphael in his face. He blinked a few times to make sure that he was really seeing what he was and no sooner had he done that then the controlled pandemonium broke out. Christian, Gwen and Mark were on their feet with their guns drawn and even Sam looked tempted to follow suit though the idjit knew how useless that was when it came to angels. And where the hell had Raphael come from anyway? He knew the archangel hadn't been there a moment before, or at least he hadn't been able to see him. Castiel had already confirmed though that angels were capable of hiding themselves from human perception, which was clearly what had happened here. The question was, had Dean not trusted them or had the archangel acted independently?
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait, everyone calm down," Dean ordered loudly to be heard above the shouts of the others. "Raphael, let him go."
"He attacked you," Raphael snarled.
Shit, any hope that Bobby might have had that this particular angel might be a bit more level headed went right out of the window with that tone of voice. Was there an angel out there other than Lucifer that Dean couldn't wrap around his little finger if given enough time? Or perhaps that was the real answer to this whole mess, locking Lucifer up with Dean for an extended period of time. He'd almost pity the poor angelic bastard. Almost, though Castiel might get jealous and that thought really shouldn't amuse him as much as it did. Dean had been a bad influence on him, clearly.
"Yeah, I'm not so sure about that," Dean replied and looked down at his wrist where Bobby could now see a silver and decidedly feminine looking bracelet adorned with protective charms. "Let him go, Raph. Please."
Bobby closed his eyes and mentally counted to ten. Raph? Christ but Dean was incorrigible and God only knew how that boy had survived nicknaming not one, not two, but three archangels and then using those nicknames with at least two of them. It was nothing short of sheer insanity and should have been tantamount to nothing less than suicide. And yet here Dean was, not only hale, whole and happy, but obviously respected enough by said archangels to be listened to, not to mention the fact that the archangels obviously felt protective of the boy.
Only Dean could manage that, Bobby thought with a smile as he looked at the boy. Lord knew the idjit had wormed his way past his defenses long ago, though Dean seemed to be completely clueless as to his abilities in that respect and he couldn't help but wonder how many broken hearts Dean had unknowingly left in his wake. Though given the one that he hadn't broken, he still held out hope that the boy might come to see his own worth. After all, who else managed to make one angel fall in love with him and two archangels completely alter their stance on the Apocalypse?
"Samuel?" Sam asked once Raphael had released the old hunter and stepped back though his sword remained out and ready. "What just happened?"
"The bracelet," Samuel replied, stepping forwards towards Dean despite the fact that the boy was flanked by not one but two angels, neither of which seemed particularly pleased with him.
Perhaps the boy's idiocy had come from both sides of the family and not just John's as Bobby had always assumed.
"That, it's..." Samuel continued before tearing his eyes from the bracelet and looking right at Dean. "That's Mary's, isn't it?"
"Yeah," Dean confirmed.
Chapter 98