Reasons von abgemeldet ================================================================================ Kapitel 5: Still waters run deep -------------------------------- Updated Version 5. Still waters run deep Until the wind stirs them up The whole way back, Dean had remained quiet, staring onto the street. He had not even bothered to answer Sam's dozen of questions about 'what is going on between you two' and 'why don't you talk to me, I'm your brother'. Finally, Sam had given up. If he did not want to talk, he could not make him talk. Both of them knew! Now, that they were both back in their motel rooms. They wanted to rest for the next few hours until dawn. Sam certainly was already asleep but Dean was lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking. He actually was not good in those brain-involving things. Usually Sammy did all the important thinking. But this one was on him! Dean growled. What did that friggin' angel mean? Aah, c'mon brain. I need ya right now, he thought. The Winchester sighed, turning to the left. You're following my orders without hesitation... why? He sighed again, turned to the right. I never ask you to stay? You never wait I can do so. Dean turned onto his back. There is no place he can go but then, where is he all the time he's not with us? Sitting on the roof starin' up into the sky? "Jesus, this freakin' chicken wing is drivin' me nuts." he cried out loud sitting up, staring at the door as if he could vaporize it with a simple look. The morning came way too fast for the eldest Winchester. He had not made it to fall asleep at all, resulting in a horrible looking man with dark rings under his eyes. When Sam saw him, he could not believe his eyes. "You look like shit." he just managed to say, before he shoved his salad into his mouth. "No shit, Sherlock." Dean replied sarcastically, poking around in his apple pie. Sam sighed. He was patient, when he had to be but this was just ridiculous. "Listen, Dean. You better get things straight with Castiel, whatever is going on..." "There is nothing going on, Sam and if you don't shut up... just shut up, okay? I can handle this." Dean cut off his brother with a loud voice. Gaining the attention of some of the other guests and started mumbling and whispering. The older Winchester rolled his eyes. "Let's get outta here." he said, leaving his pie. Sam put some money onto the table and followed his brother. Not ten minutes later, the Winchesters were on the highway leaving Danville as fast as possible. Not caring about what might have been found in the maze or where that minotaur actually came from. Not caring for the screaming Rickbee who had to rake all day through the whole garden. The job was done, that was all that mattered. Somewhere far South The day was just perfect. The sky was blue, the tiny bits of clouds looked like torn marshmallows about to vanish into milk and cocoa. Dave Calderon inhaled the smell of burning coals, the scent of roasting beef, mixed with the taste of a cold, and freshly opened beer. It was indeed a perfect day for a barbecue. Turning the meat a few times to make sure it did not burn to ashes he felt a tight grip around his chubby belly. "How's the meat darlin'?" his wife asked, kissing his cheek and looking down onto the brazier. "It will be done soon. Call the kids and tell them to wash their hands! The Johnsen's will be here in any minute." he replied and grinned widely. Yes, today would be the best day. His old time friend and his family would come. They would have fun, talk about nonsense and later drink a few beers and remember the good old days. As he turned the beef around another time he got startled by a loud honk from the nearby lake. He turned his gaze towards the huge boat that was approaching from the other side. Dave smiled. His friend always had to come with that huge thing just to show off. He was not jealous, not at all but still... it just bothered him. With one of the already done pieces of meat he made his way towards the jetty. Waving over to the boat, he did not notice the crippling of the water approaching right next to him. "Hey Joe! C'mon that thing is slow as hell! Move it!" Dave stopped waving towards his friend and shaded his eyes from the reflecting sun, loosening the grip on the meat and it fell into the water. "Shit!" He got on his knees trying to see if he could somehow still save the 40$ meat. Narrowing his eyes he stared into the water. He saw nothing but darkness and sighed in anger, closing his eyes for a brief second. When he opened them again, his heart froze. A pair of eyes was staring right at him, moving closer and blinking softly. Dave opened his mouth and was about to scream but he could not, he just stared into those weird eyes. "Dave, what're you doin'?" His wife set a few more plates on the table, wondering why he was on the landing stage. "Laura get the camera!" he yelled over and reached into the water. He was not scared at all, he believed that every being in this world was wonderful and he never saw something like he saw right now. Its long face, the long mane, those eyes looked full of mercy and forgiveness. As his fingers touched the water his eyes widened as the water splashed against his face, the merciful look in those eyes turning into a madness he never saw before. A pair of strong, manly arms reached out of the water, grabbing him by his arm and dragging him into the water. A short scream, which was choked off as his mouth was filled with water, escaped him, before Dave was pulled underwater leaving only the barbecue tongs and his screaming wife behind. Back on the road Sam stayed quiet. From time to time he glanced over at his brother, receiving no reaction, not even a short look and tried to keep his mouth shut. With the ongoing apocalypse they did not need any more problems, especially not between them, but Dean was just not in the mood to sort things out. Where the hell were they even going? Grabbing the steering wheel tightly Dean tried to focus on the street, noticing the bypassing cities and villages. Millions of people who did not even know what was going on and what would happen, if nobody stopped the remaining horsemen and Lucifer's plans. Sometimes, he really wished that nothing of this was real and he would just be a normal human being, with a normal life, a normal family and a normal job, with normal income. But that would not be him, Dean Winchester, oldest son of John Winchester, destined to fight monsters and deal with weird angels and demons. These damn angels! His thoughts got cut off when his eyes met a village sign, displaying 'Winchester' twenty miles. Dean's eyebrows moved upwards. He suddenly had an idea. "Hey, Sammy. What do you think about staying in Winchester for a day?" he asked smirking. His brother, who had taken a nap, turned his head in surprise. Not sure, what he actually had heard. "Come again?" Dean smiled at his brother and repeated. "Let's go to Winchester!" His brother still not understanding what Dean was actually talking about turned his head towards the road in front of them. When he noticed the Route sign with an exit to 'Winchester', he finally understood. "You serious, dude?" Sam asked his brother, a smile on his face. Dean shrugged. "Why not? Would be fun to see Winchester once, don't you think so?" "Very well..." The younger brother started. "Since we don't have anything else, more important, to do, sure. Let's have some spare time with our namesake." Sam continued sarcastically. Dean changed the lane, not bothering about any other cars on the highway, not bothering his baby brothers warning to drive carefully. He activated the indicator and joined the lane for exiting the highway. Half an hour later they passed the village name sign and Dean started singing. "I don't care about the sunshine, yeah. 'Cause mama mama, I'm comin' home..." When Sam looked at his brother with a face saying 'you kiddin' me right', he just stuck out his tongue. "C'mon, Sammy, let's enjoy ourselves for some time. The apocalypse certainly won't run away." he said, smiling hitting the brakes when the traffic lights turned red. All the young Winchester could do was to roll his eyes about that. Sometimes he wondered if his brother was really an all mature man or just pretending. This place really seemed nice. They passed some houses, searching for a motel of some kind. This place looked very nice. Except the fact, that it had neither a motel nor hotel at all. Dean growled. "Is this possible? No friggin' motel? Serious?" Sam unfastened his seatbelt. "Stop, Dean. I'm gonna ask somebody." he said and Dean did as he was told. When Sam got off the car, he rushed over to a group of young people. Dean could watch them describing something and run the engine again. His brother was fast. Closing the door, he said "Okay, they said, they're renovating the hotel at the moment but there is a parking near the water where people can go camping." Dean furrowed his brow. "You wanna go campin' Sammy?" "Well they said the Tims Ford Lake is down the road and it's the best place for camping in this region. So, it's our free day right? Relax and do some fishing and sightseein'?" Sam showed the little flyer to Dean he had received from the nice citizens. "You go for the museums, library and stuff, I prefer sitting around in the sun and grabbing my rod." Gaining a 'you mean, you go fishing' look from his brother, Dean grinned and drove the Impala towards the lake. Winchester was build in the middle of a huge forest and the lake was accessible by several branches which were bridged with small wooden planks, obviously not made for cars to set over. The whole place smelled like nature, clean water and peacefulness. As they got closer to Tims Ford Lake, a few police cars and an ambulance passed them by. Sam turned his head in curiosity but his brother did not seem to bother. He was seriously going for a day off. They had to wade through way too much shit the past few weeks, they needed this. They deserved this. Dean noticed the sign for camping positions, guiding them to the left and they started searching for a nice, quiet, lonesome and delightful spot where they could settle down. A few trees and nearly naked people later, they found an empty bay and Dean parked the car right on the grass. Sam could not believe it, his brother nearly jumped out of the car, walked to the back of the car, opened the trunk, got out a camping chair, his rod and bait box and walked straight towards the shore. "Wh... wait! Dean what about... I wanted to visit the damn city centre! The library is told to be enormous!" Sam got out of the car smashing the door shut. "Nice sightseeing Sammy, see ya later!" his brother replied turning his attention towards the lake, the rod and obviously not Sam anymore. Sighing heavily Sam walked around the car. "You sure you don't wanna come and see a bit of the town and its history?" he tried one last time gaining a straight 'nope' from the obviously 'busy' hunter. "Fine, you better catch us some fish then... I'll bring some vegetables from the market later." Sam got in the car again and started the engine, shaking his head before he set back and left his brother alone with his thoughts. Dean's inner tension faded away with the sound of his beloved Impala growing weaker and he was finally alone, again. He actually hoped for his brother to leave so he would not come up with any more awkward questions, which he could not answer himself. He was staring straight towards the lake when his eye met a little slightly overgrown landing stage. Smiling, he walked straight ahead and set his little chair on the wooden planks, which made the water under him gurgle. A perfect place to go fishing, he thought and his smile grew wider. Or just a good place to relax and forget about everything! Dean took out a simple fake grub bait and prepared his rod, swinging it a bit behind his head, winding up and finally casting his rod several feet away. Satisfied with the range he sat down onto the chair. Holding the rod in a mild grip, he started the waiting game. The sun was hiding behind a few clouds, only to come out again and to present the hunter with a warm and pleasant light. Soaking in the smell of his surroundings, Dean closed his eyes for a few seconds. I remember this. Opening his eyes again, his joy faded away as he felt the sense of a déjà vu coming over him. "I'm friggin' dreamin!" It looked the same. Everything looked the same as in his dream a few months ago. The Winchester turned around, prepared to see Castiel appearing from out of nowhere but the angel did not show up. Grabbing tightly onto the armrest, Dean got interrupted in his despair. Something was hitting, he could feel the slight vibrations the fish sent into his hand. Even if it was a dream, hell, it could not be the same one, at least. No sign of Castiel and a fish was aiming for his bait, totally different. He secured the rod with both hands. Feeling and waiting. When the line got tense he pulled his rod upwards. "Strike! Gotcha!" Dean yelled, feeling the rage vanishing again as he dragged his catch home. The rod bent down dangerously, the fish seemed huge and Dean's excitement grew with every pull on the pole. "Hello, Dean." The hunter jumped out of the chair with a surprised curse. The rod fell to the ground and got pulled into the water by whatever was on the other end. Dean turned around and was facing the trench coat wearing angel of the Lord. Catching his breath and feeling his heart beat slow down he pointed towards Castiel with a startled expression on his face. "Why always... from behind? Why can't you just show up somewhere else, why? Is it that hard to appear without nearly killing everyone with a heart attack?" Dean cursed, turned around and saw his favorite fishing rod disappear into the lake. Growling deeply, he faced the angel again who had closed the distance between them and was standing right behind the hunter. Meeting those curious blue eyes with his own eyes, Dean held his breath and stared straight forward. A few moments passed with neither of them saying a word, when he finally lowered his head, grinning heartlessly. "That was my best rod ya know?" he started, looking up into the angels close face again. "It's from my father, Cas. He made it himself and now... it's gone. Thanks." He knew it was not Castiel to blame but right now, he did not care. The angel was technically to blame for his loss and still, he felt a fury inside of him and pushed the angel roughly away and out of his way, only to grab him by his collar and pulling him close again. "You should be careful, Dean." Blue eyes burnt into him and into his soul. He could feel himself loosening the grip on the angel and he took a few steps backwards, his back facing the lake. Castiel's bad-ass angel voice was back again once more. Dean shook his head slightly. "What is it Castiel? What the hell do you want?" The angel moved slowly breaking the distance between them apart again, getting closer to the seemingly confused and panicked hunter. Backing off even further, Dean nearly lost his balance as his foot reached the end of the wooden planks. "Cas, snap out of it! That's not you!" "Dean, don't run from me." With every step the angel got closer, the water seemed to splash even more and even higher. The Winchester turned his gaze around, facing the water. He could swim, so there was no need to be afraid of falling into the water but still, heaven would know what the angel was up to. "Dean, stay right there." Castiel said slowly reaching out for the hunter. Dean's eyes widened and he turned his attention back to the now welcoming water. Maybe he should just jump and dive and swim for his life. Better soaking wet than whatever the angel was up to, it could only be worse. That was when he saw them. He had not noticed it before but now he could clearly see them. The water was watching him. No, something in the water was staring at him. Those eyes, they somehow crept him out, but also they dragged him closer. Before he noticed, he bent backwards and felt the wood under him creak, resulting in him losing his balance. It felt like time was slowed down, his breath died in the motion and his head swung around, watching the angel's hand reaching out for him. Dean tried to reach out for Castiel's hand to prevent him from falling, feeling the touch of the angel's fingers against his own for a brief second, only to part right away again. He fell, his back burst through the surface and dark water surrounded him. He could feel strong arms grabbing and holding onto him in a tight embrace, dragging him down. Dragging him away from those desperate blue eyes… Jerking into an upright position, Dean woke up and felt the rod in his hands vibrating softly. The Winchester held onto it while he turned his head around. There was no Castiel behind him. As he noticed, it had been a dream after all he let his eyes wander to the left, only to recognize a very well known brown fabric fluttering in an upcoming breeze. Sinking deep into his chair, Dean tried to ignore the fact that Castiel was there, again, and focused on his scaly prey. That was just a dream but this is real this time, right, he thought while he kept reeling in the fish. "Yes, Dean. It is." "Cas, get out of my head! I told you I don't want you reading my thoughts over and over!" he barked, facing the angel to his left with a not amused stare. Castiel did not even look at him this time and faced the open water in front of them, but Dean could see him fighting against any emotion that wanted to show. "Maybe if you keep reading my thoughts I can answer you in my head instead of wasting breath, eh?" Trying to brighten the situation up again and regretting his harsh voice immediately, he set on a cheerful smile, hoping the angel would face him but Castiel was still staring straight over the lake, clenching his fists. Deans furrowed his brow. He did not understand that angel lately. Not at all! The hunter sighed. Ok, Winchester. You blew it, again, he thought. Dean cleared his throat. "Okay, let's start again, from the beginning." he said quietly. "In my dream, you just wanted to warn me and I thought you wanted to... whatever. I'm sorry Cas." the Winchester continued, shaking his head about his own stupid thoughts. The angel still did not look at him, which was actually very strange, since Castiel always looked at him in that certain way of his. He replied though. "I don't know what you're talking about, Dean." What is that now? Dean stared at Castiel the way as he usually did at him. "Okay... right. Never mind. Just a dream." Maybe he was just imagining it that the angel was there. Castiel finally turned his head to look at him. "Are you saying that you were dreaming about me, saving you?" he asked. His voice lightly amused. Very lightly amused! Dean forced a smile. "Nah, I didn't say that!" he said, clearing his throat. Castiel turned his attention back to the waters. Not bothering with Dean's behavior anymore. The hunter in turn, moved to his side, so he could see the waters as well. "What are you looking at, Cas? You see something I don't see?" He was way too curious not to ask the angel about his strange acting. Castiel did not answer. Dean waited. One minute. Two minutes. Three minutes. He finally sighed. "Castiel... I can't read minds." he said, waiting for the angel to reply to his damn question, which was...? "You should stay away from the water. It is dangerous. You could drown." Unbelievable, the angel spoke! Dean moved his head in an astonished way. "Yeah, I know but I can swim. As long as you can swim properly, you don't drown immediately." Castiel turned his head, facing the hunter. "It's dangerous." he said patient. Okay, that was the right moment to be suspicious. Dean tilted his head, there was something! His spider-senses were tingling. "Cas, can you swim?" And he was right. In the very moment, Dean had asked Castiel he could see it, feel it. The angel was uncomfortable with that question. "Caaaaaaas..." he sighed sweet hearted. It can't be like that, can it, Dean thought smiling. "No." was the plain answer. The hunter's mouth fell open. Closing his mouth, he tried to say something but nothing left his throat. Dean would have started to laugh if it was not the angel saying such a thing to him but now, that he did it was just... miserable. He can't be serious, right? He's just kidding. But when is Cas kidding? Dean tried to explain it to himself but failed completely. He sighed. Sam was pissed, since when did all museums and libraries close on a Wednesday? He was lucky enough to at least get them some food and drinks for later. Since they wanted to camp for real, he even borrowed tents for him and his brother, so they would not have to sleep in the car. As he made his way to the Impala, he perked up his ears. Two women behind him were gabbling fast and full of sensation. "Yeah I heard it too! Awful! Just awful! Poor Laura, all alone with the kids!" One of them said in a high pretending voice. "Mai said they haven't found him yet... I bet it was a shark attack!" "There're no sharks in Tims Ford!" "I heard about freshwater sharks ya know?" "Oh really?" Sam moved on ignoring the rest of the conversation. Grinning a little he placed the purchases next to him. Not today, this was not the time to worry about anything supernatural. Wondering if his brother had any luck with fishing, he drove the car back towards the lake. As the shore came into view where he left Dean, he noticed that his brother was not alone anymore. Dean was waving his hand around and was obviously explaining something to Castiel in a very suggestive way, still holding the rod in his other hand. He approached them wondering if they finally managed to talk things out. "You can't swim? Hell, can you at least walk on water?" Dean could not believe it. Still, it made somewhat sense, since when did the heaven contain a pool but still it was ridiculous. "He's not Jesus, Dean." his younger brother interfered, earning another of his brother's death glares. Turning his gaze towards the approaching Winchester, Castiel put on his serious face. "Jesus couldn't walk on water, he actually..." The older Winchester did not allow the angel to continue his sentence. "I got ya. So stay away from the damn lake. Nobody wants you soaking wet and screaming." When Castiel tilted his head to the side, with a displeased expression on him, Dean sighed. "It's for your own good. Neither of us wants you to drown, get me?" The Winchester did not want to make it sound like another order. Hell, why did the angel always make him regret each and every sentence? Dean sighed. The angel still stared at the water in front of them. Noticing the upcoming pull on his rod, he focused for a few seconds to reel in whatever has been stupid enough to fall for his grub. In the meantime, Sam dropped the stuff he had bought in a savory store, looking at his brother and the angel alternately. He raised his eye brows. "Somethin' interestin' you got there?" he asked and received a prompt reply. "Just water, Sammy." Dean was waving his hand in the way saying 'none of your business, now, get done over there'. Sam growled and rolled his eyes. "You know Sammy..." Dean started again, still trying to find what the angel was looking at and finally managed to pull the fish out of the water. Grinning at the good size and fight that little thing had brought up. He went to his knees and got a hold on the slippery and struggling fish. "When we're done here, we can go swimmin'. What'cha think?" Pause. "What about you 'n fishing?" Dean grabbed the largemouth bass he caught and held it high that his brother could see it. "Already done, Sammy." he said, forced himself to turn away and walked over to his baby brother. He put down the bass and started to help his Sam building a nice little fireplace. "Cas, we need some more short wooden branches. Maybe you could pick some up for our camping fire?" The younger hunter asked smiling. Subject of his question finally turned around, looking at the Winchester brothers. The angel was very good in hiding emotions but he could not hide his curiosity. "You want to burn this place?" he asked, tilting his head to one side. Both, Dean and Sam started laughing, what made the angel even more confused. "No, Cas, we don't wanna burn this place. We just wanna have our own little barbecue over a nice little and controlled campfire." Dean explained and watched the angel turning towards the nearby trees and starting to search for branches. He shook his head. This angel is really different. Smiling, he went back to his car to see if his brother had brought anything else with him. What he saw on the backseat made him wonder. "Sammy... did you buy tents?" He could hear his brother's voice from outside the car, coming closer. "No, just borrowed them in a store. Gonna give them back tomorrow." he said, now standing beside Dean. The older Winchester looked at the two bagged tents and reached for them. "Just two, eh?" he said eyeing his brother. "I'm not psychic, Dean! How should I know Castiel would come too? Besides, these are big enough for at least two people." He said, grinning a little and turning his head towards the kneeling angel further afar from them, who was still picking up wood. "Funny, Sammy." Dean replied glaring at the younger hunter before his gaze turned towards the busy angel. Hopefully he doesn't think that's another order, he thought, turning his attention to the tents in his hand, throwing one of them towards his brother's stomach, followed by the other one. "You'll start putting up the tents and I'm preparing the hot stuff!" he said smiling, as his brother could not get a hold on both bags and let one of them fall to the ground. "Fine! Just don't get yourself too hot!" his younger brother replied snickering. Picking up the bags again, Sam made his way towards a nice shallow space between the fire and the wood. Not too close to the water but close enough to have it in sight. Removing rocks and little branches, he prepared the chosen place, noticing Castiel passing by, his arm filled with firewood and walking over to his brother. "Are these enough for your intentions, Dean?" The angel asked suspiciously and watched the other man sitting on his knees, who decided to create the fire close by the shore, so they could easily turn it off if needed. Dean looked up and smiled as he noticed the amount of wood Castiel carried with him. "I'd say with that, we could probably burn the place." Regretting his joke right away when the angel made a face, he continued. "No Cas, we won't. Get that stuff down here." Waving his hand towards the ground and next to the circle of sand in which he made a hole. Staying on his knees, the hunter started to search for the perfect branches to create the template for the campfire, surrounding the smaller branches with bigger ones. The angel stood right next to him, calm and watching every move the other made. "Instead of doing nothing but staring, you could actually help me down here, Cas." Dean looked up, inviting the angel to get down next to him. Castiel waited a few seconds before he finally decided to kneel down as he was told. Since the circle of wood seemed finished to him, he did not know what he should probably help with. Dean removed a few branches and placed some of the thinner ones inside, together with a few hands of dry meadow. "What is it you want me to do?" Castiel asked while he watched the hunter reaching out for his pocket and retrieving his lighter. "Blow." he simply said while he tried his lighter a few times before it finally sparked a flame. Moving forward about to get the fire started, the flame was blown out. A perplexed expression on his face, he turned towards the one who had just blown. The corners of his mouth jerked up a little, twitched and he started to burst out laughing. Bending over and doubled up with laughter. He could not stop it until his sides screamed and his cheeks started to hurt. Trying to calm himself down again, Dean sat up again, patting the shoulder of the seriously confused and worried looking angel. "Cas... Cas. One day you might kill me." he said, still laughing and whipping away a few tears of joy from his eyes. He bent down again, setting the dry material on fire. Placing a few bigger branches on top and blowing gently so the sparks could jump onto the newly added wood. Right when Dean removed his hand from the angels shoulder, Castiel's eyes laid on that spot for a few seconds, before he turned his gaze towards the burning wood. Then, he met the eyes of the Winchester who still smiled about the rather hilarious misunderstanding. Castiel tilted his head the way he always did, when he did not understand the situation. Dean's smile grew wider at that sight and he shook his head. "Cas..." The hunter started but shut his mouth because he actually did not know what to say about that. A voice rose from behind. "When you're done sweet talkin', you could help me with this!" Sam said, fighting with the tent. Dean turned his head to his baby brother but kept smiling. "No way, Sammy. You gonna do that all by yourself. I'm gonna get cooled." He wiggled his eye brows and stuck out his tongue. "Dean..." his brother said indignant, but the older Winchester simply overheard him. He could feel Castiel's and Sam's eyes on his back, when he started taking off his clothes, only leaving on his boxers, while walking towards the lake and jumped-run into the water with a huge splash. When he was far enough Dean dove under water and enjoyed the sudden lack of gravity. Alarmed, the angel rose to his feet, first looking at the place where the water had swallowed the hunter, then to this very hunters brother and back. "Don't worry about him, Cas. He can swim." was all Sam said, before commencing the fight with the second tent, hurrying up to follow his brother. Why was the damn instruction in French? Only god would know but possibly even he had no explanation for this circumstance. Castiel kept staring, even when Dean broke through the barrier separating water and air. He was waving his hand above his head. "C'mon Sammy, it's awesome. Uh yeah, that's good!" Dean shivered and felt a tingle moving up his spine caused by the pleasurable feeling of the cold liquid around his whole body. It had been a while since they just jumped into a river for fun and not to stay alive. Moving his hands through his wet hair, the Winchester began to swim a few lines. Castiel opened his mouth but was cut off by Sam who yelled in excitement. With a "Done!" he secured the last cord of the tent and ran towards the shore. He passed the clearly confused angel, got out of his clothes and ran towards the jetty. Like a cannonball and a loud scream he joined the older brother in the water. Castiel stayed put, not sure what to do now. He did not like the idea of having the brothers in the water. Something told him it was wrong. Castiel caught himself feeling. Embarrassed, he dropped his head, looking at the sandy ground, almost hoping the earth could swallow his shame. Both Winchesters did not notice the fight the angel fought in his head. They were pretty much busy with splashing and pulling the other one under water, playfully drowning each other. Dean and Sam made a little swimming competition just to figure out, that the other one was cheating. They completely forgot about Castiel, who was standing still, not daring to make a move, not daring to speak. Just waiting. Just watching. Every time Dean disappeared out of his sight the angel stopped breathing until he surfaced again. How long would these humans take to grow tired of that element? While Sam was swimming laps, Dean's stomach started to growl and he remembered the not yet touched fish on the shore. "Hey, Sammy. I'm getting somethin' to eat. I'm starvin'. Shall I get the fish ready?" he shouted at his brother who was already somewhere in the middle of the lake. He could hear his brother's voice shouting back but whatever he had said, he would not have bothered with it. Dean turned his gaze back to their camping place where the angel was still standing where he had left him, close by the fire. Dean furrowed his brow. Seriously, he thought, looking at the angel who was meeting his eyes with a slightly concerned look. Until now, Dean had successfully suppressed the memory of his dream from earlier but now, under the angels strong gaze he could not stop thinking about it. Cursing, Dean inhaled the air and dove, this time, without surfacing the next moment. Swimming towards the bank, he remained under water for as long as he was able to. His eyes closed, he tried to think about something else but the angel. Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuuuuuck, Winchester! He is not the center of your world, goddammit, Dean thought before he could feel a piece of wood smashing against his left hand and he practically jumped out of the water, almost suffering from a heart attack at the sight above of him. Castiel was now kneeling on the landing stage, looking seriously concerned. "Jesus Christ." Dean's breath was fast, staring directly into the bright blue eyes. It took Castiel all his strength to control himself and not to do something completely ridiculous. "Dean..." The angel started but the subject of his attention cut him off. "Cas..." There it was again, just another awkward moment he did not need. The hunter shut his mouth and got out of the water. Now, that he was standing beside the angel, dripping wet and shaking his head a little, he caught his thought again and said. "Cas, just stay away from the water. If you can't swim, I don't want you to get near it..." In the same moment he finished his sentence, Dean had the most brilliant idea. A smile started growing in his face, when he looked at the angel. With the index finger, he pointed at Castiel. "You take that thing off and I'm gonna show you somethin' nice." the hunter said and went back to his car. "But, Dean." Castiel's gaze followed the human as he walked along, doing as he ordered him to do. Dean was waving his hand, implying the angel to follow him. Still not understanding what was going on, Castiel walked over, the tan trench coat neatly folded over his arm. Dean withdrew the trench coat and laid it onto the back seat of his Impala. "Dean, what are you intending to do?" Castiel asked, not able to hide his curiosity. The Winchester smiled. "I'm gonna show ya how to swim! I can't leave you without knowing how to do so." he said, very proud of himself. "But I don't have to swim." was the only reply of the angel. "I'm not gonna discuss this with you! You're staying with us here, so you're gonna have some fun and this involves swimming of some kind!" Castiel did not reply on that. He simply followed the eldest Winchester to a place a little away from the fire where they apparently had enough space to practice swimming. "Very well, let's get started, shall we?" Dean said the arms akimbo. Sam finally had made it to the other side of the lake. He did not know how he made it at all but he said to himself, it was thanks to his constitution. Now, he was on his way back and almost drowned due to surprise and laughter. He kept swimming but did not turn his eyes from the two all grown men who obviously were practicing swimming. The thought of it was already funny but making things worse was the fact that his older brother, only dressed with his shorts, was showing an angel in a suit how to swim. He increased his speed and arrived at the landing stage. When he got out of the water he joined his brother and Castiel. "... but don't forget to move your legs as well. Otherwise you're just paddling like a dog. That's not helpful." The angel nodded, concentrating on every move the eldest Winchester did. "So, how's it going?" Sam asked stopping beside the angel and smiling at his older brother. Dean showed him a thumb up. "Mission accomplished. Angel knows how to survive in water. That means I can get something to eat now. I'm still starvin'." Castiel had stopped trying to imitate the movements the Winchester had shown him and was now paying attention to the brothers in front of him. Sam laughed. "That's good news, dude. You deserve your fish now." he said joking, turning to the angel. "What about you, Cas, you gonna stay with us the whole day? Would be fun, don't ya think?" Castiel lowered his eyes. The ground was suddenly quite interesting. "If this is what you wish." "Sure. Being always lonely is not good for the personality." Dean agreed, feeling a bit lightheaded now and was still grinning. Finally he could teach the angel something worthy besides other human activities. He swung around and waved to them, making his way to the fire. He picking up the stuff Sam had bought from the shop only to notice the huge amount of veggies. Dean made a face, wishing he would have at least bought some beef but his mood brightened when he noticed the good amount of beer in the box. As Dean made his way back to the campfire, Sam finally saw his chance to get answers to his questions. He knew the angel was always telling the truth, at least as long as they had started to refer to each other as 'friends'. The tall Winchester smiled at Castiel, who was obviously still busy, following the walk of his brother with his eyes. "Cas? Can I ask you something?" Waiting for an answer or at least any kind of reaction, Sam started to wonder. "Has Dean... done anything special lately or why is this intense staring-thing between both of you increasing lately?" Castiel tilted his head a little, as he watched Dean placing the camping chair next to the fire and preparing the barbecue, whatever that was supposed to mean. "Castiel, hello? Anyone home?" Sam raised his brows in the air and started to snap in front of the angels face. Finally the spoken to turned his gaze toward the younger Winchester and opened his mouth, obviously thinking about what to answer. "I'm aware of your question, Sam. Nothing changed in your brother's behavior. Nothing!" Castiel tried to not look up but turned his head slightly, facing the Winchester anyways. Sam's head jerked back a little as he noticed the expression on the angels face and turned his gaze towards his brother. How could Dean keep on staring at the angel like that? It was not bearable at all. That kind of expression was new to Sam, though. He never noticed that kind of emotion on the angels face, it nearly seemed, the angel did not notice himself either. He tried to figure out what to call it but the only thing he came up with would have been called obsession. "So everything is fine between you two? I can't really believe that." Sam said trying to focus back on the angel and even managed a little, disbelieving smile. "Do as you wish." was all he got from the angel. It seemed the topic was over. The hunter exhaled and thought about anything else they could talk about. He was not good in small talk especially with the angel. That was Dean's job. "Hey, Sammy. Where's the salt?" Dean interrupted his brothers hard thinking noisily. The younger Winchester turned away from the angel, looking at his brother, his face telling 'in the bag, you idiot' and sighing. "Got it!" Dean yelled and waved the box in his hand. The fire got larger already and emitted sparks everywhere. The hunter twitched as a few of those hot sparks hit his bare legs and he looked for his trousers. He found them close by and started to shake them, trying to get the sand off of them. Sam turned back to Castiel. "Let's help Dean, before he dies of stupidity." he said and walked over to his wonderful big brother he, honestly, could just kill sometimes. Castiel followed, hesitant, watching Sam start to lecture his older brother about how to prepare a proper camping fire meal and about the usage of salt in the first place. Apparently, Dean was using too much of it, the angel could tell. He stopped a few steps before the brothers, watching them fight for the salt. When they started rolling over the grass Castiel tilted his head. He did not know why the hunters did that but he guessed it was a domination fight of some kind. Shortly after they started fighting, Sam emerged as the winner, holding the salt box above his head, grinning. Both laughing, they focused on their barbecue again; putting the veggies and the fish for roasting. Castiel did not move nor did he make a sound until the older Winchester turned his attention to him. Cheerful and with a huge smile on his lips he said "C'mon, don't just stand there like a lost dog. Join us down here." Dean patted on the free place by his side. Like the very lost dog Dean had spoken of, the angel moved to the hunter's side and knelt down. Dean raised a brow when he watched the angel move elegantly and... Dean stopped. Winchester, hello? You in there? Elegant, what the hell...? Immediately, he turned his gaze back to the fire. Feeling his eyes burn slightly, he laid his head back and stared at the sky instead, realizing, the sun had started to leave them for the rest of the day. The first stars and the far away moon were visible already and the amount of clouds had grown, since he last wasted a look upwards. Time's passing by way too fast, he thought. The fun always seemed way too short compared to the daily jobs they had to do. "Dean! The fish!" Sam reminded him and brought him back from his thoughts. The smell of the nearly done fish made its way into his nose, his brain and into his mouth. Dean's stomach growled loudly and he grinned in gleeful anticipation to taste that beast of a fish. He stood up from his chair and turned the fish a few more times. The skin already was crippling and burned black at the edges, he decided it was done. Since his brother and Castiel sat on the ground, he decided to join their level, since his pants were already full of sand anyways. Sam walked over to the box and opened it, only to retrieve three bottles of cold beer. Since Dean was busy dissecting the fish, he opened them and even pressed the third one into Castiel's hand even though he refused to taste alcohol again. Sitting down again the younger Winchester waited for his brother to finish. Finally the hunger started to take him over too. Just a few moments and grilled veggies and fish later, a sound arose from the brushwood next to the water and the landing stage. Castiel was the first one who had his eyes looking at the place where the sound had come from. He furrowed his brows slightly. Sam noticed the angels gaze and followed it with his own eyes. "What's there, Cas?" he asked but his question answered itself as soon as he had spoken. There was a horse standing close to the waters, facing the three men. Sam's eye brows moved upwards in surprise. Dean tilted his head. Castiel stared at the horse, trying to kill it with his glare. "What's a horse doin' here?" Sam asked who rose to his feet as well as the others. "Dunno, perhaps it got lost or somethin'." Dean moved forward, curious about the animal. "Looks strange for a horse, don't ya think so, Sammy? I mean, look at its color? Does a horse ever look kind of green-ish to you?" he said, moving closer step by step. Sam shrugged. "No. Never seen anything like it before." was the reply. Dean was fascinated by the appearance of the animal and walked even closer, reaching out with one hand. The horse made a few steps towards the hunter, no sign of aggression at all and bowed his head down a bit. "You can't." Castiel's voice rose from behind, still calm but also attentive. "Don't touch it, Dean. You won't be able to let go of it anymore, if you do so." the angel continued, moving a few steps forward, drawing his angel blade. Dean in turn, simply looked at Castiel. One hand extended signaling 'don't do anything stupid, it's just a horse'. "Cas... Cas, you can't be seriously intending to kill this little horse, right?" he said, smiling concerned. "As I said, it is indeed not a horse, Dean. Not that kind you know, at least." Castiel explained but did not move any further. "Than, what is it?" Sam interfered. "It is an Each Uisge, a water spirit. Those spirits hunt for humans, especially children and men. When a human touches their skin they will stick to it so it can drown them in the water. You better stay away from it, Dean. I will kill it!" Determined to fulfill his duty, the angel prepared himself for the fight. The horse neighed and moved forward, attacking the eldest Winchester without a warning. Sam could hear his brother yelling but it was too late. The Each Uisge had lowered its head and lifted Dean up onto his back. Dean was fast, yes, but this water spirit was faster and Castiel was still too far away to help him. The result was that he, Dean Winchester, was sitting on the back of a very adhesive water spirit, having his chance for a little rodeo on his own. Sadly he could not even grab onto the mane of the beast, since he was sitting the wrong way round, facing the wet dripping tail of the creature. The Each Uisge kicked out its legs jumping, giving Dean the ride of his life. He kept trying to get lose and free from the skin but it was useless. Sam and Castiel tried to circle the beast but since the younger did not even had a weapon with him he could not do much than holding up his arms. "Fuck this ride! I wanna quit right now!" Dean cursed and tried once more to remove himself from the sticky texture but it was no use. The wild creature suddenly turned around, kicked and hit the bull's eye, Sam's forehead. The young Winchester was knocked down and the horse made its way to the water, with his meal on his back. Castiel tried to catch up to it but it was way too fast and before he even reached the shore, the Each Uisge dived under the surface. Dean had not much time to prepare himself but he dragged as much air in as he could before his head was buried under water. The creature's legs seemed to transform and fins spread out from its sides, making it swim even faster and dragging the prey with him. Don't panic, just don't panic, the worst you could do now is panic, Dean thought eyes wide. He moved his hands down and tried to rip on the damn black tail of the beast but the Each Uisge did not seem to react at all. Looking around frantically, Dean searched for something, for anything, he could help himself with. Since most of his stuff was left on the land, he tried to find anything in his pockets but his search was unfertile. Feeling the first reflex to gasp, Dean tried to fight it down. He knew he could not hold his breath forever but as long as he was capable to do so, he might have a chance. As his fingers searched his trousers for anything to save him, he touched his belt, finally his brain started working and he started tugging on it. C'mon, open, he cursed in his head and tried to loosen it but right when he thought it would work, the Each Uisge turned left and right violently, making it impossible for him to get his hands in the right position. It would not work. When it dawned on him, he felt the strength to fight weaken. The lack of air clouded his thoughts. He could not breathe. Everything in him screamed for oxygen but he could not open his mouth or he would welcome death right here. Trying to fight against the need to gasp for air, Dean could feel his heart beating in his ears and it reminded him of being alive. As long as he could listen to that beat he knew he was not dead yet. His head started to spin and the dark water around him added with the deepness this creature was dragging him to, began to invade his brain and senses. A strong ache made his way through his body as he turned his head up, seeing the nearly vanished light from the surface as his mouth sucked in a flush of water. His lungs screamed for air but were refused to receive any. A shadow covered the last bit of light, his last bit of hope. His eyes widened as the shadow got closer and he barely noticed the hand that was reaching out for him. Dean managed to tell his brain to move his arm upwards. The remaining air escaped his lungs and left a stream of bubbles, which joyfully made its way to the surface. Finally he could feel the grip on his hand and seconds later someone pulled on his trousers. They won't open, Dean thought, closing his eyes and sucking in another stream of cold water. As he felt his conscience fading, he could barely hear the sound of ripping fabric and the touch of hands around his waist. The next thing Dean felt was the lack of weightlessness and his back laying on the steady ground. He rolled over and started to cough heavily to release the water he swallowed onto the sandy ground. Gasping for air, making his lungs protest and cause him even more pain but at least, he was alive and breathing fresh air. The hunter rolled back onto his back, staring upwards with an exhausted expression on his face. Narrowing his eyes in disbelieve as he saw the wet dripping man above him. "Cas?" The angel nodded, obviously out of breath. Still feeling a little weak, Dean sat up. When he noticed the fresh air on his legs, he looked down. "Uhm... didn't I have some jeans on?" he asked, trying to remember why they were gone. "I... had to tear them to get you lose." Castiel answered, still trying to catch his breath again. The older Winchester turned his head to the angel, not sure what to think about that but then, there it was again. His eyes widened. "This bitch of a son of a horse. It friggin' tried to drown me!" Dean yelled. "I told you the water is dangerous." Castiel continued patiently. "I get your point now." Dean said, grinning faintly at the other. A loud splash from behind interrupted their little chat. With his eyes open wide the hunter stared at the horse which had broken through the water, galloping towards them, his jeans still attached on its back. Castiel rose and turned around, his blade in one hand, trying to protect the hunter. The head of the creature shot forward, burrowing its teeth deep in Castiel's shoulder, pulling the angel backwards, away from Dean. Without any hesitation, the beast turned over and threw the still a bit surprised angel into the lake, following him right away and sinking its huge sharp teeth back into his flesh, dragging him under water. Dean tried to get up as fast as possible but he could feel his legs and muscles still ache. He had no time to worry about that and started to run back into the water. Castiel bravely parried most of the attacks but since the water was not his element he was handicapped. To make things worse, when the Each Uisge bit him again, air escaped his lungs and he accidently inhaled the water, sensing a sharp pain he never thought he could ever feel. Nevertheless, he made it to turn the blade in his hand and pierced the horses' neck. The creature opened its mouth, exhaling a silent scream together with a few bubbles. The angel kept stabbing, he simply did not know what to do else. The blood already turned the cool water around them red-ish, when the beast finally let go of him and started to disappear into the darkness of the lake. Castiel remembered the moves Dean had shown him, trying to get back to the surface. The wounds which the water spirit inflicted on him did not make it easier. He tried but it was hard for him, he started to feel dizzy. The feeling got worse with every second. In the very moment Castiel thought he could not bear it any longer, Dean appeared in his sight diving down to him. When the last air escaped his lungs, Castiel held up his arm, waiting for Dean to grip it but that was something he did not witness anymore. He passed out. Sam jerked up. Looking frantically around, searching for his brother and the angel but found nobody there. Grabbing his head and moaning slightly, he tried to get up from the ground. "Dean? Dean!" he started yelling. Where could he be? He walked closer to the shore and started running as he noticed the pink-ish color of the water that washed ashore on the sand. Searching the surface for any sign of the missing brother, he finally noticed a few bubbles near the landing stage. Holding his breath for a second before someone broke through the surface. The water was practically moving aside, when Dean resurfaced, inhaling air deep and loud into his lungs. "Dean!" Sam yelled, running down the landing stage. "What happened?" he knelt down. When the older Winchester moved out of the water, he realized that he held something, or better, someone, in his arms. "Cas..." Dean groaned, still breathing hard. On the grass, he dropped Castiel carefully, putting his fingers under the angel's nose and in front of his mouth to check for breathing. Nothing! Dean could feel panic taking over. He looked at his brother. "He's not breathin'. He's not friggin' breathin' Sammy." he said, his voice soar. Sam connected the points faster than his brother. "We need to reanimate his heart and get the water out of his lungs." he said a little less panicked than his brother. How could an angel drown anyways? Kneeling down beside the angel, Sam pushed Dean a bit forward. "You have to give him the kiss of life. I will go for his lungs." Sam said, very serious and Dean would have started to laugh about it if the situation was not that dangerous and life threatening. However, he knew what to do, so he did what was necessary. Certainly, the angel would not mind! While Sam started the cardiac pressure massage Dean opened Castiel's mouth and sealed it with his lips, forcing his air into the unconscious angel. C'mon, breathe you stupid angel, Dean closed his eyes trying to concentrate on his breath and Sam's steady movements on the angel. They kept doing it until the first twitches moved throughout Castiel's body. Dean released the angel's mouth and just a second later, this very angels eyes shot open, jerking upwards and spitting out the water, which did not belong into his lungs. Dean was lucky not to get any water into his face when it bursted out of the angel but he was not lucky enough to avoid the angels hand that slapped him unintended. Sam's eye brows moved upwards, moving a little backwards, just in case. "Ouch!" Dean stared down at the angel, rubbing his cheek, which turned bright red in a few seconds. "What the hell you think you're doin'? I'm not that horse-thing!" "Each Uisge." Sam corrected him, gaining a 'shut-up, Sam' glare from his brother. The angels cough drew the attention of them back towards him. "Where is it?" Castiel looked around for the creature and tried to remember what just had happened. "I guess you killed it down there or at least harmed it so it let go of ya." Dean was still caressing his cheek, which started to burn like hell. The angel had a pretty strong forehand for someone who had nearly drowned. Castiel tried to stand up but he was not able to keep his balance so he fell on his knees. When Sam offered him a hand, he refused and tried again, alone. Still shaky on his feet Castiel was able to stand. He stared at the water and Dean could swear the angel tried to vaporize every molecule in this lake. "Hey, let's get to the fire. You have to get out of your clothes, unless you wanna catch a cold." the Winchester said and rubbed his biceps. The sun was already descending and with it the warmth. At the fire they had offered Castiel something to eat but he had refused, still fighting with his clothes, especially the buttons. Buttons: just another human thing to waste precious time. He had never taken off any of his clothes before. The stinging wounds did not make it easier to get the wet fabric of either, it took some time and Dean could not help it but to smile at that. They did not talk much while eating but it did not matter. The silence was not unpleasant. With the time passing by the sun and its last rays had disappeared completely and surrendered to the dark night. After some time, the bloody bite marks of the creature vanished from Castiel's body and healed completely. Sam had gone sleeping when his head started to hurt again from the Each Uisge's perfectly landed kick. Now, Dean and Castiel were both lying on their backs, watching the stars. There was nothing to hear but the muffled clattering sounds of a few cicadas combined with the scream of an owl. "Hey." Dean's voice cut through the night. "Say, do you miss heaven, Cas?" The Winchester turned his head towards the angel. "What does it matter to you, Dean?" was all he heard from the angel. Dean pursed his lips. "It is your home, isn't it?" the hunter started, waiting for a respond. When the awaited reply failed to appear Dean continued. "I never had a home. Our Dad always moved a lot with us. But then, when we met Bobby we finally had a home of some kind. I dunno, it's probably not the same but sometimes I think I'm missin' it a little. It's something you can always come back to, people you can come back to and you know it's always there." Dean shrugged. There was nothing else to say. Castiel sat up and turned his gaze towards the lake, staring at it for a while. The hunter tried to follow the angel's eyes but could not see anything but the lake. All he noticed was the 'sad' expression on Castiel's features. "What is it? I don't think the Each ugly-whatever will come back." "That's not it, Dean." Disliking the idea of him changing the topic about missing heaven, Dean groaned. He noticed that the angel was staring at him, apparently waiting for him to stop thinking and paying attention. "It is not the water spirit." the angel started. "I... have lost my blade. I have to have it back, Dean." "You serious?" Dean asked in disbelieve. How important could that thing be? "It's the only weapon, which is capable to harm my brothers and sisters. It is indeed very important but... I can't get it back." Dropping his head in realization he was now deprived of another thing that made him an angel of the Lord. It seemed like he would lose piece by piece of his own angel being each day. "Alright! If that's the case." Sighing heavily, the hunter jumped to his feet, leaving a confused looking angel sitting on the ground. Dean walked away and towards the already sleeping brother and his own tent. Castiel turned his head and watched him leave, unsure what to do. He probably should just leave but it felt awkward without any proper clothes on him. Lowering his head a bit at the thought that he really felt something like shame, imagining walking around like this somewhere else. He would stay here then, waiting for the brothers to wake up again. Castiel suddenly turned around when he heard fast paces approaching him, passing him by and running towards the shore. "Dean!" was all the angel could yell before he saw the man jump into the water. An expression of pure horror on his face, Castiel got up on his feet. Dean broke through the surface gasping for air. A small light shining in his hand! He had brought a little flashlight from his trunk, since the moon was constantly hiding behind some clouds, making it impossible to see a damn thing on the deep ground of the lake. Dean inhaled as much air as possible and disappeared beneath the water's surface once more. He dove down, deep to the ground, moving the flashlight that he could see something. There was quite a lot of stuff he could see but not what he was searching for in the first place. Dean furrowed his brow when he found an iPhone. Who the hell would throw that away, he wondered, noticing, he needed air. So he swam back. Castiel did not like the idea of Dean diving again but he did not say anything. Slowly, he moved to the end of the landing stage following the light of the flashlight with his eyes. Kneeling down he gripped the wooden plates tight which had to give in upon the force the angel used. And there he was again. The hunter broke through the water, gasping. When he noticed Castiel kneeling and watch him, he just smiled. "Gimme just a minute. I'm gonna find it!" he said, determined to get that blade back for his angel. Back under water, he kept searching when he almost lost all the air in his lungs. Holy shit. The dead body of the Each Uisge was lying on the ground staring at him with its freaky eyes. Dean had to resurface again. He better got some air. This time, Dean just took another deep breath before diving again to the place where he had found the water spirits body, assuming, the blade would be there too. And he was right. Next to the dead body the Winchester found the silver glowing blade. Even in the darkest depths of a lake this angel blade seemed to have a life on its own. Its weak shimmer was a little strange but there was no time to bother with it. Dean did not want to stay down here forever, so he grabbed the blade and moved back to the surface. Resurfacing next to the landing stage he held out Castiel's blade. Surprised, the angel took it, murmuring a 'thank you, Dean' before moving aside to let the Winchester get out of the now cold water. "Wohoo, that's cold." he said, rubbing his arms a little to get warm again. Dean looked at the angel, who seemed glad to have this blade back. At least, Dean thought. Castiel's expression showed some relief, but he was not sure about it though. When a cold breeze caught the eldest Winchester he shivered. "Okay, bed time." he said, hurrying to the tent. When he became aware that the angel was not following him, he turned around. "Hey, what are ya waitin' for, c'mon. You certainly won't sleep out here. Put that thing to your clothes and then, let's get warmed up." he said, moving on the very point he was standing, waiting for the angel to follow him into the tent. He did not want to stay outside until Castiel finally stopped thinking and just did what he was told. "Dean, I don't think... maybe I should just stay here, outside and wait for my clothes to dry." the angel said, waiting a few feet away and not daring to walk any closer. The Winchester kind of knew that the angel would refuse but it was only natural, since the last time he said he could stay with him, he got angry the next day. Castiel obviously had a point there. "Okay, listen. This time I promise, I won't be angry in the morning. I won't shout... okay maybe I will but just remind me or forgive me. Just get in already!" Leaving the entrance of the tent open for Castiel, Dean made his short way to the right side of the tent, unfolding a few blankets and some sort of flat pillows, throwing a few of them to the left. As he noticed the angel at the entrance, he smiled. "Don't forget to close the fly screen Cas, I don't like being the dinner for those bloodsuckers." Turning towards the opening of the tent again, the angel searched for any kind of mechanism to close it. Finally he found something like a zipper and with a few tries he managed to close the tent. Dean had already made himself comfortable and was lying down on his back, crossing his arms behind his head, observing the angel who looked a little lost before Castiel somehow crawl-walked to the free space on the left. Immediately turning his back towards the Winchester and forcing the thin blanket over his nearly naked body. The hunter shook his head at this behavior and snuggled himself under the cover. Dean felt so damn tired, but somehow it felt good to be at least tired and exhausted from a day of fun. Alright, he nearly drowned and the angel actually did drown but they were all alive in the end so it had been a good day still. At least the damn tent has a bigger size than the bed in the motel, he kept thinking, while he found himself staring at the other figure under the thin cover. Something caught his attention. What the hell was that now? The angel seemed to slightly quiver under the blanket but he could not feel cold or anything, it was midsummer, it was warm, they did not even need a blanket. It was just there because it was usual for him to use one. Again, there it was, that motion, if Dean had not stared at him permanently, he might have not noticed it but it was there, that soft vibration. Somewhere deep inside him, he felt sorry for Castiel, who had saved his life once more and nearly died in the damn process. "Cas, everything alright?" he asked, nearly cursing himself for such a stupid question. "I'm sorry Dean. I try to stop it but this body won't listen to me." answered the low, hushed voice under the blanket. The angel moved and sat up on his elbow. "I should go. You can't rest like this." He continued, trying to get up, but a new wave of tremors run through his muscles and brought him down again. "No way! You stay right here. Right where you are. Don't give me that 'I shall leave' shit again." Dean's voice grew louder and even though he felt, like he would fall asleep the second he closed his eyes, he sat up and moved towards the angel. "Some people are trying to sleep here!" Sam's sleepy, irritated voice was hearable from the other tent. "Just shut up and sleep, bitch!" Dean responded and the only thing he received from his brother was a soft snore. Dean turned his attention back to his own problems. Castiel was still shaking like there was no tomorrow. He could not bear the sight anymore. "Cas, get your ass over here!" he said with an annoyed growl. The angel refused to do anything so he cleared his throat and tried it again. "Castiel, come 'ere." he repeated himself but tried to lower his voice and remove the way too forceful sound in it. It worked. Castiel slowly turned around and managed to crawl over and closer to the hunter. When he thought it was close enough he laid down again, turning his back to the staring Winchester. Dean tried to stay calm. He got himself up and closed the still pretty huge space between them, laying down close behind the angel and throwing the blanket over both of them. Fighting his insides and his brain, he moved one arm around the trembling thing in front of him, waiting for the shaking mess to relax. A few seconds later, the vibrating angel seemed to freeze in his motion. Even his breath did not seem shaky anymore and Dean sighed released. "And now, sleep." "I don't sleep Dean." Castiel immediately replied, gaining another annoyed growl. "Just pretend to and stay quiet. Okay?" he mumbled and closed his eyes with mixed feelings. He could not believe he was doing this but it did not feel as bad as he thought it would. Only something in his head screamed at him he should not be doing this but as always, he ignored the voice. Dean did not know when exactly he fell asleep, he only knew that he listened to some kind of rhythm, a heartbeat, and he was certainly sure, that it was not his own. 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