Unexpected Destinies Chapter 14
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: 2,474
Summary: Castiel experiences more emotions he doesn't understand.
PAST
Dean rubbed his eyes as the text in front of him started to swim and dance before his eyes. As it did so, he caught glimpses of the strange Enochian letters before they once again seemed to resolve themselves into English as he blinked his sight clear. That was going to take some getting used to. If he wanted, he could make himself see the tiny handwritten script as it really was, but with the mojo Castiel had worked, it basically seemed like English to him at first glance. While he appreciated the ability to do something instead of just sitting around with his thumbs up his ass, he was long past the point of wishing that there was something else- anything else!- he could do instead of this.
He'd felt his heart sink when Castiel had first appeared with an impossibly large stack of books and it had pretty much all gone downhill from there. At least the angel was still in the room with him even if they really didn't talk much other than making comments or asking each other questions about what they'd just found. Just Castiel's very presence was almost like a balm after all those weeks he'd spent on the road alone, desperately seeking a means of freeing his brothers.
"I need a break," Dean finally declared, pushing his chair back. "Otherwise I'll go cross-eyed."
The speed with which the angel looked up at him made him laugh.
"It's an expression, Cas."
"Oh, I see," a frown.
"It means that my eyes can't take anymore of this cramped writing without a break. And who the hell wrote all of this anyway?"
"Some of my brothers and sisters," Castiel replied. "Various angels write about their experiences in what appear to be significant events so that the information is there if it is ever needed again."
"Like now."
"Precisely."
"Have you written anything, Cas?"
"I have done a number of books, mostly on events many centuries or millennia past now."
"Mostly?"
"I have done a little writing more recently."
The angel seemed almost hesitant now, as if uncertain how he would respond. Dean felt a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach. Oh, he hadn't...
"Cas, have you written anything about me?"
"Not directly, no."
"And what does that mean?"
"I wrote about Perdition, about what I saw, heard and experienced when I went there after you."
Dean forcefully pushed the memories that threatened to rise down and instead focused on the logic of that statement. It made sense for Castiel to write about what he had learned as he doubted many angels went to Hell. What Castiel had experienced during his time there could prove quite valuable in the future should another angel ever have to back there for whatever reason.
"That makes sense."
"It has also been mentioned to me that my experiences with you would be useful information to add to the library, but I knew you would not appreciate this and thus refused."
"Thanks, Cas," Dean replied with a small smile. "Besides, isn't that the whole point of Chuck's books anyway?"
"They wanted an angelic perspective on the topic."
"On the topic?" Dean repeated in disbelief. "Are you serious?"
"Some of my brothers and sisters are not yet able to put a proper perspective on human lives."
"Yeah, clearly."
"You must remember, Dean, that most of them have only watched humanity from afar and thus have no real experience with you beyond what they've been told by other angels."
"Not all of who have the highest opinion of us."
"Unfortunately not," Castiel agreed. "It is one of several reasons that I have implemented significant changes in Heaven. This type of prejudice arises from the rigid separation of the human and angelic portions of Heaven, which is easily remedied."
"Whoa, wait, are you saying that you've changed the way souls are segregated up there?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"You expressed a severe distaste for it and mentioned that some of your old friends had disliked it so much as to start finding ways to circumvent the rules."
"Yeah, but still, that's a pretty big change, Cas."
"I know, but Heaven is supposed to be a place of bliss and rest, not a prison to entrap souls. I have altered things so that those wishing to remain as they are can do so, while the rest can mingle with the other souls present or with the angels."
"How's that working?"
"People seem happier than before."
"Good, that's good."
It was on the tip of his tongue to inquire about his parents, if they were among the people who'd opted to start using these new found freedoms, but the words caught in his throat. After what Ash had said, Dean wasn't so sure he wanted to know. Besides, it would probably be a distraction and that was something he really couldn't afford at the present. He was having a hard enough time as it was dealing with the whole Sam situation not to add anything else to it.
"Yes, it also means that we were able to keep our promise to Adam."
"Of course, I'd forgotten about that. Crap."
"There was a lot going on, Dean."
"Still, I should have remembered about that. Not only is Adam my brother, but it shows what Michael is willing to do and that is something I can't forget. Not if he's getting out in two months."
And God, Dean could hardly even believe that it had been just about four weeks since he'd learned of Sam's escape from Hell, it seemed far shorter than that. His grandfather hadn't been kidding when he'd said that things were emerging from the shadows. The number of cases he'd worked recently was through the roof, not to mention that he was starting to see more and more weird shit, even for him. It really was like the supernatural world knew that Lucifer was returning soon and they were rolling out the red carpet to greet him.
What Dean didn't get, though, was why all of this was happening now. Why hadn't it happened before, when Lucifer had first gotten out? Things had seemed almost quiet then in comparison. Surely there had to be a reason for this difference. It was possible that it was simply a case of the creatures now being aware that the devil could get out whereas before he'd been locked up since Michael had kicked his ass and thus they might have been skeptical. After all, that couldn't have been the first time someone had tried to break Lucifer out.
Still, there was something about the situation that bugged him and he just couldn't figure out what it was.
The sudden way Castiel looked to the right caught Dean's eye and he looked over just in time to see a woman appear in a flutter of wings.
"Xarael," Castiel greeted.
"Castiel," the woman replied.
She, or rather her vessel, Dean mentally corrected himself, was a beautiful young woman in her mid to late twenties with a sweep of long dark hair and liquid brown eyes. She was about five foot five and dressed quite fashionably, not at all like Jimmy's accountant look. The relaxed posture and fluid movements were the exact opposite of what Castiel's had originally been and he felt sure that he'd never have pegged her for an angel at first glance if she hadn't just zapped into their room.
/
"Is everything alright?" Castiel inquired, frowning.
Xarael could easily have contacted him if something had come up and he was surprised that she had chosen to appear here instead of doing so. Especially since it required her to go find a vessel first least she harm Dean.
"Yes, everything is fine, I just found the remaining book you were looking for and decided that I might as well bring it to you."
Even as she spoke, Castiel could see her eyes wander to Dean and light up. Clearly the book had merely been an excuse to come, it was the Righteous Man whom she wanted to meet. He felt a wave of something crash over him, but he wasn't sure what it was, just that it was some emotion he wasn't familiar with and he didn't particularly like it. Whatever it was though, it refused to go away and actually grew as she approached the table they were seated at.
"And you must be Dean Winchester, the Righteous Man," Xarael said as Dean rose to his feet. "I've heard a lot about you and have been wishing to meet you for some time now."
"Oh, uh, well it's a pleasure to meet you too," Dean replied. "Cas has mentioned you."
Castiel was on his feet and reaching for his sister before he'd even fully realized what he was doing. All he knew was that he didn't like this situation and he didn't like the way Dean was looking at her, or rather at her vessel really as he couldn't see Xarael herself. He wasn't sure why as he'd observed the hunter appraise countless women that way, but this time it bothered him in a way it never had before. Or, no, this time it bothered him far more than it ever had before. He had felt something similar to this a few of those times as well, but never quite this strong and he hadn't like it then either. His dislike for it had grown in proportion to the strength of the emotion and he wasn't sure why.
"Brother?" Xarael inquired as he pulled her backwards.
"You're standing too close," Castiel explained. "Humans need at least six inches of space between you and them or it makes them uncomfortable."
"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know."
"That's okay, I'm starting to get used to it," Dean replied and Castiel couldn't quite make out the expression on his face.
He didn't like that either, Castiel decided. He'd grown used to being able to better interpret what Dean was feeling by his facial expressions, but this was a new one and he had no point of reference for it. It seemed somewhat similar to the calculating way he appraised a new enemy or unknown creature, but it clearly wasn't that. Merely the focus behind it was the same, as was the way in which the hunter seemed to be looking for something that was eluding him.
"There is one other thing," Xarael said.
"What?" Castiel demanded, not sure what to make of her tone as it sounded so very different filtered through her vessel.
"I overheard some of the Virtues talking earlier today."
"The Virtues?" Dean questioned, drawing the attention of both angels back to him. "That some kind of special angel rank?"
"Not a rank so much as a group of angels with a particular specialty, like the Cupids," Castiel explained. "The Virtues supervise the movements of the heavens and are thus more sensitive to the future and prophecy."
"Dude, you've got angels that can see the future? And you haven't mentioned this before why exactly?"
"I said they were more sensitive to the future, not that they could see the future any more clearly than the rest of us can. They can, however, usually see which of the possible futures is the right one before the rest of us, but this happens so shortly before a crucial decision or action is made as to not be helpful."
"Most of the time," Xarael added. "There are occasions where they are able to see further ahead then that, but those are extremely rare."
"Precisely," Castiel confirmed.
"I see," Dean replied and Castiel could tell by the tone of his voice that the hunter hadn't really expected it to be any different.
Unfortunately, his hunter had long ago learned never to expect good things from life and it was an outlook that Castiel wished to alter but it was not a goal he expected to ever actually achieve. Ever since he had first met the human, things had gone from bad to worse and he couldn't see anything to support his case that good things did happen. Dean needed real, hard evidence to make that kind of change to his way of thinking so examples from history or what happened to other people wouldn't do.
"In addition, the Virtues are also more sensitive to the energy of life as that is what governs the movement of the heavens," Xarael explained.
"Okay. So what were these virtuous ones saying then, when you overheard them?"
Castiel saw Xarael's confusion at Dean's typical irreverence and rephrasing. The hunter seemed almost completely incapable of respecting authority or calling things by their true name. It was an observation he had made often and always with mixed feelings. Mostly the ease with which his charge did it baffled him as he had been created to obey orders unquestioningly and to respect the proper chain of command. And though he had learned much of free will, those old instincts were still there, only dying out slowly with time. He often wished it would happen faster as he had learned not to follow orders blindly anymore and his Father had rewarded him for it, but that simply didn't seem to be how this worked. As a consequence, Dean's ease with this was more often then not frustrating, though he respected the hunter for daring to go there as he had learned that most humans preferred to follow an authority figure than to stand against it even if they didn't always agree with them.
A gentle nudge with his Grace had Xarael ending her long observation of Dean which was clearly starting to make the hunter uncomfortable and looking towards him. "He wants to know what you overheard, Sister."
The feeling was back again. The one he'd had earlier when Xarael had first arrived and turned her attention to Dean. Castiel was no closer to identifying it now than he had been then and it frustrated him. Why did he not like the way his sister interacted with his friend? Or the way Dean reacted to her? There was clearly no malice there and he should be glad that he wasn't the only angel who could see the hunter's worth in his own right instead of as a vessel for Michael. It was something he would have to investigate later, especially if it might happen frequently when Dean met his other brothers and sisters as he wanted him too. The only way to prove to his charge that the majority of angels weren't 'dicks' was to allow him to meet them. Plus, if Heaven was to help truly end the Apocalypse, then they would need to work together.
"They were saying that they'd felt a ripple in the energy like something had changed."
Chapter 15
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: up to and including Exile on Main St., AU from the end of season 5
Warnings: AU, slash
Word Count: 2,474
Summary: Castiel experiences more emotions he doesn't understand.
PAST
Dean rubbed his eyes as the text in front of him started to swim and dance before his eyes. As it did so, he caught glimpses of the strange Enochian letters before they once again seemed to resolve themselves into English as he blinked his sight clear. That was going to take some getting used to. If he wanted, he could make himself see the tiny handwritten script as it really was, but with the mojo Castiel had worked, it basically seemed like English to him at first glance. While he appreciated the ability to do something instead of just sitting around with his thumbs up his ass, he was long past the point of wishing that there was something else- anything else!- he could do instead of this.
He'd felt his heart sink when Castiel had first appeared with an impossibly large stack of books and it had pretty much all gone downhill from there. At least the angel was still in the room with him even if they really didn't talk much other than making comments or asking each other questions about what they'd just found. Just Castiel's very presence was almost like a balm after all those weeks he'd spent on the road alone, desperately seeking a means of freeing his brothers.
"I need a break," Dean finally declared, pushing his chair back. "Otherwise I'll go cross-eyed."
The speed with which the angel looked up at him made him laugh.
"It's an expression, Cas."
"Oh, I see," a frown.
"It means that my eyes can't take anymore of this cramped writing without a break. And who the hell wrote all of this anyway?"
"Some of my brothers and sisters," Castiel replied. "Various angels write about their experiences in what appear to be significant events so that the information is there if it is ever needed again."
"Like now."
"Precisely."
"Have you written anything, Cas?"
"I have done a number of books, mostly on events many centuries or millennia past now."
"Mostly?"
"I have done a little writing more recently."
The angel seemed almost hesitant now, as if uncertain how he would respond. Dean felt a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach. Oh, he hadn't...
"Cas, have you written anything about me?"
"Not directly, no."
"And what does that mean?"
"I wrote about Perdition, about what I saw, heard and experienced when I went there after you."
Dean forcefully pushed the memories that threatened to rise down and instead focused on the logic of that statement. It made sense for Castiel to write about what he had learned as he doubted many angels went to Hell. What Castiel had experienced during his time there could prove quite valuable in the future should another angel ever have to back there for whatever reason.
"That makes sense."
"It has also been mentioned to me that my experiences with you would be useful information to add to the library, but I knew you would not appreciate this and thus refused."
"Thanks, Cas," Dean replied with a small smile. "Besides, isn't that the whole point of Chuck's books anyway?"
"They wanted an angelic perspective on the topic."
"On the topic?" Dean repeated in disbelief. "Are you serious?"
"Some of my brothers and sisters are not yet able to put a proper perspective on human lives."
"Yeah, clearly."
"You must remember, Dean, that most of them have only watched humanity from afar and thus have no real experience with you beyond what they've been told by other angels."
"Not all of who have the highest opinion of us."
"Unfortunately not," Castiel agreed. "It is one of several reasons that I have implemented significant changes in Heaven. This type of prejudice arises from the rigid separation of the human and angelic portions of Heaven, which is easily remedied."
"Whoa, wait, are you saying that you've changed the way souls are segregated up there?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"You expressed a severe distaste for it and mentioned that some of your old friends had disliked it so much as to start finding ways to circumvent the rules."
"Yeah, but still, that's a pretty big change, Cas."
"I know, but Heaven is supposed to be a place of bliss and rest, not a prison to entrap souls. I have altered things so that those wishing to remain as they are can do so, while the rest can mingle with the other souls present or with the angels."
"How's that working?"
"People seem happier than before."
"Good, that's good."
It was on the tip of his tongue to inquire about his parents, if they were among the people who'd opted to start using these new found freedoms, but the words caught in his throat. After what Ash had said, Dean wasn't so sure he wanted to know. Besides, it would probably be a distraction and that was something he really couldn't afford at the present. He was having a hard enough time as it was dealing with the whole Sam situation not to add anything else to it.
"Yes, it also means that we were able to keep our promise to Adam."
"Of course, I'd forgotten about that. Crap."
"There was a lot going on, Dean."
"Still, I should have remembered about that. Not only is Adam my brother, but it shows what Michael is willing to do and that is something I can't forget. Not if he's getting out in two months."
And God, Dean could hardly even believe that it had been just about four weeks since he'd learned of Sam's escape from Hell, it seemed far shorter than that. His grandfather hadn't been kidding when he'd said that things were emerging from the shadows. The number of cases he'd worked recently was through the roof, not to mention that he was starting to see more and more weird shit, even for him. It really was like the supernatural world knew that Lucifer was returning soon and they were rolling out the red carpet to greet him.
What Dean didn't get, though, was why all of this was happening now. Why hadn't it happened before, when Lucifer had first gotten out? Things had seemed almost quiet then in comparison. Surely there had to be a reason for this difference. It was possible that it was simply a case of the creatures now being aware that the devil could get out whereas before he'd been locked up since Michael had kicked his ass and thus they might have been skeptical. After all, that couldn't have been the first time someone had tried to break Lucifer out.
Still, there was something about the situation that bugged him and he just couldn't figure out what it was.
The sudden way Castiel looked to the right caught Dean's eye and he looked over just in time to see a woman appear in a flutter of wings.
"Xarael," Castiel greeted.
"Castiel," the woman replied.
She, or rather her vessel, Dean mentally corrected himself, was a beautiful young woman in her mid to late twenties with a sweep of long dark hair and liquid brown eyes. She was about five foot five and dressed quite fashionably, not at all like Jimmy's accountant look. The relaxed posture and fluid movements were the exact opposite of what Castiel's had originally been and he felt sure that he'd never have pegged her for an angel at first glance if she hadn't just zapped into their room.
/
"Is everything alright?" Castiel inquired, frowning.
Xarael could easily have contacted him if something had come up and he was surprised that she had chosen to appear here instead of doing so. Especially since it required her to go find a vessel first least she harm Dean.
"Yes, everything is fine, I just found the remaining book you were looking for and decided that I might as well bring it to you."
Even as she spoke, Castiel could see her eyes wander to Dean and light up. Clearly the book had merely been an excuse to come, it was the Righteous Man whom she wanted to meet. He felt a wave of something crash over him, but he wasn't sure what it was, just that it was some emotion he wasn't familiar with and he didn't particularly like it. Whatever it was though, it refused to go away and actually grew as she approached the table they were seated at.
"And you must be Dean Winchester, the Righteous Man," Xarael said as Dean rose to his feet. "I've heard a lot about you and have been wishing to meet you for some time now."
"Oh, uh, well it's a pleasure to meet you too," Dean replied. "Cas has mentioned you."
Castiel was on his feet and reaching for his sister before he'd even fully realized what he was doing. All he knew was that he didn't like this situation and he didn't like the way Dean was looking at her, or rather at her vessel really as he couldn't see Xarael herself. He wasn't sure why as he'd observed the hunter appraise countless women that way, but this time it bothered him in a way it never had before. Or, no, this time it bothered him far more than it ever had before. He had felt something similar to this a few of those times as well, but never quite this strong and he hadn't like it then either. His dislike for it had grown in proportion to the strength of the emotion and he wasn't sure why.
"Brother?" Xarael inquired as he pulled her backwards.
"You're standing too close," Castiel explained. "Humans need at least six inches of space between you and them or it makes them uncomfortable."
"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know."
"That's okay, I'm starting to get used to it," Dean replied and Castiel couldn't quite make out the expression on his face.
He didn't like that either, Castiel decided. He'd grown used to being able to better interpret what Dean was feeling by his facial expressions, but this was a new one and he had no point of reference for it. It seemed somewhat similar to the calculating way he appraised a new enemy or unknown creature, but it clearly wasn't that. Merely the focus behind it was the same, as was the way in which the hunter seemed to be looking for something that was eluding him.
"There is one other thing," Xarael said.
"What?" Castiel demanded, not sure what to make of her tone as it sounded so very different filtered through her vessel.
"I overheard some of the Virtues talking earlier today."
"The Virtues?" Dean questioned, drawing the attention of both angels back to him. "That some kind of special angel rank?"
"Not a rank so much as a group of angels with a particular specialty, like the Cupids," Castiel explained. "The Virtues supervise the movements of the heavens and are thus more sensitive to the future and prophecy."
"Dude, you've got angels that can see the future? And you haven't mentioned this before why exactly?"
"I said they were more sensitive to the future, not that they could see the future any more clearly than the rest of us can. They can, however, usually see which of the possible futures is the right one before the rest of us, but this happens so shortly before a crucial decision or action is made as to not be helpful."
"Most of the time," Xarael added. "There are occasions where they are able to see further ahead then that, but those are extremely rare."
"Precisely," Castiel confirmed.
"I see," Dean replied and Castiel could tell by the tone of his voice that the hunter hadn't really expected it to be any different.
Unfortunately, his hunter had long ago learned never to expect good things from life and it was an outlook that Castiel wished to alter but it was not a goal he expected to ever actually achieve. Ever since he had first met the human, things had gone from bad to worse and he couldn't see anything to support his case that good things did happen. Dean needed real, hard evidence to make that kind of change to his way of thinking so examples from history or what happened to other people wouldn't do.
"In addition, the Virtues are also more sensitive to the energy of life as that is what governs the movement of the heavens," Xarael explained.
"Okay. So what were these virtuous ones saying then, when you overheard them?"
Castiel saw Xarael's confusion at Dean's typical irreverence and rephrasing. The hunter seemed almost completely incapable of respecting authority or calling things by their true name. It was an observation he had made often and always with mixed feelings. Mostly the ease with which his charge did it baffled him as he had been created to obey orders unquestioningly and to respect the proper chain of command. And though he had learned much of free will, those old instincts were still there, only dying out slowly with time. He often wished it would happen faster as he had learned not to follow orders blindly anymore and his Father had rewarded him for it, but that simply didn't seem to be how this worked. As a consequence, Dean's ease with this was more often then not frustrating, though he respected the hunter for daring to go there as he had learned that most humans preferred to follow an authority figure than to stand against it even if they didn't always agree with them.
A gentle nudge with his Grace had Xarael ending her long observation of Dean which was clearly starting to make the hunter uncomfortable and looking towards him. "He wants to know what you overheard, Sister."
The feeling was back again. The one he'd had earlier when Xarael had first arrived and turned her attention to Dean. Castiel was no closer to identifying it now than he had been then and it frustrated him. Why did he not like the way his sister interacted with his friend? Or the way Dean reacted to her? There was clearly no malice there and he should be glad that he wasn't the only angel who could see the hunter's worth in his own right instead of as a vessel for Michael. It was something he would have to investigate later, especially if it might happen frequently when Dean met his other brothers and sisters as he wanted him too. The only way to prove to his charge that the majority of angels weren't 'dicks' was to allow him to meet them. Plus, if Heaven was to help truly end the Apocalypse, then they would need to work together.
"They were saying that they'd felt a ripple in the energy like something had changed."
Chapter 15