Unexpected Destinies Chapter 103
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: 2,562
Summary: Dean spends an evening away from research to ponder what he's read about angelic bonding ceremonies.
PAST
The stars were particularly bright tonight, Dean mused as he shifted slightly on the hood of the Impala, though he was sure it helped that he was currently in the middle of nowhere. With Castiel not around and the weather being so unseasonably warm, he'd been unable to just stay indoors all evening after having spent almost all of the day doing nothing but research. Therefore he'd opted to just go for a ride and use the time to think.
Dean snorted as he thought of how unlike him it was. Most people he knew wouldn't even believe him if he told them that was what he'd gone out to do, but then most of them wouldn't believe that he was currently giving serious consideration to tying the knot the angelic way. He'd read the book that Michael had left him through twice and hadn't been able to stop thinking about it ever since. No matter what he was doing, thoughts of it would hit him out of the blue. It probably didn't help that he currently spent most of his time reading about angels, but still, this was different.
Angel marriage.
The concept was still the closest that Dean could come up with for the bonding that the book described and yet he now knew it to be a hopelessly inaccurate metaphor, simile, whatever the proper fancy word was for comparing one thing with something else and he wasn't even sure why he wanted to use it except that the bonding was even more serious than marriage and if there was one thing about relationships that his father had drummed home into him it was that marriage was sacred. In other areas all bets were off but marriage was one line he'd never knowingly crossed, not even with all of the women he'd slept with. Hell, it was one lesson that even Sam had taken away with him with absolutely no fuss whatsoever and he had no doubt that if things hadn't gone the way that they had that his little brother would be married to Jess right now.
For one of the first times ever, Dean didn't wish that he could have done things differently back then. Because no matter how awful things had gotten at times (and yes, he included his not so little stint in Hell in that), he'd never have met Castiel if it wasn't for all of those bad things and his lover was the one thing that he wouldn't give up for the anything.
Which was precisely why Dean now found himself seriously considering completing their bond via the official ritual despite the fact that even thinking of doing so scared the crap out of him on several levels. It had been against his nature for so long- both the aversion to exactly this type of commitment and to allow anything supernatural to influence him in any way- for him to simply be able to cast aside those two hold ups no matter how illogical they might be now. He'd been trusting Castiel for years and he'd allowed his angel to do any number of things to him so he hated the fact that this reared its ugly head now. Stupid psychology and emotional bullshit.
He grimaced at the thought. Despite what Sam might think, Dean was well aware of how fucked up he was with most things psychological and that he'd have been a shrink's wet dream if they'd ever been truly caught and sentenced by Hendriksen. And while he didn't want to be normal, he did wish that he wasn't quite so messed up or psychologically scarred. Just thinking of it was enough to terrify him and he shuddered as he recalled the nightmares he'd had after that wraith hunt in the asylum. He'd let his brother think that they were the usual memories of Hell haunting him when Sam had bothered to notice that something was wrong but really it had been all about what had been said in there. Some of it had hit far too close to home for comfort and he hated it, not the least because there had been nothing he could do about it. So what if he had issues stemming from his father? Dad had done what he thought was best and even if he didn't agree with it, he really wasn't in a position to complain as he couldn't exactly think of how else Dad could have handled things. Not with Azazel gunning for Sam. Given that, hunting the demon down first did seem like the best idea and he knew that he'd have done the same if it had been his son or even with Sam if he'd known about it sooner.
None of which was really an issue right now. Dean gave himself a mental slap though he knew why his mind had veered so sharply off course. It was because the next part, the next step of the bonding, still terrified him on some level. For someone who'd never been religious and had never truly cared about all of the 'soul crap' as he'd used to think of it, he'd definitely come to appreciate the significance and importance of his soul now. He'd been unable to do anything else after his little sojourn downstairs, given that his body definitely hadn't been there. So, given that, he thought it extremely justified that he was more than a little wary of anything that required him to tear off a part of it. Not that book described it as such, but reading between the lines he knew that it basically boiled down to that. The book called it communion, the coming together of two mated Graces during bonding after which they separated each with a piece of the other's Grace, which in his case would be a soul piece instead of a Grace piece.
Dean shifted uncomfortably at the thought. It was his greatest hang up about the whole thing as he couldn't help but flash back to Alastair and Hell when he thought of a part of his soul getting hacked off. It wasn't the same he knew, but the book didn't really go into detail about the communion bit and thus he didn't have any reference for exactly how the soul piece would be removed from the rest of him except for his experiences on the rack. Although all of that hacking had never resulted in a permanent severing of his soul. Or at least not that he was aware of though it would explain the sense of loss he'd felt upon first being resurrected... Could it be? No. Castiel would have told him if something like that had happened. Just like Michael would have said something if this bonding ceremony had some type of adverse effect on him, being human, and his friend hadn't.
So that meant that it couldn't be bad, no matter how it might seem to him. But Dean had already established that he was seriously fucked up so it being him had a lot going for it. Not to mention the fact that the positives totally outweighed the negatives. Yeah, the thought of part of his soul being broken off and taken from him freaked him out, but the thought of getting part of Castiel, part of his Grace, really appealed to him. Like surprisingly. And that was to say nothing about the enhanced connection it would create between them. He already knew from his experience with Michael how amazing Grace felt alongside his soul, not to mention how addictive the connection with his angel would be. He'd already felt something like it the last time he'd been with Michael and he'd reached out for Castiel and he'd been craving that closeness with his lover ever since. He'd tried desperately to feel the bond between them since separating from Michael, but he'd never been able to feel even a shadow of it. Completion of the bond, though, would ensure that he could always feel his angel, the Grace piece giving him a direct connection to Castiel.
The thought made Dean smile and he sipped some more beer. The idea of having a bit of his lover nestled in his very soul was amazingly alluring and he desperately wanted it. The realization he'd come to during Castiel's recovery had definitely made a lasting impression and he just wished that it hadn't taken something like that to make him get there. But what could he say? He was a stubborn, hard headed idiot. Now that he'd realized it, though, he wasn't going to waste any more time, especially not with them, essentially, being at war. Besides, the thought that Castiel might treasure the idea of having a piece of his soul eased his instinctive fear on that level a lot. Not to mention the fact that he didn't know anyone who'd protect it better than his lover, himself included.
The flutter of wings had Dean looking to his left and he was surprised to see Raphael appear beside the Impala.
"Hey, Raph," Dean greeted and then caught the look that flashed across the archangel's face and winced. "-ael. Sorry, I wasn't trying to aggravate you, honest."
Raphael tilted his head to one side studying him. "You meant it as you do Mike as opposed to Mikey."
"Yeah."
"Very well," the archangel nodded once. "I require your assistance."
"Oh? What for?"
"I have been attempting to track down an artifact that can be used to open one of the gateways to Perdition."
"Wow, wait, what?" Dean demanded, sitting up sharply. "A gateway to Hell? Like the one in Wyoming that Azazel opened a few years ago?"
"Yes, precisely. That gateway is only one of several that exist, some larger and some smaller, between Earth and Perdition," Raphael confirmed.
"Why haven't I heard of this before? Why didn't you guys mention it?"
"I was unaware that you were ignorant of their existence."
"Okay, how many are there and where are they?"
"There are six, the one in Wyoming near the Devil's Gate, and then one each near the Devil's Punch Bowl in England, the Devil's Pool in Australia and the Devil's Peak in South Africa. Then there is also one on the Devil's Island in French Guiana and one under the Devil's Sea off the coast of Japan."
"Je- Shit! They're all over the place."
"I believe that was done intentionally in order to achieve maximum access should they all be opened at once."
Dean's eyes grew wide at the thought. "All be opened at once? Crap, is that Lucifer's plan, do you think? We'd be overrun!"
"It is a distinct possibility if he were ever to obtain the means to do so."
"What do you mean, the means?"
"All of the gateways are protected which is why none but the Devil's Gate and the Devil's Sea have ever been opened before."
"The Devil's Sea has been opened?"
"Yes," Raphael nodded. "It was several centuries ago but some dedicated samurai and Shinto priests were able to close it shortly afterwards, much as you and your brother did in Wyoming."
"I assume that they hunted down the demons that got out?"
"Most of them, but not all. Some of the demons had immediately left the continent, spreading far beyond the reach of those hoping to contain them, while others chose to take up residence in the ocean itself where they have been wreaking havoc ever since."
"Demons in the water? That's a bit odd."
"There are many types of demons, Dean, and you would not easily encounter those that prefer a marine environment."
"But what do they do?"
"What all demons do, cause harm and havoc. In this case they focus their attention on humans who dare enter their territory on boats and ships. The Devil's Sea is one of the biggest such territories, the Bermuda Triangle being another."
"The Bermuda Triangle?" Dean repeated in disbelief. "That's actually real? And caused by demons?"
"Yes."
"Well shit. But wait, that one wasn't caused by a gate, was it?"
"No, I believe a relatively powerful demon simply took a liking to the area."
"Oh, great, a demon with real estate issues, that's just wonderful."
"I have been to every gateway and had a look at the state of their protections. The ones in Wyoming and Japan obviously needed repair and strengthening, which has now been taken care of."
"Good, that's very good. What about the others?"
"They were fine, but I have been attempting to track down the keys to each as additional insurance. They can be broken without them, of course, but it is a lot harder and we'd most likely learn of it in time to react."
"Keys, you mean like the Colt?"
"Yes."
"Did you find them?"
"The ones for the Devil's Punch Bowl and the Devil's Sea, yes, and Castiel said that you still possess the Colt."
"Yep, do you need it?"
"No, I believe you require it more."
"What have you done with the other two keys?"
"Locked them up in Heaven under constant guard."
That almost seemed like overkill until Dean remembered that someone had managed to break into Heaven and steal his grandfather's soul, so being extra cautious with the keys was probably a good thing. "Any leads on the remaining keys?"
"The one for the Devil's Pool seems to have vanished somewhere in what you call the seventeenth century and I have been unable to uncover any traces of it."
"The Devil's Pool, which one was that again?"
"The one in Australia."
"Ah, okay. Why are they all called Devil's something? Surely it would be better to try and hide them."
"All attempts were made to conceal their location as much as possible, but something of Hell does seep through even a sealed gateway and that essence was correctly attributed to my brother by the humans inhabiting the surrounding areas."
"Oh."
"Do not worry, the number of landmarks, natural phenomena and monuments named after Lucifer's human name are extremely numerous and therefore the gateways are still afforded some protection and anonymity from those demons who would attempt to find them."
"It's better than nothing, I guess."
"I had marginally more success in attempting to find the keys for the Devil's Peak in South Africa and the Devil's Island in French Guiana, but it was still not as much as I had hoped. Until today."
"What happened today?"
"I found a document pertaining to the Devil's Peak key and I managed to track down its location with this information."
"Okay, so what's the problem?"
"It is being kept in a building near the Peak, which is not only far too close for comfort but the building has also been angel proofed."
Dean's eyebrows shot upwards. "Really?"
"Yes."
"So you want me to break in and get it for you? Isn't it safe where it is with the angel wards and all, even if it is kinda close to the gate?"
"I could not detect any Devil's traps, nor would the angel sigils prevent another human from obtaining the key for Lucifer."
"Good point. Okay, so when do you want to go?"
"Now would be best."
Well so much for his quiet, relaxing evening. On the positive side, though, at least he wouldn't be doing any more research.
A.N.: Two quick things. First, this fic is now being translated into Italian by dark_subaru and the translation can be found here for those interested.
Second, rayvenriddle I'm not ignoring your PM, I tried to respond but your security settings mean that I can't send you a PM. Please change your settings or comment below if you want an answer to your query.
Chapter 104
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: up to and including Exile on Main St., AU from the end of season 5
Warnings: AU, slash
Word Count: 2,562
Summary: Dean spends an evening away from research to ponder what he's read about angelic bonding ceremonies.
PAST
The stars were particularly bright tonight, Dean mused as he shifted slightly on the hood of the Impala, though he was sure it helped that he was currently in the middle of nowhere. With Castiel not around and the weather being so unseasonably warm, he'd been unable to just stay indoors all evening after having spent almost all of the day doing nothing but research. Therefore he'd opted to just go for a ride and use the time to think.
Dean snorted as he thought of how unlike him it was. Most people he knew wouldn't even believe him if he told them that was what he'd gone out to do, but then most of them wouldn't believe that he was currently giving serious consideration to tying the knot the angelic way. He'd read the book that Michael had left him through twice and hadn't been able to stop thinking about it ever since. No matter what he was doing, thoughts of it would hit him out of the blue. It probably didn't help that he currently spent most of his time reading about angels, but still, this was different.
Angel marriage.
The concept was still the closest that Dean could come up with for the bonding that the book described and yet he now knew it to be a hopelessly inaccurate metaphor, simile, whatever the proper fancy word was for comparing one thing with something else and he wasn't even sure why he wanted to use it except that the bonding was even more serious than marriage and if there was one thing about relationships that his father had drummed home into him it was that marriage was sacred. In other areas all bets were off but marriage was one line he'd never knowingly crossed, not even with all of the women he'd slept with. Hell, it was one lesson that even Sam had taken away with him with absolutely no fuss whatsoever and he had no doubt that if things hadn't gone the way that they had that his little brother would be married to Jess right now.
For one of the first times ever, Dean didn't wish that he could have done things differently back then. Because no matter how awful things had gotten at times (and yes, he included his not so little stint in Hell in that), he'd never have met Castiel if it wasn't for all of those bad things and his lover was the one thing that he wouldn't give up for the anything.
Which was precisely why Dean now found himself seriously considering completing their bond via the official ritual despite the fact that even thinking of doing so scared the crap out of him on several levels. It had been against his nature for so long- both the aversion to exactly this type of commitment and to allow anything supernatural to influence him in any way- for him to simply be able to cast aside those two hold ups no matter how illogical they might be now. He'd been trusting Castiel for years and he'd allowed his angel to do any number of things to him so he hated the fact that this reared its ugly head now. Stupid psychology and emotional bullshit.
He grimaced at the thought. Despite what Sam might think, Dean was well aware of how fucked up he was with most things psychological and that he'd have been a shrink's wet dream if they'd ever been truly caught and sentenced by Hendriksen. And while he didn't want to be normal, he did wish that he wasn't quite so messed up or psychologically scarred. Just thinking of it was enough to terrify him and he shuddered as he recalled the nightmares he'd had after that wraith hunt in the asylum. He'd let his brother think that they were the usual memories of Hell haunting him when Sam had bothered to notice that something was wrong but really it had been all about what had been said in there. Some of it had hit far too close to home for comfort and he hated it, not the least because there had been nothing he could do about it. So what if he had issues stemming from his father? Dad had done what he thought was best and even if he didn't agree with it, he really wasn't in a position to complain as he couldn't exactly think of how else Dad could have handled things. Not with Azazel gunning for Sam. Given that, hunting the demon down first did seem like the best idea and he knew that he'd have done the same if it had been his son or even with Sam if he'd known about it sooner.
None of which was really an issue right now. Dean gave himself a mental slap though he knew why his mind had veered so sharply off course. It was because the next part, the next step of the bonding, still terrified him on some level. For someone who'd never been religious and had never truly cared about all of the 'soul crap' as he'd used to think of it, he'd definitely come to appreciate the significance and importance of his soul now. He'd been unable to do anything else after his little sojourn downstairs, given that his body definitely hadn't been there. So, given that, he thought it extremely justified that he was more than a little wary of anything that required him to tear off a part of it. Not that book described it as such, but reading between the lines he knew that it basically boiled down to that. The book called it communion, the coming together of two mated Graces during bonding after which they separated each with a piece of the other's Grace, which in his case would be a soul piece instead of a Grace piece.
Dean shifted uncomfortably at the thought. It was his greatest hang up about the whole thing as he couldn't help but flash back to Alastair and Hell when he thought of a part of his soul getting hacked off. It wasn't the same he knew, but the book didn't really go into detail about the communion bit and thus he didn't have any reference for exactly how the soul piece would be removed from the rest of him except for his experiences on the rack. Although all of that hacking had never resulted in a permanent severing of his soul. Or at least not that he was aware of though it would explain the sense of loss he'd felt upon first being resurrected... Could it be? No. Castiel would have told him if something like that had happened. Just like Michael would have said something if this bonding ceremony had some type of adverse effect on him, being human, and his friend hadn't.
So that meant that it couldn't be bad, no matter how it might seem to him. But Dean had already established that he was seriously fucked up so it being him had a lot going for it. Not to mention the fact that the positives totally outweighed the negatives. Yeah, the thought of part of his soul being broken off and taken from him freaked him out, but the thought of getting part of Castiel, part of his Grace, really appealed to him. Like surprisingly. And that was to say nothing about the enhanced connection it would create between them. He already knew from his experience with Michael how amazing Grace felt alongside his soul, not to mention how addictive the connection with his angel would be. He'd already felt something like it the last time he'd been with Michael and he'd reached out for Castiel and he'd been craving that closeness with his lover ever since. He'd tried desperately to feel the bond between them since separating from Michael, but he'd never been able to feel even a shadow of it. Completion of the bond, though, would ensure that he could always feel his angel, the Grace piece giving him a direct connection to Castiel.
The thought made Dean smile and he sipped some more beer. The idea of having a bit of his lover nestled in his very soul was amazingly alluring and he desperately wanted it. The realization he'd come to during Castiel's recovery had definitely made a lasting impression and he just wished that it hadn't taken something like that to make him get there. But what could he say? He was a stubborn, hard headed idiot. Now that he'd realized it, though, he wasn't going to waste any more time, especially not with them, essentially, being at war. Besides, the thought that Castiel might treasure the idea of having a piece of his soul eased his instinctive fear on that level a lot. Not to mention the fact that he didn't know anyone who'd protect it better than his lover, himself included.
The flutter of wings had Dean looking to his left and he was surprised to see Raphael appear beside the Impala.
"Hey, Raph," Dean greeted and then caught the look that flashed across the archangel's face and winced. "-ael. Sorry, I wasn't trying to aggravate you, honest."
Raphael tilted his head to one side studying him. "You meant it as you do Mike as opposed to Mikey."
"Yeah."
"Very well," the archangel nodded once. "I require your assistance."
"Oh? What for?"
"I have been attempting to track down an artifact that can be used to open one of the gateways to Perdition."
"Wow, wait, what?" Dean demanded, sitting up sharply. "A gateway to Hell? Like the one in Wyoming that Azazel opened a few years ago?"
"Yes, precisely. That gateway is only one of several that exist, some larger and some smaller, between Earth and Perdition," Raphael confirmed.
"Why haven't I heard of this before? Why didn't you guys mention it?"
"I was unaware that you were ignorant of their existence."
"Okay, how many are there and where are they?"
"There are six, the one in Wyoming near the Devil's Gate, and then one each near the Devil's Punch Bowl in England, the Devil's Pool in Australia and the Devil's Peak in South Africa. Then there is also one on the Devil's Island in French Guiana and one under the Devil's Sea off the coast of Japan."
"Je- Shit! They're all over the place."
"I believe that was done intentionally in order to achieve maximum access should they all be opened at once."
Dean's eyes grew wide at the thought. "All be opened at once? Crap, is that Lucifer's plan, do you think? We'd be overrun!"
"It is a distinct possibility if he were ever to obtain the means to do so."
"What do you mean, the means?"
"All of the gateways are protected which is why none but the Devil's Gate and the Devil's Sea have ever been opened before."
"The Devil's Sea has been opened?"
"Yes," Raphael nodded. "It was several centuries ago but some dedicated samurai and Shinto priests were able to close it shortly afterwards, much as you and your brother did in Wyoming."
"I assume that they hunted down the demons that got out?"
"Most of them, but not all. Some of the demons had immediately left the continent, spreading far beyond the reach of those hoping to contain them, while others chose to take up residence in the ocean itself where they have been wreaking havoc ever since."
"Demons in the water? That's a bit odd."
"There are many types of demons, Dean, and you would not easily encounter those that prefer a marine environment."
"But what do they do?"
"What all demons do, cause harm and havoc. In this case they focus their attention on humans who dare enter their territory on boats and ships. The Devil's Sea is one of the biggest such territories, the Bermuda Triangle being another."
"The Bermuda Triangle?" Dean repeated in disbelief. "That's actually real? And caused by demons?"
"Yes."
"Well shit. But wait, that one wasn't caused by a gate, was it?"
"No, I believe a relatively powerful demon simply took a liking to the area."
"Oh, great, a demon with real estate issues, that's just wonderful."
"I have been to every gateway and had a look at the state of their protections. The ones in Wyoming and Japan obviously needed repair and strengthening, which has now been taken care of."
"Good, that's very good. What about the others?"
"They were fine, but I have been attempting to track down the keys to each as additional insurance. They can be broken without them, of course, but it is a lot harder and we'd most likely learn of it in time to react."
"Keys, you mean like the Colt?"
"Yes."
"Did you find them?"
"The ones for the Devil's Punch Bowl and the Devil's Sea, yes, and Castiel said that you still possess the Colt."
"Yep, do you need it?"
"No, I believe you require it more."
"What have you done with the other two keys?"
"Locked them up in Heaven under constant guard."
That almost seemed like overkill until Dean remembered that someone had managed to break into Heaven and steal his grandfather's soul, so being extra cautious with the keys was probably a good thing. "Any leads on the remaining keys?"
"The one for the Devil's Pool seems to have vanished somewhere in what you call the seventeenth century and I have been unable to uncover any traces of it."
"The Devil's Pool, which one was that again?"
"The one in Australia."
"Ah, okay. Why are they all called Devil's something? Surely it would be better to try and hide them."
"All attempts were made to conceal their location as much as possible, but something of Hell does seep through even a sealed gateway and that essence was correctly attributed to my brother by the humans inhabiting the surrounding areas."
"Oh."
"Do not worry, the number of landmarks, natural phenomena and monuments named after Lucifer's human name are extremely numerous and therefore the gateways are still afforded some protection and anonymity from those demons who would attempt to find them."
"It's better than nothing, I guess."
"I had marginally more success in attempting to find the keys for the Devil's Peak in South Africa and the Devil's Island in French Guiana, but it was still not as much as I had hoped. Until today."
"What happened today?"
"I found a document pertaining to the Devil's Peak key and I managed to track down its location with this information."
"Okay, so what's the problem?"
"It is being kept in a building near the Peak, which is not only far too close for comfort but the building has also been angel proofed."
Dean's eyebrows shot upwards. "Really?"
"Yes."
"So you want me to break in and get it for you? Isn't it safe where it is with the angel wards and all, even if it is kinda close to the gate?"
"I could not detect any Devil's traps, nor would the angel sigils prevent another human from obtaining the key for Lucifer."
"Good point. Okay, so when do you want to go?"
"Now would be best."
Well so much for his quiet, relaxing evening. On the positive side, though, at least he wouldn't be doing any more research.
A.N.: Two quick things. First, this fic is now being translated into Italian by dark_subaru and the translation can be found here for those interested.
Second, rayvenriddle I'm not ignoring your PM, I tried to respond but your security settings mean that I can't send you a PM. Please change your settings or comment below if you want an answer to your query.
Chapter 104