Chapter Text
"Dean, are you sure?" Sam was sporting one of his more poignant kicked-puppy looks. He'd set up the spell to the best of his abilities, but he was far from being a professional witch, he could have done something wrong (and in the Winchester's experience if something could go sideways, it would).
Dean gave his brother the eyeroll, but his heart wasn't in it. He was mildly worried, actually. Scratch that: he was losing-his-shit worried, so he was more than happy when Cas, good old nerdy angel Cas, had stepped in and in a solemn tone had said: "I'll go with you."
Dean's shoulder lost a little of the stiffness that was holding them up as he turned toward Castiel, trying to play it cool.
"Well, it's unnecessary, but if you want to I can't stop you." Cas lifted one eyebrow looking unimpressed, then his mouth curved in a little smile. "Ok then, let's go," Dean said.
Whatever Dean was expecting, it wasn't this. The spell they'd set up was meant to send him (and Cas) back to TV Land. They'd had a heads up that Gabriel was hiding there, and they needed the archangel's help to try and defeat the villain of the year, whatever that meant. His memories from the last time he'd been there were quite vivid, hence the nervousness of going back.
As the air cleared from the smoke (why had spells to be that smokey? Who knows) he took in his surroundings and felt a pang of dread: he didn't recognize the place at all. Dean tried to keep his cool and asked Cas in a very nonchalant manner: "Do you sense your brother by any chance?"
Cas' face was scrunched in concentration. Dean thought that he was cute when he scrunched his face like that. He shook his head immediately after, where did that thought come from??
"My brother isn't here" Cas ruled.
"Awesome," Dean replied, sarcastically.
Sarcasm wasn't something Cas was acquainted with, yet, so he just scrunched his face some more and commented, "I thought you were hoping to find Gabriel in this realm. What's so awesome in him not being here instead?"
"Nevermind," Dean said, feeling mildly exhausted. "How do we go back to our realm, now?"
"I thought Sam had illustrated to you the operation of this spell?"
Dean was starting to feel irked. "He did! Probably. And maybe I wasn't paying attention, ok? I was hoping that your ass of a brother would provide the tickets for the return trip!"
"My brother isn't here, Dean, nor is his ass."
Dean facepalmed himself and sighed. "Ok" (think, Dean, you need to think). "Let's take a look around and see if there's anything useful for us to get in touch with Sam."
"Can't you just call him on the phone?" Cas asked, ever the pragmatic one.
"I'm pretty sure there's no service here," Dean said, unable to hide his jitters now.
Cas just shrugged and took his own phone out of the pocket of his coat, checked it with a smile and started typing.
"What are you doing, man?" Dean asked, bewildered.
"I'm texting Claire, she sent me a cute clip with pandas playing offended."
Dean just stared, utterly baffled.
"What? I like pandas. This one reminds me of you," Cas said.
"How…"
"I don't know, maybe because you play offended too, every now and again. Even though there's no reason to. I know you do it just because you need attention and care. You should try and ask, it's easier, you know?" Cas said without stopping his typing.
"Dude, you got service?"
"Four bars."
Dean's phone went off right then. "SAM !" Dean cried into the speaker.
"Dean I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry!"
"Dude, what did you do, where did you send us?"
"I got a symbol wrong, you are not in TV land, are you?"
"No shit Sherlock!"
"You're in an alternate reality, it's a WIP fanfic."
"Come again?"
"You're in a fantasy space, a story that's being made up right now as we speak."
"A… what? Ok, whatever. Bring us back now."
"I'm afraid I can't do that right now," Dean could hear his brother kicked-puppy attitude through the phone.
"Why??"
"Since I mistaken a symbol, the reverse spell won't work, I need time to figure it out."
"Ok listen, make it faster."
"I'm already on it." Sam sounded sheepish but bitchfaced, nonetheless. "The good news is that you shouldn't be in immediate danger."
"Shouldn't??"
"Yeah, as far as I can tell. You even got service. I'm positive it's a G or T rated innocent WIP."
"The hell are you talking about Sam?" Dean had lost his cool for a while and now he was losing his temper.
"Gotta go, tell Cas I said hi."
Whatever tirade Dean was doing, it fell on deaf ears. Sam had already disconnected the call.
Dean resisted the urge to smash said phone against a wall and put it back in his pocket instead. Cas had finished his chit chat with Claire and was staring at him expectantly.
"Sam says hi" Dean supplied.
"Ok...what else?"
"Apparently he's mistaken a symbol and now we are in this... fantasy space under construction. Good news, there's a G-spot somewhere."
"How is that good news?"
"I don't know man, cut me some slack, would you?"
Cas was going to interject but he shut his mouth instead, looking mildly offended. Like a panda. Dean thought that that was the cutest thing he'd seen in days (that thought terrified him).
The WIP fanfic realm was pretty boring and unimpressive, concluded Dean after a brief inspection of the place they'd appeared in. It looked much like a waiting room at a dentist's office, which was pretty unnerving, in some respect. It was slightly larger, though, and circular. Nonetheless it emanated the same aseptic vibes of a medical waiting area. There was even a potted plant and a soft tune playing in the background, but it was indistinguishable, as though it was coming from a badly tuned radio.
Everything was painted in a light gray hue. Dean had counted five doors in the rounded wall, the same color as the wall, each one of them had yellow post-its stuck on the surface, with a big letter traced on them in black marker: T, M, E, G and a question mark. Other post-its were covered in words that Dean couldn't decipher.
"Hey Cas ?" Dean called. A loud flapping sound was all the anticipation that Dean got before Cas appeared very close to his back, making him jump and earning a half-hearted glare from the hunter. Yellow squares of paper glided softly around them like a bizarre cascade of petals. "Dammit Cas, couldn't you just walk here!? You really had to spread your wings?"
Cas had the decency to look mildly contrite, at least.
"That's just awesome, now I can't tell which one was the door with the G-spot anymore."
"I'm sorry Dean" Castiel was giving his best impression of a puppy abandoned in the rain and Dean found out right then and there that he couldn't take it. He enveloped the trenchcoated angel in a bear hug and held him so tight that if breathing were mandatory for Cas he'd have died by suffocation. For his part, the angel patted Dean's back cautiously with the one hand that wasn't trapped in the hug.
"Ok. What now?" Dean asked, finding his composure. "Are we just sitting here waiting until Sam comes up with a reverse spell?"
"It seems to be the most logical thing to do," Cas agreed.
"Dude, I'm gonna die of boredom. Of all the ways I envisioned myself dying, this one had never occurred to me."
"It could be worse," Cas said, conversationally.
"Yeah?"
"You could stumble and accidentally impale yourself on a rusty nail." Cas shrugged.
Dean laughed out loud, a full belly laughter, tears in his eyes and all that. "Man! You're such a comedian! Have you always been like this or is it just the influence of this realm?"
Cas was sporting a smug little smile, now.
Just then, the sound of a scuffle interrupted their little moment. Dean was on high alert almost immediately.
"It comes from that door!" he said, sprinting toward one of the five perfectly identical doors.
"Dean, wait!" But Cas's warning was as useless as a fork in a bowl of broth. Dean was already turning the handle, which seemed to oppose a moderate resistance. He took a couple steps back, preparing to force it, when the door slammed open by itself. A rumble started to shake the floor and the walls, making the other doors rattle on their hinges. Finally there was an explosion of blinding light, so sudden and stunning that Dean would've ended up like a spit-roasted chicken if it weren't for Cas, who launched himself before him, wings spread out to protect him.
"Shit" was the most meaningful thing that he could come up with after the shock subsided. Cas for his part was slumped in a heap against the wall at the opposite side of the room. He'd taken the brunt of the hit and now he was seemingly unconscious, a thin trail of blood trickling from his nose.
Dean rushed to his side calling his name over and over in all the sweetest way he could come up with. He cradled Cas face in his hands and wiped gently the blood and dust from his lips. "Cas, please, please, don't leave me like this," he cried.
"Is he dead?" a voice behind Dean's back asked.
Dean almost jumped out of his skin. He turned at the speed of light and found himself rendered speechless. In all fairness, the stranger was also speechless. They just stared at each other for minutes, and it was like one of those distorting mirror chambers at Luna Parks.
"Who are you!?" They said with one voice, then, still in unison, "I asked first. No. Who are you??"
That'd be entertaining if It wasn't for Cas passed out on the floor. And the fact that they were stuck in a fucking unknown realm with no means to go back home.
"Dean…" Cas picked just that moment to revive. He was blinking his eyes and looking around sluggishly. "What… Who's that?" He asked, tilting his head to the side and increasing the side tilt when Dean tried to shield his doppelganger's naked form.
"DUDE!" Dean protested.
Cas trained two blue big innocent eyes to Dean, who melted immediately but got a grip just as quickly.
"Ok, enough, what's going on here? Who the hell are you and why are you naked?"
"I think the latter is not of import, Dean," Cas interjected.
Dean was starting to glare but gave up. The naked doppelganger was looking between the two of them in bewilderment.
"I've just broken free from a frosting pod, dude. It's not like they bother to give you a nice suit when they're planning to keep you imprisoned like that, you know?" Then, after a once-over to Dean, "That's bold, though, coming from you. What are you, a lumberjack?"
"Hunter" Dean replied with a defiant stare.
His doppleganger was identical to him in his features, but he was bulker and his hair and facial hair were much longer than Dean's. He gave out a kinda bear-like impression.
"And your friend here? Wait, let me guess, he's a door-to-door Bible salesman, aren't you, pretty?"
Cas blushed a little, being called "pretty", but he didn't lose his composure. "I'm an angel, actually, but I've never sold a Bible in my whole existence. And I assure you I've been around for a while now."
"An angel?" The naked hairy man's eyes almost bulged out of their sockets. "That might explain the surge of power that broke the magnetic lock of my cage and freed me." he was beginning to sport the beginning of heart-eyes now.
Castiel's blush intensified: "I'm not sure... but it's a possibility, I guess."
In the blink of an eye, Castiel found himself trapped in the second breath-cutting hug of the day, this time by the bare-assed Dean's secret twin. Dean for his part was too stunned to do anything other than drop his jaw. When he recovered, the man had already let go of his angel (yeah, his angel, who did he want to fool denying that?)
"Ok, look, I don't want to look like an ungrateful asshole, because I'm not. I'm Soldier Boy, for fucks sake," he blinked playfully at Cas. "But I have a few… loose ends I need to tie up, so if you'd excuse me..." He turned toward the nearest door and yanked it open, just to shut it close swiftly as a rain of bullets showered him. Thank God he'd got superskin. "What the fuck!" he shouted indignantly.
The shooting sound stopped abruptly. There was an eerie silence, broken only by a low, intermittent rumble, preceding a loud thundering sound when a black van broke through the door and smashed the sofa along with the potted plant sitting next to it.
A blond man with dark shades peeked out of the crashed door, looked around frantically and as soon as he spotted the trio, he trained his silenced gun on them.
"Stay out of my way, or I'll kill you," the blond said, panting slightly. His voice had a hint of an eastern European accent.
Cas was looking at the newcomer with his signature head tilt. Dean had his hands in the air, palms upfront, while the naked guy, Soldier Boy he'd called himself, was plainly challenging the blond armed guy with a ferocious glare, seemingly preparing himself to poop, if his stance was anything to go with. When nothing happened in the next five seconds he relaxed his posture and looked down at his chest, puzzled. "I don't understand, why isn't it working?"
"What isn't working?" Dean asked, on the verge of hysterics.
Before SB could answer, more shots came from the wrecked van. The blond man had rushed his way toward one of the three remaining doors and, finding it locked, had shooted the handle and disappeared behind it.
Dean and SB exchanged a brief look and shouted "RUN!" in unison. Dean came back immediately after to grip Cas by the wrist and drag him out of the line of fire, past the threshold of the unlocked door.
They ran down a poorly lit hallway until they reached the end of it, to another door that was mercifully open. They all but crashed through it and stopped dead, blinded by the sudden change in lighting.
Dean was the only one panting like a French bulldog. Cas and Soldier Boy were fresh like a rose. That earned him a contemptuous look from his doppleganger. The blond man was nowhere to be seen.
When he finally could see again, Dean took a look around and assessed their whereabouts. They were likely in the suburbs of a big city, he could tell based on the skyscrapers silhouetted in the short distance. The street was rough, full of potholes. Piles of garbage lay abandoned on the sidewalk, rotting and smelling. A crowd of busy people were going on their way by foot, car, bike and bus. A cacophony of clacson and voices was making Dean's head hurt even more.
Cas' confused frown, Dean was expecting, but SB looking around with big bewildered eyes was unforeseen. Thank God for small mercies, nobody seemed to mind him being naked. Actually nobody seemed to mind them at all. Nonetheless, Dean had a feeling that it'd be better to find some clothes for the guy, and he told the others just that.
Cas took off his trenchcoat immediately and handed it to SB, urging him to take it: "Here, put on my coat".
"Whoa whoa hey! Then you'd be naked, that's not much of an improvement."
Cas was staring at Dean with patient eyes and a bit of condescendence. "Dean, I still have my suit and dress shirt."
"See? Exactly what I said: naked!"
"You're not being reasonable now."
"If he's to wear someone's clothes, it's going to be mines," Dean stated. And that's how SB ended walking around in a canvas jacket opened over his bare torso and a mini skirt crafted off a blue/green flannel. But the thing that irritated Dean the most was that he managed to look pretty badass even in that ridiculous attire.
"We shouldn't go too far, Sam should be ready anytime now, what if he can't get in touch with us because we're off the radar?" Dean said to Cas' and SB's backs that were walking carelessly down the sidewalk.
Cas stopped and checked his phone. "Still 4 bars," he announced.
"Whoa, what's that?" SB exclaimed.
"It's a mobile telephone, "Cas replied, pretty proud of himself. For once there was someone more incompetent than him about modernity.
"A mobile telephone," SB repeated, taking the device from Cas' hands and staring at it intently. Their fingers brushed lightly and Dean glared the hardest glare ever glared, to no avail."How does it work?" SB asked, he looked as amazed as a little kid seeing the fireworks for the first time.
Cas leaned a little closer to the bearded man and started to show him the features of his mobile. Not that he could show much more than texts and emoticons and the snake game, Cas mobile was pretty basic because ultimately he was still mostly incompetent about modernity. He could take grained selfies, though, and he did just that, then sent the pic to Claire.
Dean was peering to sneak a peek of the pic.
Cas was smiling brightly in it, while Soldier Boy was staring awkwardly at the camera. The two were standing too close.
A whistle announced an incoming text, likely from Claire. Cas read the text and smiled. "Clair says that the beard suits you, Dean," he explained. "She thinks it's you in the pic." Just then a sparkle of realization lit up in his eyes. "The two of you have pretty similar features, actually."
"Cas, we are basically twins, thanks for noticing that!"
Cas shrugged: "I don't know Dean, I usually pay no mind to physical appearance, I was focused on the soul."
Dean rolled his eyes and exchanged a look with his doppleganger. He was hoping to find camaradiere, he found two heart-shaped eyes instead, staring at his angel in awe.
"You can see my soul?" SB asked, wonder and shyness merged in his voice.
"I do," Cas replied, giving back a humble, dignified stare.
"What… what does it look like?"
"HEY! I'm right here, you know? Enough with the eye-fucking, dudes!" Then, to Cas, "What about our 'profound bond', man?". Dean went so far as to air-quote the words 'profound bond,' unnerving himself.
"Dean!" This time, Cas seemed to have lost it "You're being childish for no reasons. You've been bitching about literally anything since we got here, even more so after this soldier has joined us. He even saved your life, shielding you from the bullets. You should show him some respect!"
"Are you for real?? He almost killed you! And he'd have certainly killed me if it weren't for your mojo!"
"It was an accident, I didn't mean to go nuclear like that" SB interjected.
"See? He's a loose cannon, he's dangerous! He can't even keep his mojo in check!"
"He's not evil Dean, I've seen his soul, I can tell that much".
Those words ignited the third life threatening hug of the day for Castiel, who didn't protest and just took it.
Dean was on the verge of erupting, like a volcano, but Cas' words held a fair share of truth. He'd been a bitch to Cas for so long, ever taking him for granted. Cas had never smiled so bright taking selfies with Dean. Maybe this Soldier Boy was the right person for him, the person who would have treated his angel the way he deserved. Don't they say that when you love someone, you need to let them go? So he did. He leveled a melancholic final glance to his angel, then to his doppleganger, wondering to himself why he'd never said to Cas that he loved him. Finally he lowered his eyes and turned toward the door they'd exited mere minutes ago. "I'll just… wait in there, then."
"Dean, wait, it might be dangerous!" Cas reached out to him intending to stop him, but Dean had already opened the door and stepped over the threshold, just to freeze on the spot when he realized that the poorly lit hallway they'd come from wasn't there anymore. There was a bar, a very crowded and noisy one.
Caswas just behind him, followed immediately by Soldier Boy. "What the fuck?" Exclaimed SB.
Dean took a once-over to the room and spotted a familiar blond mop of hair sitting at a little sheltered table on the right corner.
"There he is, that motherfucker". Dean stormed toward the blond, heedless of Cas' warnings. As soon as he'd put a hand on the man's shoulder and yanked to make him turn, he was met with an all too familiar gun barrel.
Dean lost the ability to speak, not so much for the threat, but also (and foremost) because the man's blue eyes and plumped lips were absolutely mesmerizing and frighteningly familiar. He was staring at the blond version of a young Jimmy Novak.
They stared at each other for longer than it'd be advisable, finally Dean's brain rebooted and he could speak again. "You look good in blonde," he supplied, unhelpfully (wow Dean, that was very smart!)
"Who are you, why are you following me?" The blond man asked, a little more on point.
"Uh, right, sorry, I didn't introduce myself. I'm Dean." Dean held out his hand, but the man pointedly ignored it. "Ok. And these are my friend Cas and… uh…"
"Soldier Boy" the new, bulky Cas' boyfriend said, winking seductively.
"Ok" the man said, taking in the strange trio, "what do you want from me?"
"Nothing!" Dean said quickly.
"How did you come here, and how do we leave this place?" Cas said, their voices overlapping.
At least one of them had a still functioning brain.
The blond looked from Dean to Cas to SB very intently for a little longer, then seemed to come to the conclusion that they weren't a threat and gestured for them to sit at the small table with him. The trio squeezed in the stool opposite the blond man, Cas in the middle.
An outdated TV set was transmitting music clips from the 80s, while the sliding caption reported news in a language that Dean couldn't decipher. Now that he was paying attention, nobody at the bar seemed to speak English. Moreso, strangely, all the other patrons were dressed in the fashion of the 80s. Dean frowned, but decided to put those thoughts aside for the time being.
The blond man was stirring his coffee absentmindedly, seemingly paying no attention to his surroundings. He took a sip from the cup and finally, finally he lifted his eyes to the trio.
"This is a safe place" he said, as a reply to Castiel's precedent question "I come here when I need respite".
"Respite from what?" Dean asked.
"Where is 'here'?" Cas asked, ever the pragmatic one.
"Where is less important than when," the young stranger said, cryptically.
"What's that supposed to mean? Look, enough with your riddles, do you have any idea who I am?"
The blonde leveled an unimpressed look at Soldier Boy.
"I'm Soldier Boy" the supe took a pause for dramatic effect and studied the man's features. He didn't want to miss the moment when realization would dawn on his face and he'd give back a look of admiration or dread. The man, though, had a damn poker face and just stared at him unabashed.
"I'm the most famous and powerful superhero that America's ever seen" SB provided, irked by the necessity to speak the obvious. "I can incinerate you and half of this bar in the time it takes you to sneeze," he added, since there was still no reaction.
"I doubt it," the man said, unruffled.
SB prepared himself to unchain his superpowers and put on a show, but just as before he came up empty.
"What's up? You powerless?" Dean quipped, trying to hide his smugness.
"Apparently" SB frowned deeply.
"Well that's great! So basically without your powers you're just a bear in a flannel miniskirt!"
SB looked upset, but not the cute panda-way of upset.
"Dean, I think you hurt his feelings," Cas said.
"Yeah, deal with it."
"This place has a shielding against any kind of unnatural power in existence," the blond stranger explained.
"What is this place?" Cas asked.
"It's a static space-time bubble. This bar was established in 1974, it was a pretty busy place, given his position. Clerks, reporters, tourists… and they baked their own croissants every morning, that's a plus." He paused to sip his coffee before speaking again. "It was an endless stream of patrons. Until time stopped, at 9.02 a.m. on April 22nd, 1982. Nothing's changed from that morning, it's always the same patrons, the same songs playing in a loop, the same news." The man looked around and sighed. "That's why it's safe. And peaceful."
"How are you here, then? How are the three of us here?".
***"I belong to this place," the man said, his expression dimmed somehow. "My name is Alexis Drazen, I'm Serbian. I lived in Kragujevac with my family. The night inbetween April 20th and 21st 1982 my father woke me abruptly and told me to get ready because he needed me for a job in Paris. We left by car in the early hours and drove almost non-stop to the bills Lumière, switching from time to time. I was 13, but I'd learned to drive as soon as I was tall enough to reach the pedals.
We met with two friends of his in the outskirts of the city. They gave us a key set for an obnoxious orange Opel with an Austrian license plate, which we had to switch with our car. When we arrived in Rue Marbeuf it was ten minutes to nine in the morning. He parked the car just before the entrance of a newspaper editorial office and told me to wait for him at a bar 200 meters down the street. I didn't have time to say anything because he swiftly disappeared in the crowd.
I was tired as fuck, after a full 24 hours on the road, and hungry. The smell of freshly baked croissants coming from this place was divine. I thought if father wanted me to wait in a bar, this one would do just fine, and I could always see him when he'd come back from wherever he'd gone from the shop windows.
I had barely the time to give a bite to my croissant before the bomb went off, destroying everything."***
"You're a ghost?" Dean asked. Then, "No, you can't be. You were a kid at the time, and now you're not."
"Indeed" the blonde confirmed, "and no, I didn't die in the attack. I was hurt, though, and when my father saw I was bleeding, he found out that I'd disobeyed and hurt me some more, as much as it takes to make sure that I'd learned my lesson."
The man fell silent for a bit, then he lifted his cold eyes, so similar yet so different from Castiel's, and looked at Dean defiantly. "Needless to say that my father was the bomber," he concluded.
"I'm sorry," Dean said, and he was surprised to find out that he meant it.
"Yeah, ok, boo-ooh to your daddy, but what does this sob story have to do with the fact that I can't use my powers? And how's it that I'm here? I don't 'belong' to this place!" SB yelled, hastily air-quoting the word 'belong'.
"You're an anomaly, indeed," Alexis said with a slight frown.
"I think it's our fault." All the eyes were on Cas, now, who went on explaining his theory. "The spell that took us here caused a disruption in the natural order of this universe. The surge of energy has spread like circles on the water, breaking the lock of the pod where Benjamin was imprisoned," he glanced briefly at SB, who was looking back at him in the usual awe. "Maybe that very same energy is what allowed us to break the stillness and enter this space-time bubble."
SB nodded pensively, while Alexis' only reaction was a brow slightly lifted.
"So, the question is: where are you from?" He was staring at Dean, while asking his question. Dean cleared his throat, taken aback by the intensity of Alexis' blue eyes.
"I…" he started and just like that he realized something fundamental. "Wait. Benjamin??"
"Aren't they kinda cute?" Alexis commeted.
Benjamin-Soldier Boy, who had changed seats in the meanwhile and now was sitting by Alexis' side, nodded in agreement. "Yeah, cute as fuck and just as dumb."
"What do you think, will they realize they are in love before the end of the day?"
"Nah, I don't think so. The lumberjack has his head too far down his ass. And the angel is just too soft for his own good."
Alexis hummed in agreement, in the meanwhile Dean and Castiel were still discussing animatedly about profound bonds and betrayals.
"So, what is it that you do for a living?" Soldier Boy asked.
"I'm a killer"
Soldier Boy made an appreciative sound.
"I'm pretty selective, though, I do only deserving victims".
"That's a bit of a niche in your field."
"Yeah, I prefer quality over quantity."
"Are you working on a target currently or are you free?"
"What, are you trying to hire me?"
"Actually I was thinking of it more like a date proposal. I'd like to know you better, you seem a pretty cool motherfucker."
Alexis blushed slightly, and that was the cutest thing that Soldier Boy had seen in a while.
"Hey" Alexis said, lifting his eyes abruptly, "is that you on the TV?"
A video clip was playing, featuring a bunch of girls in glittery customs and a smuggy masquerade man in a green suit.
"...you go out at night
And eat up bars where the people meet
Face to facе, dance cheek to cheek
One to one, man to man
Dancе toe to toe, don't move too slow…"
This time it was Soldier Boy the one blushing.
"I've seen that video a million times and I didn't connect the dots till now, I must apologize."
"Well, why don't you offer me a cigarette as a token of your apology? I really need to smoke now."
Dean's phone went off putting his and Cas' fight on standby. He all but growled into the speaker, "What!?"
"Nice to hear from you as well, I kinda missed you," Sam said sarcastically.
"Are you ready to go with the reverse spell?"
"Well, no, but I have bad news and good news, which ones would you like to hear first?"
"Look, I ain't in the mood for this shit."
"The bad news," Cas stepped in.
"Ok. Bad news. There's no reverse spells for this kind of spell."
Dean was starting to lose it but Cas stopped him putting his warm, big hand on his shoulder.
"Now tell us the good news, Sam, please."
"The good news is that your WIP is almost completed. As soon as it's done, you'll be returned to our reality".
"How long?" Dean asked, rubbing his face in desolation.
"I'm afraid I can't tell you that. Not even the author has this information."
"What kind of shitty author is that?"
"Probably it's just a matter of inexperience, Dean," Sam said. "Anyway, enjoy what little remains of your vacancy, I'll see you here very soon."
"Fuck," Dean said to the disconnected line.
"Dean!" The urgency in Cas's voice got Dean fully alerted in no time. "The bar is fading and I can't see Benjamin nor Alexis anymore."
Dean wanted to make an acidic comment on Cas' choice to go with the first name for Soldier Boy, but decided against it because actually something was happening in the bar. He sprung upright just in time, before the stool he was sitting on disappeared under his ass.
There was a mighty wind and suddenly they were enveloped in a whirlwind of yellow post-it. Dean threw his arm around Cas' shoulder and pulled him into a hug, obeying the instinct to protect. When the wind subsided he opened his eyes cautiously. He was still hugging Cas, who appeared mildly fazed by all the hugging he'd been subjected to in the last few hours. He let go with a mumbled apology and looked around. They were back in the bunker, Sam was sitting with his feet lifted on the table and a large bowl of pop-corns in his lap. Claire was sitting next to him, with her own share of the snack.
"What…?" Was all Dean could tell.
"Aaaah this was really something!" Clair exclaimed, her voice full of mirth.
Sam nodded vigorously, giggling unstoppable giggles.
"You were watching us?" Cas asked, sounding properly outraged.
"Kinda. I didn't do it on purpose, but when I realized that the scenes were playing out in the bowl where the remnants of the spell were, I thought it'd be better to keep an eye on you". Explained Sam. "Then Clair called me to bitch about your beard and…"
"And Sam told me what happened and I had to come here, you know, to help."
"Yeah, you helped yourself, indeed." Dean growled.
"I need a shower" he added, "and two days of sleep."
He turned on his heels and started to walk tiredly toward his room.
"Dean!" Cas' voice came a little breathless from behind.
Dean turned around and studied him for a very long time. The feelings and emotions he'd experienced in the WIP realm, now were muffled, but undeniably still there. He could lie to himself all he wanted, but the truth was that he loved Cas. More than that, he was in love with him. But it was also true that Cas didn't reciprocate, not there, not here. That realization struck him hard, so hard that he walked away muttering "maybe tomorrow" when Cas told him that they needed to talk.
Cas' shoulders slumped forward and he lowered his gaze, contemplating for a little while the square piece of yellow paper with the word "happy ending" on it that he'd found in one of his trenchcoat's pockets. He scrunched the post-it, defeated, and put it back in his pocket, walking away.
Epilogue
Cas' phone rang. He frowned at the screen not recognizing the number.
He debated internally over answering or not, until the ringing stopped, just to start again shortly after. He picked up the call, finally, and answered with his customary "Hello."
"Hey there, angel!" came a rumbling voice through the speaker.
"Benjamin?" Cas muttered, not fully trusting his gut.
"You got it!"
"What...where are you? Are you ok? I thought you'd dissolved with the rest of the safe place when the WIP got completed! And what about Alexis? Is he with you? How did you find my phone number, anyway?"
"It's a long story. Yeah, Alexis's with me. We are good, we've been kinda busy, lately."
Cas was genuinely smiling now. "I'm glad that you both are fine, the thought that you could've dissolved didn't sit well with me."
"Awww, aren't you my cute little angel?"
"I'm not little, actually, my true form's size is about the height of the Chrysler building."
"Whatever you say. Listen, Alexis and I were wondering if you and Dean would like to come over sometime?"
"It'd be nice, where are you at?"
"We're in a new WIP, this one's E rated," he lowered his voice conspiratorially speaking the second half of the sentence.
Cas frowned, puzzled. "I don't know what that means but I don't think Dean will be up for another trip into the WIP realm. Last time he was pretty… affected. He didn't talk to me for a week."
Soldier Boy seemed to consider that piece of information very thoroughly. "You should come alone, then. Let him wallow in his own shit".
Cas opened his mouth to refuse, but he surprised himself when the words that he formed were, "Ok then. Send me your whereabouts."
"I'm on it, angel."
Cas kept staring at the phone a little longer after the call disconnected. He was feeling giddy, and that's how Dean found him.
"What's up Cas? You won the snake game?" Dean quipped.
"That, actually, I already did multiple times now. No, I just got a call from a friend," Cas said. "Benjamin and Alexis invited me to go visit them, I'm leaving in a few minutes."
"What? Where are they? I thought they were gone for good."
"They are not. They are currently in a new WIP," Castiel explained. "E-rated," he added as a second thought.
There was a loud thud and a whimpering sound.
"Sam you're not very subtle, you know?" Dean said to his clumsy brother, that was eavesdropping the conversation.
Sam cleared his throat and came out into the open, massaging his bruised buttock. "You sure you got the info correctly, Cas?" He asked awkwardly.
"Yes?" Cas replied, not so confident now.
"E-rated, that's what they told you?"
"Yes Sam," Cas said for the second time, mildly annoyed now. "I can distinguish the alphabet letters".
"Ok," Sam said in a conciliatory tone. "Maybe we should talk a little before you go."
"Are you kidding me?" Dean asked as soon as his brother had finished talking.
"I'm afraid no" Sam said, looking adequately uncomfortable.
"How come you know of such things?" Cas asked with a deep head tilt.
"Yeah, how come, brother??"
"I'm a researcher, ok?" Sam said, sounding defensive and pretty unconvincing.
"Whatever," Cas huffed. "I don't care, I promised I'd go and I'm going. I think I can fend for myself against an alphabet letter. Please Sam, would you help me to set up the spell?"
"Wait!" Dean yelled. He was looking mostly terrified but there was a spark of excitement deep in his eyes. "I'll go with you."
"Well, it's unnecessary, but if you want to, I can't stop you."
Dean gave him a bitch face that made Sam's chest swell with pride. Cas turned his back to him. He couldn't let him know that he was smiling.
The end
(Or maybe not?)