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Chapter Text

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Castiel was running late. He had been to Heaven’s justice administration sector often enough (too often in the opinion of his superiors) and should know his way around there well enough by now. For once, though, he’d been called to the main courtroom instead of paying his usual visit to Zachariah’s office and had got lost in the labyrinth of corridors. That was not a good sign in itself. Usually his infractions were minor enough that they were allowed to pass without too much comment, but being summoned to the official courtroom was rather ominous. Not that he regretted his actions, but still, angelic justice wasn’t exactly kind towards deviants. Being late would be even more likely to prejudice the court against him.

Muttering Enochian profanities under his breath, Castiel picked up his pace. He was so intent on reaching his destination that he didn’t spot someone else rounding the corner. They crashed into each other, Castiel hitting the other angel with such force that he was sent tumbling to the ground. As he held out a hand to help the other man up from the floor and got a closer look at his unfortunate victim, Castiel couldn’t help but curse his luck. Of all the people he could accidentally bash into, it had to be Dean.

Dean was an archangel. Technically his proper name was Michael, better known as the leader of the armies of Heaven to lowly seraphs, but Castiel could never quite convince himself to think of Dean by that title. They’d never officially met before. Archangels had better things to do than mingle with the common crowd, so Castiel had only ever seen him at ceremonial occasions, but that hadn’t stopped him from forming a deep admiration for the other angel. All the stories of Dean’s great feats from the war with Lucifer were certainly something to be marvelled at, but Castiel valued the tales of his endless capacity for mercy as well. There was also something appealing about someone so high up in Heaven’s ranks showing scant regard for authority. His name was but one example. Choosing to go by “Dean” instead of the name their Father had given him had caused some controversy. Most were annoyed at the implied blasphemy, and even those who might have relished the dissent tended to view it as somewhat pretentious, perceiving it as merely a token gesture to encourage support from Heaven’s more rebellious angels. Castiel didn’t see it that way. Dean wasn’t arrogant. There had to be a deeper reason behind the gesture than a mere desire for rebellion. It might have just been his imagination, but Dean always seemed a little melancholy whenever he’d come to inspect Castiel’s garrison. There was some hidden sadness there. He didn’t know what, but there was definitely something.

He’d hoped that he might be able to meet the archangel properly one day, especially considering his high standing within his garrison. Crashing into him on the way to a trial concerning his supposedly dishonourable conduct was hardly how he had pictured it happening.

“I must apologise for my behaviour, sir. I should have paid better attention to where I was going. I do hope I haven’t injured you in any way,” Castiel stammered in apology as he helped Dean up from the floor.

“Don’t sweat it, buddy. I wasn’t concentrating, either. Too busy trying to find my way through this damn maze.” Dean smiled warmly back at him. “You’d think Zach would make it easier to find stuff in here. Where are you heading off to?”

“The courtroom.” Castiel didn’t look Dean in the eye. He didn’t want to see the other angel’s judgement.

“No kidding, me too! We can find our way together. I think it’s this way…” Dean headed off down yet another identical line of offices, gesturing for Castiel to follow him.

Internally, Castiel had started to panic. If he was going to the courtroom too, Dean must be on the board for his trial. Having an archangel involved, and one of the most senior ones as well, was definitely not a good sign. Practically assaulting said archangel on his way there was probably also not going to work in his favour.

“So, you got a name then?” Dean asked, cutting through Castiel’s internal reverie.

“Oh. Apologies, sir. I’m Castiel, second-in-command of the seraph garrison stationed on Earth.”

“Well, I’m Dean, so you can cut all that calling me ‘sir’ crap out now.”

They finally rounded a corner to find a door neatly labelled “Courtroom.” As they approached it, Castiel turned to Dean with a somewhat penitent expression. “I hope I haven’t caused you offence. Please don’t let it affect your decision regarding my case. I’m not usually this careless.”

To his surprise, the archangel laughed. “Wait, you think I’m one of the people putting you on trial? Cas, I’m here on a charge, too. I seriously couldn’t care less about you running into me, so don’t worry.”

Castiel tilted his head in confusion, struggling to take in Dean’s words. “You’re on trial as well?”

“Yeah, turns out even archangels get read the riot act if they don’t follow orders. Why’d they drag you here anyways? You don’t seem like the kind of person to give them any trouble.”

“You’d be surprised.” Castiel said dryly. “This is the tenth time I’ve been summoned for a reprimand this century alone.”

“No shit.” Dean looked a little impressed. “What the hell did you do this time?”

“I helped a friend.” Castiel wasn’t in the mood to elaborate. Besides, if they were stuck in the courtroom together, Dean would know soon enough. He’d probably condemn Castiel for it. “I wish you the best of luck, Dean. I’m sure any sentence you receive will be fair, if they don’t decide to drop the charges altogether.”

“I doubt that, but thanks anyway. Good luck, Cas.”

They stepped into the courtroom together.

………………

Dean was pissed. To him, angels were supposed to be guardians. Fluffy wings, halos, Michael Landon. Not dicks. And smiting an innocent town just ‘cause it might stop some demons trying to raise Samhain from captivity counted as being a dick in his book.

No wonder he’d decided to disobey the orders the other archangels had given him. If Raphael and all the other jackasses on the angelic high council wanted to slaughter a shit-load of people, they could damn well do it themselves. It wasn’t even like smiting the town was the only option. If they’d been willing to actually put in the legwork to track down the demons, they might’ve even been able to stop Samhain’s return. But no, Heaven hadn’t had a good smiting in ages and it wasn’t like they actually gave a crap about some dead-end town in the middle of nowhere. It made Dean sick. He might’ve just got away with it if he had managed to gank the demons before they could perform the ritual. But he hadn’t, so now he had to suffer through whatever stupid token punishment Zachariah decided to dish out. He was an archangel, for Christ’s sake. He shouldn’t have to deal with this kind of shit.

As soon as he came into the courtroom, he spotted Sam waiting for him with a sour expression. Bitchface Number 33; this couldn’t be good.

“So get this,” Sam started as soon as Dean came over to say hey. “You know how we were thinking that they’ll just drop the charges and make a bit of a scene so you don’t get complacent, same as they do any time one of the higher-ups disobeys? That’s not going to happen. Zachariah’s convinced all the other archangels that you actually have to have a proper punishment. Learn to play your role or something stupid like that. They were even talking about sending you to be disciplined.”

“Son of a bitch.” Dean shivered slightly. No one quite knew what happened when you got sent to Naomi’s room for “re-education.” No one really wanted to, either.

“Don’t worry, that’s not going to happen. I managed to make a deal with them. It’s not great and you’ll hate it, but at least it’s something.”

Before Dean had time to worry about whatever the hell Sam had meant by that, one of the clerks signalled the beginning of the session by banging a hammer. “Court shall rise.” The council of archangels paraded into the chamber: Zachariah, Metatron, Oriphiel, and Raphael. With a sympathetic smile at Dean, Sam made his way over to take his place amongst them. Dean headed over to the dock where Cas was already standing as the judges made themselves ready for the trials. He shot a quick reassuring grin at the seraph, who was obviously trying not to show how worried he was.

“The court shall be seated.” Zachariah sat down in the presiding seat of the judges’ bench. “We’ll start today with the case of Michael, who stands accused of disobeying orders. This is a most grievous breach of protocol and from an archangel, such behaviour cannot be tolerated. We don’t want any of the troops on the ground getting the idea that you can disobey with no repercussions.”

There were murmurs of agreement from around the courtroom. “My recommendation to the council was sending him to be disciplined. What was your decision?”

Raphael rose from his seat on the bench. “Samael suggested community service. After some discussion, the council consented.”

“Community service?” Zachariah looked sceptical. “Isn’t that a little mild considering his crimes? The rising of Samhain broke one of the seals to Lucifer’s cage! If Michael had done what we agreed and destroyed the town, that would never have happened. We can’t afford to have any more seals broken as it is.”

“So saving people’s lives is a crime now. Awesome,” Dean muttered, just loud enough for Zachariah to hear, and he couldn’t help but smirk at the other angel’s subsequent look of disgust.

“You want Dean to be disciplined to teach him about the natural order of things, right?” Sam asked. Zachariah grudgingly nodded his agreement. “Well, being a reaper’ll teach him that just as well. You know I’ve got full control over the reapers. I’ll make sure he’s doing his job correctly.”

That was the last thing Zachariah wanted, but it wasn’t like he had much choice. The rest of the council seemed happy enough with Sam’s idea. Besides, they wouldn’t want him punished too harshly: it’d set a dangerous precedent for if any of them ever got on the wrong side of Heavenly law.

“It looks like we’ve reached a decision then. Michael, you’re sentenced to a century of reaper duty. You are not permitted to return to Heaven during your sentence unless we summon you back. However, you do have the right to nominate someone else to make any council decisions on your behalf during that time.”

Dean scowled but tried not to make it too obvious how pissed he was. He wasn’t going to give the assholes that much satisfaction. “Charlie can have my position ‘til I’m back. Before that, though, I want to help decide the next case. I’m still officially an archangel ‘til you send me off to Earth, right?”

If they were being harsh on him, Dad knows what they were planning on doing to Cas. Zach probably had a grudge against the poor guy, considering how he was currently eyeballing the seraph.

“You want to sit in on Castiel’s trial?” Zachariah looked surprised. “It’s scarcely worth your notice, Michael. An open and shut case really. You needn’t bother…”

“Well, I want to. Might as well make one last decision before you kick me out, after all.”

It was worth it just to see how close Zachariah looked to wanting to strangle him.

………………

Dean wanted to help judge his trial?

Cas couldn’t work out if that was a good or bad thing. The other angel wasn’t easy to read. Although judging by his devil-may-care grin at Zachariah, who looked apoplectic with rage, his motive might have been simply to annoy the other archangels. Hopefully that wouldn’t be to Castiel’s disadvantage, whatever Dean’s true intentions might be.

As Dean sat down in his usual seat amongst the other judges, Zachariah started to read out the charges against him. “Castiel, you stand accused of helping another angel fall from Heaven. The head of your garrison, no less. Do you deny it?”

“I do not.”

“I assume you have some kind of defence for such disgraceful conduct?”

“None that I could imagine you understanding.” Castiel was not going to apologise for his actions. They were going to condemn him anyway, no matter what he said. Zachariah would have made sure of that. “Anna was desperately unhappy. Heaven held no real joy for her anymore. She loved humanity and wanted to be a part of it. I couldn’t refuse her that happiness.”

“Just to remind the court, how many times have you been called before me for disobedience?”

“Too many times to count.”

Castiel noticed Dean hiding a smirk. He appeared to be scribbling on a piece of paper before tossing it to one of the other archangels, Samael, the archangel presiding over departed souls. Cas had never had any dealings with Samael before, but all of Heaven knew how close the two archangels were.

Zachariah turned triumphantly to the rest of the archangels. “I can see our decision is clear then. Not only did Castiel commit one of the greatest crimes an angel can perform, but he freely takes pride in his actions. Only the harshest punishment would fit such disobedience.”

“Wait.” Samael had risen from his seat. “Let me talk to the prisoner.”

“I don’t see what it would achieve, but yes, feel free to proceed.” Samael made his way over to the stand. “So, Castiel, it’s true that Anael was the head of your garrison?”

“Yes.” He couldn’t see where the archangel was going with this line of argument.

“And she asked you to cut out her grace so she could fall, correct?”

“That is correct.”

“So your superior asked you to help her fall. That sounds a lot like an order to me.” Samael turned back to Zachariah and the rest of the judges. “I don’t think this is quite as simple as you’re making out.”

Zachariah’s face was red with anger. “Castiel’s a known rebel. He’d have done it even if she wasn’t his commander.”

“We can’t know that for sure. Besides, Castiel’s the second-in-command of his garrison. He can’t have got that promotion if he wasn’t competent. His position would have been taken away if he’d been as rebellious as you say,” Samael argued.

One of the other archangels, Oriphiel, rose to his feet. “I’ve got a solution to this. Samael’s right; discipline seems a little extreme in this case. Castiel’s a good soldier, but he’s confused. He can’t see that it’s not our job to let feelings affect our decisions. Put him in the cupids for a bit. That’ll show him the truth behind emotions, and the demotion will be a good caution. Let’s put it to the vote.”

Zachariah didn’t look happy about doing it but reluctantly called for the council to vote. Unsurprisingly, he raised his hand for the option of Castiel receiving a harsher punishment, as did Raphael. Metatron, Oriphiel, Samael, and Dean all voted for the lighter sentence. Zachariah sighed in annoyance as he read out the verdict, “Castiel, you’re sentenced to serve as a cupid for as long as the council deems necessary. You must remain on Earth throughout the course of your sentence. Don’t let us ever find you disobeying again, or you will be sent to be disciplined. This is your final warning.”

Chapter Text

Of all the divisions they could have sent Castiel to, it had to be the cupids. Being in the reapers like Dean might have been okay. There would have at least been the consolation that he’d be releasing humans from suffering. The bureaucratic service, the healers, he would have been better equipped for any of those. Instead, his sole purpose for the next however many centuries was to help humans find love. A bit of a joke really, especially considering he didn’t even know what love was himself.

Going by the animated discussion Dean and Samael appeared to be having once the trial was finished, he seemed to feel the same way about his own placement. Afterwards, he’d come over to wish Castiel all the best for his community service and demand that he come to visit while they were both on Earth.

Castiel was quick to accept his offer, but as the other angel was about to turn away, he quickly muttered, “Thank you.”

Instead of just accepting the gesture, Dean looked uncomfortable. “Um, okay. I don’t know what you’re thanking me for, though. It was Sammy who-”

Castiel quickly interrupted him. “I saw you pass a note to Samael and don’t doubt that it was your idea for him to intervene. For that, I’m truly grateful.”

“Yeah, well, it was nothing.”

“Not to me.”

They stared at each other for a few moments before Dean’s eyes dropped to look at the floor. “Take care of yourself, Cas. At least you got a good job there. There’s tons of hot chicks in the cupids. Knock yourself out.”

Smiling warmly at him for one last time, Dean headed off, leaving Castiel alone with his fears.

………………

Castiel didn’t know quite what to expect from his new superior. He’d had dealings with a cupid or two in the past and they had all been rather…enthusiastic, to put it kindly. He wasn’t quite sure if he could handle being bossed around by one of them indefinitely.

It wasn’t like he’d heard much about them yet, either. All the council had given him once they’d stripped him of his old seraph abilities was an address and time to meet the head of his new garrison. It hadn’t been long since his trial, but he’d already begun to notice changes. For one thing, the humans were able to see him now. As a soldier, he hadn’t needed to take a vessel. He’d been thankful for that. The idea of persuading someone to surrender their body for his use was distasteful to him. He’d had to change his ideas about that. At least James Novak hadn’t been too hard to convince, and he seemed nice enough. Castiel could feel his reassuring presence at the back of his mind.

The meeting place his superior had chosen seemed pleasant: an expensive restaurant favoured by couples, exactly the kind of garden a cupid would choose to pollinate. Soft lighting, a tasteful shade of pink covering the walls and a single red rose decorating each table. The place was practically designed to ooze romance, as testified by the majority of customers being couples. Castiel fidgeted nervously in his seat as he waited, pretending to glance through his menu to pass the time.

A shadow fell across his table. “Castiel?” He looked up to see a dark-haired and smartly dressed woman smiling at him.

“Yes?”

She sat down on the seat opposite him. “I’m Hannah. You’ve been assigned to my garrison, so I thought it would be nice to have a chance to get to know you better. Besides, you probably have a lot of questions for me.”

“It’s good to meet you, Hannah. I must confess that this is all a little new to me. In my previous assignment, I was a soldier.”

She scowled. “You seraphs, you’re all the same. Just because our job doesn’t involve stabbing someone with a blade, that doesn’t make it any less worthy for serving Heaven’s purpose.”

“I’m sorry. I meant no offence.” He tried to look suitably penitent. “The truth is that I know very little about the cupids, except that you seek to match suitable couples together.”

Hannah smiled a little at that, suitably placated. “Alright. I’ll do my best to explain the situation. Basically, it’s a misconception that cupids are responsible for all humans falling in love. Heaven has a list of couples that they feel should be together for various reasons. It’s our job to make sure that they meet and end up developing feelings for each other.”

“But doesn’t that go against free will? Pairing humans with people they wouldn’t have considered otherwise.”

She shook her head. “It’s not like that. We’re not forcing them to love each other, we just…encourage them. Over the centuries, all the couples we’ve paired together have seemed very happy together. There’s nothing wrong about that.”

Castiel remained unconvinced, but tried not to show it. “So how does it work?”

She reached out and took his hand in hers, to Castiel’s initial confusion, until she turned his hand over and a tattoo of a bow and arrow appeared on his palm. “This is your bow. Touch the two humans you’re trying to pair together at the same time and that’ll trigger the spell making them desire love. You’ve got to be careful, though. The spell only works if you make them desire qualities possessed by the other.”

“I have to get to know my assignments then, to know what they desire in a mate.”

“All the best cupids do. The more time you spend on a target, the more effective the spell is.”

It seemed this job would involve talking to people then, as well as forcing them to fall in love. Wonderful.

“I think I can master the job soon enough.”

“Excellent. I was thinking you might start your first assignment now.” Looking pleased, Hannah pointed to a bearlike man sitting over at the bar. “Benny Lafitte has been coming to this place for years. Heaven has decided to make him fall in love with one of the waitresses, Andrea. Let’s see how you get on, shall we?”

“Why?”

Hannah looked puzzled. “Excuse me?”

“If I’m to make this man fall in love with someone, I would like to know why.”

“Because Heaven commanded it.”

That seemed to be the only answer Castiel was likely to get. He did his best not to show his frustration.

Once Hannah had left and wished him the best of luck with his first mission, Castiel headed over to the bar and sat down next to Benny. The other man acknowledged his presence by nodding in greeting, but nothing more, so Castiel ordered a beer and watched him intently for a few minutes, trying to get a read on him. His behaviour did not go unnoticed by the other man, who looked over at him, puzzled. “You got something to say to me, brother?”

Castiel had always been one for the direct approach. “What qualities would you say are most important in a potential romantic partner?”

Benny stared at him.

From the back of his mind, Jimmy decided to comment on the action for the first time. Oh, shit.

“Excuse me?” Benny laughed a little nervously.

“I said, what qualities would you say are most important in choosing a romantic partner?”

“No, I heard the question, but…” The man seemed lost for words. “Sorry, brother, but I don’t swing that way. Better luck next time, okay?”

Oh. Benny thought he was trying to proposition him. Castiel blushed. “I didn’t mean it like that. I’m not interested in engaging in coitus with you. I simply wanted your opinion on the matter.”

Benny was still staring at him, dumbfounded. “I’ll give you a word of advice, brother. You want to ask a guy about what kind of girls he likes? Don’t ask a random stranger, and don’t do it like that.”

Castiel blushed an even deeper shade of red. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”

Acknowledging his apology with a silent nod, Benny got up from his bar stool and moved further along the bar, starting to talk animatedly with his intended mate, Andrea. Meanwhile, Castiel began to plan his next move. Being direct seemed fraught with problems, and any chance of him and Benny having a normal conversation had just vanished abruptly. There had to be a more subtle approach.

Go and flirt with her.

Castiel’s confusion was apparent in his reply. Excuse me?

Jimmy metaphorically rolled his eyes. That cupid friend of yours has it all wrong. Those two obviously like each other; they’re just too stupid to say anything. If you go and flirt with her, Benny might finally admit that he has feelings for her because he’s jealous of you paying her some attention.

Castiel took a few moments to consider Jimmy’s suggestion. What is flirting?

…Seriously? You don’t know what flirting is?

I was a multi-dimensional wavelength of celestial intent. I had no need for flirtation.

Look, just say she looks pretty, compliment her appearance or something? That usually goes down well.

Alright, I think I can manage that.

In retrospect, Jimmy should have been more specific about what compliments might actually appeal to a woman.

“Your name is Andrea, correct?”

“Um, yes?” The waitress smiled over at him, looking a little confused.

“I have been observing you for a while now and wanted to say how extremely beautiful you are.”

Andrea blushed. Castiel couldn’t help but smile inwardly at how Benny scowled a little at his words. Jimmy’s plan seemed to be working.

“Your hair is like a flock of goats leaping down the slopes of a mountain and your eyes…your eyes are like doves.”

Andrea was still smiling at him, but it appeared more feigned now. Benny seemed torn between the desire to laugh hysterically and tear Castiel limb from limb.

“You really need to work on your small talk, brother. Besides, you’re wasting your time.”

“Oh?” Castiel raised his eyebrows.

“Yeah. Andrea’s taken. She’s with me.” Benny put an arm round Andrea’s shoulders. Although she was obviously surprised, the woman leaned into his embrace. “I suggest you leave now.”

“My apologies. You two make a beautiful couple. I hope you have a nice evening.”

Castiel started to head towards the exit, feeling satisfied with his progress. Yes, he’d not used his new abilities and it could have gone disastrously wrong, but the couple looked happy together and that was all that mattered. Castiel had seen how Andrea’s soul had lit up at Benny’s touch and how his had called out in answer to hers. There was definitely love there, with no need for heavenly interference.

His mood was slightly dampened by Jimmy hissing in his ear. What the hell was that?

Flirting.

I told you to compliment her appearance, not compare her to livestock!

That was a quotation from the Song of Solomon. I fail to see how it was not suitably romantic.

Jimmy sighed. Remind me never to let you try flirting with someone again.

……………………

Dean’s day hadn’t gone as bad as he’d expected. Sure, he was still pissed off at Sam about the reaper stuff, but his new boss Tessa didn’t seem so bad, and she’d taken care not to give him anything too challenging for his first day. As he began to reach the end of his first shift, his mind wandered back to Castiel. The guy might be a little weird and insist on treating Dean like an archangel, just like all the rest, but Dean liked him for some reason. He wanted to get to know him better. Besides, the guy probably didn’t have that many friends around on Earth. He might welcome the excuse to have a little company.

Dean tuned into angel radio and sent a short prayer Castiel’s way.

Hey, Cas. You about finished with cupid stuff yet? Wanna come hang out?

I finished my first Cupid assignment a while ago so would be more than happy to come and “hang out.”

Of course he used air quotes. Freaking adorable. I know a cool place in downtown Los Angeles you might like. It’s a bar, Angelz. Meet you there?

See you then, Dean.

He zapped the few thousand miles to the bar to be joined by Castiel a few moments later. This was the first time Dean had seen him in his new vessel. Damn, Castiel just had to pick a gorgeous one. Dark messy bedhair, piercing blue eyes…he’d only just seen the guy and already, little Dean was starting to take an interest.

“Hello, Dean.” Castiel squinted a little as he examined the somewhat dilapidated bar in front of them, taking in the posters of scantily-clad girls and the less than welcoming giant of a man acting as bouncer at the front entrance. He didn’t look impressed. “This…this isn’t a den of iniquity, is it?”

“Yep. As a cupid, you should know all about those now.” Dean leered before placing a hand on Castiel’s shoulder in an attempt to reassure him. “C’mon, it’s not as bad as it looks. I know the guy who runs it. Although he’s sometimes a pain in the ass, I like his style.”

Once Castiel had followed Dean inside, a short man bounded over to greet them, smirking as he sucked a little suggestively on a lollipop. “Hey, Dean-o! I heard Zachariah has made you go on community service. Reaper duty, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right. I’m guessing Sam couldn’t keep his big mouth shut.” Dean laughed. “It’s good to see you, Gabe.”

“Nice to see you too, kiddo.” Gabriel glanced over at Castiel, who was gazing around the club with wide eyes. “Who’s Constantine over there?”

“Oh, this is Cas. He’s on community service as well, just in the cupid division. Zachariah was being a jackass and wanted to send him off to discipline, so looks like we both got lucky. Cas, meet Gabriel.”

Castiel hesitantly held out a hand for Gabriel to shake, staring a little as he did so.

It didn’t take much for Dean to guess why. Gabriel had become infamous in Heaven. Instead of taking a side in the all-out family brawl that was Armageddon, Gabriel had decided to jump ship and skip out on Heaven. Dean couldn’t really blame him for that, but he was about the only one who hadn’t. There had been talk of dragging Gabriel back and forcing him to resume his archangel duties for a while until it became obvious that he’d taken great care to make sure no one would ever be able to track him down. No one had seen him for years. The rumour now was that Gabriel’d gone and got himself killed somehow, and that was why no one had ever been able to find him.

Or at least, that was the official story. Dean had stumbled across him after the war with Lucifer had calmed down and found him shacked up with some of the pagans. After promising not to let the rest of the God squad know, he and Sam had tried to keep in touch with their brother.

“Gabriel? As in, the archangel?”

“Guilty.” Gabriel smiled faintly at the younger angel.

To his credit, Castiel soon recovered from the shock. “It’s an honour to meet you, sir.”

“Oh, please, don’t call me ‘sir’. That makes it sound like I’m responsible or something.” Gabriel laughed as he ushered them over to a table. “You guys sit down here for a bit, and I’ll get you some drinks.”

Once he’d gone, Castiel looked at Dean questioningly. “Why does our Father’s appointed messenger run a strip club?”

“Gabe thinks the Spearmint Rhino is one of the seven wonders of the world. Of course he runs a strip club.” Dean laughed. “I guess it’s ‘cause it’s the last place anyone would come looking for him. Besides, he’s good to the girls who work here. Any guy tries to take things too far, Gabriel gives him his just desserts.”

There was a comfortable silence between them, and Dean was in no hurry to break it, just enjoying the time spent hanging out with the other man. Eventually, though, he asked, “So, how did your first day go?”

“It could have been worse. I undertook my first assignment and ended up propositioning both targets.”

Dean laughed before realising that, no, Cas really wasn’t joking. “Wow. Looks like you’ve got to keep it in your pants there, buddy. You can’t take all the hot people for yourself.”

“It was not an intentional choice. I was simply trying to carry out my mission.” Cas scowled at him.

“It all went okay in the end, though, right?”

“They were already in love and needed a little nudge in the right direction. I had nothing much to do with it.”

Dean sighed. “At least you got the cushy assignment. Love’s easy. I have to watch humans die as part of my job.”

“I would disagree with you there. You’re trying to help those people. Death comes to us all, and it is a kindness to end their suffering. I can’t say the same of my position.”

From the look on his face, there was no doubt that Cas really meant it. Dean tried to stay calm, he really did. But he couldn’t sit back and hear Cas say shit like that. Not after everything. “Okay, fine. Maybe that’s all I’ve been doing so far, helping old folks onto the next life and all that kind of crap. But what about when they make me reap someone I don’t want to? Some kid with their whole life ahead of them? Some poor sap who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and got hurt? I could be saving these people, Cas. Instead, Heaven is making me kill them.”

Castiel looked at the floor, guilt written across his face. “I’m sorry. That was thoughtless of me. It won’t happen again.”

“You really think your job is that bad, huh? You’re helping people find love. Shouldn’t that be kind of awesome?” Dean said softly, wanting to do anything to remove that look from Cas’s face. He might have been the one who’d put it there, and Cas had been kind of a dick, but that didn’t mean that he didn’t know when to back off.

“Not when Heaven is the one who decides who is paired with whom and only matches people to safeguard bloodlines and the like. It’s all politics, nothing more. I might never have experienced anything close to love, but I know enough to know how wrong this all is.” Cas said quietly. He still wouldn’t look at Dean. “It’s wrong of me to complain about it, though. I could have been given something much worse.”

“Hey, look at me.” Instinctively, Dean gently rested a hand on Cas’s cheek, tilting the other man’s head up so he was forced to look at Dean. Cas stiffened a little at the touch but didn’t move away. “This is Heaven we’re talking about, okay? They wanted to teach us a lesson, so of course they gave us assignments that we’re gonna disagree with. But I’m damned if I’m gonna sit back and learn whatever sick lesson they want to teach, and you shouldn’t let them do it, either. If you think something sucks, find a way out of it. This is your life. You can’t let them boss you around like that.”

“I’m afraid I have fewer options than you. But I appreciate the sentiment.” Cas said gravely, a small smile visible on his lips.

Of course, Gabriel had to choose that moment to return. Quickly, Dean moved away from Cas and gratefully took the beer the other archangel was offering. Not that he had anything to feel guilty about. He and Cas were just having a normal conversation, right? He just didn’t want Gabe getting the wrong idea and giving Cas hell. Yeah, that was it.

Gabriel wasn’t alone, either. He had a girl with him, dressed in the usual scanty attire of the women who worked at the club. “Fellas, I’d like you to meet Chastity.”

Dean ran an appraising eye over her body. “You new around here, sweetheart? Because I think I’d have spotted someone as pretty as you before now.” He smirked.

Chastity smiled back at him easily. “I’ve just been here a few months. Looks like it’s your lucky day, hotshot.”

Castiel seemed a bit uncomfortable by Chastity’s clothing, or lack of it, but still managed to force a smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Chastity.”

Far from being repelled by how obviously ill at ease Cas was, Chastity merely seemed intrigued, sitting down next to him in the booth and shuffling in close. “You’ve never been somewhere like this before, have you?”

Cas gulped down half his glass of beer before shakily saying, “I’m not particularly familiar with establishments of this nature.”

“Well, believe me, iniquity is one of the perks around here, bucko.” Gabriel leered.

The girl reached up a hand to play with Castiel’s tie. “If you want, I can show you just how good it can be. Usually, the rule here is no touching, but I’ll make an exception for you, sweetheart.”

“I…I’m not sure I can…”

She took his hand and squeezed it. “Just relax. I’ll make you feel good, I promise.”

…………………

Castiel hadn’t particularly wanted to go with the girl. But Gabriel seemed to think it was a good idea, and Dean hadn’t made any effort to try and rescue him. Far from it, actually. He’d just clapped Castiel on the shoulder as he went off with Chastity, asking him to make sure he had protection, as if Castiel wasn’t more than capable of defending himself.

The room she’d brought him to was dominated by a large double bed, festooned in cushions and bed sheets in a particularly lurid shade of pink. As she lay down on the bed, patting the space next to her and smiling invitingly, Castiel started to panic. This wasn’t right. For one thing, his body wasn’t even his own. It was Jimmy Novak’s, a married man and servant of God. He couldn’t sully someone like that purely to fulfil sexual urges. It wasn’t even like he was interested in the girl in that way. Sex was just a meaningless action to him, something base and profane. It was of no importance unless it was done with someone you cared about. He didn’t, couldn’t love Chastity. He had to get out. Find some way of making his apologies that would let him save face.

Chastity’s voice broke through his thoughts. “You don’t really want to be here, do you, angel?”

He stared at her in surprise. How could she know?

She raised an eyebrow. “You started breathing more rapidly the moment I brought you in here and looked terrified the moment it looked like something was going to happen. Don’t worry, it’s okay. I don’t mind. It’s nice to find a gentleman for a change rather than one of the assholes Gabe has coming through this place.”

“I’m sorry.” He tried, and failed, to hide his nerves. “Sex isn’t something that holds any pleasure for me. I’m sure you’re lovely, but I can’t do this with you.”

“You should have said sooner. It would have saved you a panic attack, at least.” Chastity’s eyes suddenly widened in understanding. “Wait, you came in here to save face, didn’t you? You thought they’d judge you if you weren’t interested in me.”

There was no point in denying it. Castiel nodded.

“I can take care of that for you. Don’t worry: by the time I’m finished, they’ll never try anything like this again.” She took his hand, pulling out a pen and scribbling down a series of numbers on his palm. “Here’s my number. Call me if you want to meet up sometime when I’m off my shift. If you’re new in town, you could probably do with a friend. Besides, I’d like an excuse to get out of this dump.”

“Thank you.” He smiled gratefully at her.

“It’s no trouble.” She grinned back at him before starting to scream. “You asshole! Get out! Get out now! Just stay the hell away from me!”

Castiel stared at her, uncomprehendingly, for a few moments before realising that this must be part of whatever ruse Chastity had planned. It wasn’t long before Gabriel and Dean, obviously having heard the commotion at the bar, came rushing into the room.

Gabriel glared at Castiel. “What the hell did you do to her?”

“I didn’t do anything.” He decided to stick with the truth. Hopefully that would play into whatever the girl had planned. She’d started to cry, tears flowing freely down her cheeks.

Gabriel went over to her and put his arm round her shoulders, saying softly, “Shh, there, kiddo. Tell me what happened.”

Chastity had difficulty speaking through her tears, “We were just going to get into bed…then he looked me in the eyes and told me about my dad…he said it wasn’t my fault that he left me…how the hell did he even know about that? No one here knows my dad…” She started crying all the more violently, but that wasn’t enough for Castiel not to notice the meaningful look Gabriel exchanged with her.

Still cradling Chastity in his arms, he looked over at Dean. “I think that’s the last time I’m letting Cas loose on one of my girls. You two should probably go now.”

As they went out into the alleyway behind the bar, Castiel expected Dean to be angry at him for offending his friend. Instead, Dean just laughed, slapping Castiel on the back in a gesture of friendship. “I still can’t get over the fact that you’re a cupid and can pull stunts like that. Did you even see the girl’s face? You should’ve known not to mention her dad. Daddy issues are like the number one reason why girls end up in dives like this one.”

“She seemed upset about the whole situation. I was merely trying to bring her relief,” Castiel said dryly. “Besides, I haven’t been a cupid that long. It’s not like romance is even remotely important to my job.”

“Yeah, well, maybe just stick to the strippers next time, pal, okay?” Dean laughed again. “Man, tonight was fun. We’ve got to do this again sometime. I haven’t laughed this much in…well, years.”

“Alright. May I see you after work tomorrow then?” Castiel hadn’t meant to suggest it, the request slipping out of his mouth before he had time to properly think it through.

“Awesome.” Dean’s grin widened. “See you later, Cas.” With a rustle of wings, he was gone.

Inside Castiel’s head, Jimmy Novak sighed. And I thought you were bad at flirting.

Chapter Text

Any hopes Dean had of another easy day on the job were dashed when he saw Tessa’s sober expression the next morning. Tessa was usually very practical, so it must be something bad for her to be this upset about a case.

He could soon see why once he saw the next person on his list. Benjamin Braeden. Only a day ago, he’d just been your normal ten-year-old, destined to have a regular apple pie life: school, college, a job as a mechanic, a wife and two kids. But then Heaven decided to switch the Divine Plan up a little and save a group of businessmen who were due to get in a private plane accident because their shady stock broking business was oh so important to Heaven’s plans. Dean dreaded to think how that particular debate on the archangels’ high council had gone, what bullshit excuse Raphy or Zach or one of the others had come up with this time. Saving some lives meant the cosmic balance had to be redressed somehow, or some crap like that. Ben Braeden was one of the poor saps unlucky enough to be the casualties, rushed into hospital after a brain aneurysm.

The scene by his hospital bedside was heart-breaking. Ben hardly breathing, the only sign of life the steady beeping of his heart monitor. He hadn’t woken up since he’d been admitted. His mother, silently crying, praying that her son would be saved. Dean wouldn’t have even needed to be there to hear her prayer: after all, she was praying to him.

Dean was resolute. “I’m not doing it.”

“Excuse me?” Tessa raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow.

“That kid should have years left. He’s only 10, for crying out loud! He doesn’t deserve this shit. I’m not reaping him, and I’ll be damned if anyone else does.”

“Ben Braeden is due to die after they switch off the machines at four o’clock this afternoon. You have to reap him. It’s destiny. He’s got hardly any brain activity; it’s not even like there’s any chance of saving him.”

Dean laughed mirthlessly, “C’mon, we both know destiny’s a load of crap. This kid wasn’t even due to die until recently. There’s just a bunch of stuck up mooks up in Heaven making all the decisions. You guys are just the damn idiots who are too stupid to question orders.”

Tessa’s eyes narrowed. “Might I remind you that until recently you were one of those ‘stuck-up mooks’. The motion which put Ben Braeden on the reapers’ list only passed with one vote on the archangels’ council. Your representative didn’t have time to step in, otherwise it would have gone a completely different way. You could have swung the vote yourself if you weren’t too busy being so self-righteous. If you want to stop stuff like this happening, just do your damn job and maybe they’ll let you back into Heaven sooner. Otherwise, quit complaining.”

“I’m still not reaping him.” Dean’s tone brooked no argument. “Now get the hell out of here, Tessa.” When she showed no sign of moving, he just glared at her even more. “That’s an order, reaper. I’m still an archangel, no matter what bullshit community service they’re making me do.”

“Fine then.” Tessa said coolly. “But just so you know, Dean? Anything that happens now, because of this? It’s 100% on you.”

Dean just ignored her, not even noticing the rustle of wings signalling Tessa’s departure. He had work that needed doing.

Manifesting himself in the hospital room, Dean smiled reassuringly at Lisa. “Heya, Lisa. My name’s Michael. This is gonna sound a bit crazy, but I’m an angel and I’m here to help.”

She jumped, startled at the sudden sound and without a moment’s hesitation, reached into her handbag and pulled out a Mace spray can. Dean couldn’t help smiling. He liked a chick with some spirit. “Stay back. I won’t hesitate to attack if you come any closer to me and my son.”

He held up his hands in what was meant to be a calming gesture. “Cool it. I don’t have too many screws loose or anything, and I can prove it. You were praying to me, right? I heard you and I came to help.” The shadows of a pair of wings unfurled on the wall behind him (only one of his three pairs, he didn’t want to freak her out too much).

The can of Mace dropped to the floor. Lisa just stared at him, open-mouthed. “You…you’re an angel. I mean…I’ve been praying to you for years, but I never thought…”

“Yeah, I was last time I checked.” Dean winked at her. “I didn’t want to heal Ben without your permission, but I’m not gonna lie, it’s not good news. The reapers were gonna take him away, and that could still happen if we don’t do anything.”

Lisa just nodded her agreement. Dean came forward and tenderly rested a hand on Ben’s forehead, concentrating all his energy. Healing mojo flowed into the boy, mending all the dead nerve endings and burst blood vessels that needed fixing. After a few moments, one of the monitors started to go haywire, the one focusing on Ben’s brain activity. The boy’s eyes started to flicker open.

“That’s my cue. I’d better go,” Dean said softly.

He was just about to go, when Lisa stopped him, wrapping him in a warm embrace. “Thank you. Ben’s all I’ve got left. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t…” She was crying, tears of joy.

Dean shrugged a little. “Yeah, well, it was nothing. You just take care of yourself now, Lisa, okay?”

He made himself invisible again, happily watching the scene unfold before him. Lisa and Ben embracing. The doctors rushing in and, after a thorough examination, pronouncing Ben’s case to be a medical miracle. Even Tessa returning to the hospital room with a look of fury on her face couldn’t dampen Dean’s happiness. If anything, it just improved his mood.

“See, I told you this could be fixed.” Dean gestured over at Ben’s hospital bed. “The kid’s okay, his mom’s happy, everybody wins.”

She said nothing.

“Oh, what, you gonna give me the silent treatment now? Really? Real mature of you, Tessa.”

“So you’re stupid as well as arrogant. Great.”

“Who pissed in your Cheerios? C’mon, I saved that kid’s life. What more do you want?”

“You knocked over a domino, Michael.” Tessa glared at him. “There will be consequences. We just haven’t seen them yet.”

She was right. Little did Dean know it, but the first few dominoes had begun to fall.

…………………

Cas was in a good mood when he showed up at Angelz to meet Dean. After his first job, he’d decided that discretion was the better part of valour: watching his targets while invisible was the best solution to getting the information he needed and avoided any potentially awkward situations. The affection between his assignments also seemed genuine. His intervention had been hardly necessary to bring any of them together. Maybe the cupid system wasn’t as cold-hearted as it had initially seemed.

Any positive feelings Castiel had soon evaporated when he saw what state Dean was in. He’d obviously been at the bar for a while, going by his glazed-over eyes and the three empty bottles of whiskey on his table. A fourth bottle looked well on the way to joining its empty fellows as well.

Hesitantly, he sat down next to the other angel and ventured, “Dean. Are you alright?”

Dean laughed. Not his usual laugh, but the mirthless laugh of a broken man. “Do I look like I’m alright?”

“No. I just…I mean, do you want to talk about it?”

“Get lost, Cas.”

Once, Castiel might have listened to him. But the sight of Dean looking so crushed touched something inside of him. Dean was his friend. He couldn’t just abandon him. “I’m not leaving until I’m assured you’re going to stop drinking and punishing yourself for whatever is troubling you.”

He reached for Dean’s bottle, the other angel quickly pulling it out of his reach. “Not gonna happen.”

“And I’m not leaving. We’ve obviously reached an impasse.”

There was an awkward silence, a stand-off as to who would break first. Dean eventually sighed in defeat. “Just had a crap day on the job. I should’ve known it would happen, sooner or later.”

“Sometimes bad things happen to good people.” Castiel’s voice was quiet. “I know it can’t have been easy reaping someone who obviously didn’t deserve death, but that’s no reason to punish yourself for-”

Dean broke him off, “That’s the whole damn point. I didn’t reap the kid. I healed him.”

“But then why-”

“Death doesn’t like to be cheated.” Dean put his head in his hands. That wasn’t enough for Castiel to miss spotting the single tear trickling down his cheek. “Once someone’s on his list and Heaven have their plans set, he’s gonna get them in the end.”

“What happened?” Castiel gently rested a hand on his shoulder, pulling Dean in close to him in an attempt to reassure the other man. He would have expected the other man to pull away, but instead, Dean nestled in close to him. That alone was enough to tell him how bad things had gotten. “Tell me, Dean.”

“He and his mom were driving back from the hospital and got in a crash. They were killed instantly. She shouldn’t have even been on Heaven’s damn list either. I guess Heaven really wanted to make sure I learned my lesson for going against them, huh?” Dean said in an emotionless monotone, doing his best to hold it together. “I had to reap them. They were too far gone for anything else, and anyways, I didn’t want to make things worse. The mom…she asked me why they had to die, when I’d promised her that everything was gonna be okay. I couldn’t even look her in the damn eye.”

“You couldn’t have known. You couldn’t.”

“Tessa warned me. She warned me, and being a stupid cocky asshole, I didn’t even bother hearing her out.” Tears were falling in a steady stream from his eyes now. The sight was enough to break Castiel’s heart. “I wish I couldn’t feel anything, Cas. I wish I couldn’t feel a damn thing.”

Castiel didn’t say anything. There was nothing he really could say.

Chapter Text

The following few weeks, Dean was a changed man. What had happened with the Braedens had dredged up too many old ghosts for him to easily put to rest. There was no more talk of going against Heaven’s plan, trying to help the people on his list instead of just reaping them. Most of the time when he was off duty, he just hung around at Angelz, drinking gallons of whisky. They’d all tried to get through to him. Castiel was the only one who’d had any luck with that, and that was only on a good day. Gabriel had done his best to explain the situation to Castiel, about how Dean still felt guilty for all of their siblings who had died fighting Lucifer, all because he hadn’t had the courage to kill his brother in single combat before the war even got started. He couldn’t even hear his old name, Michael, without being reminded of it. Castiel privately disagreed. Dean’s decision not to hurt his brother was one made because of strength of character than out of cowardice. He hadn’t dared express that sentiment to Dean yet, though.

Still, hopefully today’s case would be nice and easy so he could get back to see Dean soon. Bobby Singer and Jody Mills had known each other for years. Both of them had lost partners around the same time and had stumbled across each other at a local grief counselling session. It hadn’t seemed like the obvious pairing, the town drunk and Sioux Falls’ sheriff, but the two of them were soon fast friends. Even from just watching them together for a few minutes at Bobby’s favourite watering hole, the Roadhouse, Castiel could already see how much they had in common. Besides, Bobby Singer was known for his skill as a hunter. He and his wife Karen had never had any children, so if Heaven wanted his bloodline to continue, a match had to be made.

He’d stayed visible for this particular assignment, partially so he could enjoy mingling with the locals while he planned his campaign, and had soon got chatting to one of the waitresses to find out the town’s gossip.

Jo had soon noticed the direction Castiel was looking in and smiled playfully at him. “Better be careful eyeing up the sheriff, Cas. Anyone who gave her hassle would get shot so full of holes, they’d be crapping margaritas.”

Castiel laughed. “I have no intention of seducing the sheriff, I promise.” He watched as another woman about Jody’s age joined the pair. Instantly, Bobby’s focus shifted. It was subtle, but still visible enough for even Castiel to notice it (despite his utter incompetence when it came to affairs of the human heart).

“Who’s that?” he asked Jo, gesturing as inconspicuously as he could towards the other woman.

“Oh, yeah, that’s my mom. She’s the one who really runs this place,” Jo explained. “My dad was drinking buddies with Bobby for years before he passed. That’s how come Bobby’s in here all the time.”

“He visits here regularly?”

“Um, yeah.” Jo gave him a strange look. “Practically every day, by my reckoning. Why’d you ask?”

After dodging Jo’s attempts at questioning him and excusing himself to go and get some fresh air, Castiel sat down outside the Roadhouse, leaning his back against one of its walls as he thought through the whole situation.

You’re planning on going against orders, aren’t you? Jimmy quietly asked him.

That was my intention.

Um, I might be able to see as well as you that those two are sweet on each other, and I don’t want to offend you, Castiel, but won’t you get dragged off to discipline if you do that?

Probably.

And it’s not like they’ll be stuck without love if you carry out the mission. They’ll be happy.

Castiel thought for a moment before responding. How would you feel if you found out one day that your relationship with Amelia was purely founded on the fact that a cupid had decided that you two should be together, that there was someone else around who you might have been in love with if they hadn’t intervened?

…I’d feel awful.

Then you see why I have to do this.

Besides, Heaven’s orders were nonsensical. Why was Jody Mills any more suitable than Ellen Harvelle as a match? Ellen was probably even more suited, given that she was a skilled hunter in her own right. If they really were only interested in continuing the bloodline, they would have to let events take their course. Castiel could easily guess why that hadn’t happened. Together, Bobby and Ellen would be a formidable team of hunters; if anything they would be too formidable. Zachariah had never liked the idea of humans being able to deal with the supernatural on their own, always concerned that one day, hunters would be able to match angels in a fight if they chose to. Besides, Bobby Singer had saved several potential seals over the years while the Host had been powerless to stop them. Zachariah had always taken rather too keen an interest in what happened to the seals and took Bobby’s success where angels had failed personally. This whole venture reeked of his spitefulness.

Cas, it’s not that I don’t think you’re doing the right thing, because I do. It’s just…I don’t want you to get hurt. Jimmy couldn’t hide the real concern behind his words, but he did his best to laugh it off. Besides, you’re possessing me. My neck’s on the line too here. Who knows what’ll happen to me if you get dragged off to Naomi?

Thank you, James Novak. You’re a good man. I will ensure that you go unpunished for my actions, but don’t worry about me. Standing by indifferently would be worse than any fate Heaven have planned for me.

Mind made up, Castiel walked back into the bar and over to where Bobby, Ellen, and Jo were talking in hushed voices. “Bobby Singer. I need to speak with you.”

“I might’ve known. Jo said there was something funny about you.” Bobby moved aside his jacket to show the gun he had stashed there. “Try anything in here and I swear I’ll-”

“I’m sorry, but there’s not much time.” Castiel interjected. He hadn’t felt Hannah’s presence in the bar, but even so, Heaven would soon work out what was going on and send someone after him. “My name is Castiel, and I’m an angel.”

“Like they exist. Stop talking crap, boy.”

“Look me up in any list of angels; you’ll find me under Thursday. Right now, though, you need to listen to me. Heaven has decided to involve you in one of its schemes. I was sent as a cupid to make you and Jody Mills fall in love, but once I saw your and Ms Harvelle’s attraction to each other, I felt obliged to go against my orders.” He kept talking over Bobby and Ellen’s protests, quickly scribbling down some symbols on a napkin. “These symbols will protect you from the influence of any cupid sent after you. You should probably also investigate angel warding and banishing sigils. My superior is not one to take kindly to humans who defy him. If you have any more problems, go to a bar called Angelz in Los Angeles. Mention my name and I think the bar owner will be willing to help you. Is that clear?”

“Wait just a second.” Ellen looked unconvinced. “At least give us some proof that you’ve not just had one too many drinks at the bar or something. Why the hell would Heaven care about making people fall in love? It all sounds like bullshit to me.”

“It’s to do with securing bloodlines. Besides, for all their rhetoric, Heaven have an unpleasant habit of interfering with human free will.” Castiel thought quickly. “I might be able to perform a minor miracle to prove my good intentions to you.”

He picked up a glass from the table and dropped it on the floor, the glass shattering. Kneeling down, the white light of grace appeared around his hands. He then handed the fully restored glass to Ellen. “Now do you believe me?”

“I’ll look into these sigils.” Bobby grumbled. “They seem legit, so maybe you are telling the truth.”

“I’ll leave now to try and get my superiors off your trail. Hopefully that will be enough to give you the time you need. I wish you the best of luck.”

With a rustle of his wings, Castiel flew off across the world, leaving the small group behind him stunned.

Castiel could only have minutes left at most before Heaven caught on to what he had done. His first instinct was to pray to Dean.

In case I don’t see you again, I’m sorry.

Cas, what the fuck?! What happened? C’mon, talk to me.

I couldn’t follow orders. I am going to try and plead my case but am fairly certain it will be of no use.

Can’t you just get out of it? Make some excuse for why you didn’t do it? Or if that won’t work, say you’ll go back and do whatever it was they asked of you?

You have no idea of the situation.

I have a damn good idea of what happens when you don’t follow Heaven’s commands, though. Please, Cas. I don’t want you to get hurt.

This is a completely different situation to what happened with Lisa and Ben Braeden. Besides, my life is of no importance. We’re supposed to be here to protect the humans, Dean, and that’s all I’m trying to do here.

…Fine, then. Go ahead and get disciplined, if that’s what you want.

Dean, please. I didn’t mean any disrespect.

There was no response. Dean?

There was a flutter of wings behind him and with a sinking heart, Castiel turned around to see Hannah, her eyes full of sadness. “I’m going to need to ask you to come with me, Castiel.”

……………………

“Castiel. Why do we have to keep meeting like this?” Zachariah made a big performance of pulling out Castiel’s records (his file much larger than any of the other records lying around the office) as he sat down behind his desk. “You’re a capable operative, but I always said your inability to obey any kind of order was going to get you in trouble one of these days.”

“I’m not incapable of obeying orders, only ones which I fundamentally disagree with on a moral level.” If Castiel was going to be sent to be disciplined, he might as well fall in a blaze of glory. Inside his head, Jimmy laughed at Zachariah’s scowl of annoyance.

“You need to watch your tone as well. Most people wouldn’t stand for you being so disrespectful. Luckily for you, I’m willing to give you one more chance.”

“Excuse me?” Zachariah never gave second chances, especially not to the people he hated.

“Just one simple assignment, nothing too taxing. I know you’ll be perfectly capable of doing it. If you succeed, we’ll overlook this latest little scandal. Maybe even promote you back to the seraphs, if you play your cards right.”

Now he was sure that there was something suspicious going on. Castiel narrowed his eyes at Zachariah. “Who’s the target?”

“Your friend Michael.”

Castiel was sure he couldn’t have heard correctly. But no, Zachariah had definitely said it. Michael. “But cupids aren’t supposed to use their abilities on other angels…”

“Not usually. But this is a special case. We’ve noticed that Michael feels demoralised lately, that he’s lost sight of what’s important. His falling in with known rebels like you is hardly doing anything to reassure our doubts. There have been discussions amongst some members of the archangel council.” So they must have found a way to shut Samael out of some of their discussions then, Castiel thought wryly. He wouldn’t have stood for the council putting out a hit on Dean like this. “It was felt that a suitable mate might help Michael get back on track. You’re a good friend of his, so it shouldn’t be too much trouble for you to make sure that the bond is a strong one.” Zachariah slid a sheaf of papers across the table. “Here’s everything you need to know about Michael’s intended. Her name’s Layla. A member of my own office, as it happens.”

Of course. Nothing like a good spy to ensure obedience.

“Have the two of them even met?” Castiel became increasingly annoyed, the longer Zachariah spoke. “No, but everything suggests they’ll get on splendidly. Come to the archangels’ council tomorrow to report how the case went, and then we’ll discuss your own situation. Oh, and Castiel? If you don’t do this, you are going to be disciplined. No more second chances. In fact, Naomi and I were talking about you the other day. She tells me that in a hopeless case like yours, she has to use certain special methods. I’m sure you don’t want to be a part of that, do you?”

Chapter Text

Castiel headed to Angelz that night with a heavy heart. Jimmy had tried to talk him out of his funk, but it just hadn’t worked. It was unsurprising really, he supposed. Dean was a close friend, and the idea of removing his free will just to satisfy Heaven and save his own hide was distinctly unpalatable.

Seeing Dean just made everything worse. The other man came charging over to greet him the moment he arrived in the bar. He seemed furious, but that was at least better than the broken mess he’d been even since the Braedens. “What the hell did they do to you this time? I’m amazed Zachariah even left you alive, considering you rebelled again. I told you, Cas. Stop risking your damn neck. It’s not worth it and you’re gonna get hurt if you keep on doing this.”

“Dean, please calm down. I’m not in trouble for what happened with the Singer case. They listened to my point of view, and I’m free to go.” The lie felt hollow in his mouth.

“Oh.” Dean’s righteous anger was soothed a little. “I thought…”

“Well, I’m not.”

“Why don’t you come and have a drink with us to celebrate then?” Dean asked hesitantly. “Gabe and I are sharing stories about the old days. Besides, I wanna hear all about how you conned them into letting you off.”

“Alright. Just give me a moment.”

As Dean headed back towards their table, Castiel slipped into another plane of reality, hiding him from sight. Steeling his nerves, he started to ready his bow. He called to mind everything that meant love to Dean. His beloved Led Zeppelin’s music. The smell of classic cars and whiskey. The taste of freshly made apple pie. He thought of everything he loved about Dean as well. His green eyes, the colour of forests. The way his smile lit up a room. How his laugh could make Castiel smile, even on the worst of days…

Oh God. He loved Dean. He loved him and now, he had to let him go.

Castiel stood, frozen, watching as Dean and Gabriel exchanged jokes, noticing the way his eyes drifted to the door every now and again as though waiting for someone. Waiting for him, Castiel, who was supposedly his friend.

Castiel did the only thing he could do. He fled.

……………………

Chastity found him a while later, loitering in the alley behind the club, empty bottles littered around his feet. “If you’d wanted to drink your feelings, you might’ve come back inside. Your boytoy’s looking for you.”

“He’s not my boytoy.” The words were a cruel mockery. Castiel took an extra-large swig of vodka.

“Funny, I wouldn’t have guessed that from the way you look at him.” Chastity laughed. “Come on, sweetheart. Alcohol’s not going to help fix whatever’s wrong with you.”

Hardly in a fit state to object or to care enough to complain, Castiel didn’t protest as she led him inside and into the room she’d taken him to before.

“So, whatever convinced you to go taking pot-shots at Michael with your cupid’s bow?” Chastity asked, pulling out a bottle of champagne and pouring herself a glass.

It took a moment for her words to sink in. “You…you know what we are.”

“Of course I do, idiot. I’m not as dumb as I let people believe.” She rolled her eyes. “I heard all of your little chat with Michael just now. He might believe that you got off Scot-free, but I figured Heaven had to want something. Looks like I was right. You don’t seem like the type to resort to magic to get your one true love.”

She seemed different from the first night they’d met, more powerful somehow.

Don’t trust her, Jimmy hissed.

I’m not planning on it. Castiel hadn’t forgotten how easily Chastity had acted her role the night before. If he hadn’t known that she was faking, he would have genuinely believed that she was furious at him. She had to have some hidden agenda, or she wouldn’t have approached him like this. He tried to keep his voice level. “I’m personally more interested in the question of why a stripper would know so much about Heaven’s politics.”

Chastity laughed. “I don’t think you want to know the answer to that, Columbo.”

“Then I don’t see why I should tell you about my affairs.”

Instead of being annoyed, Chastity looked impressed. “Fine, then, you got me. I’m a Nephilim.”

Castiel looked properly at her for the first time. It was easy to miss it, if you weren’t looking. No one from Heaven would expect to stumble across a Nephilim in a strip club of all places. But there was the unmistakable flash of grace amidst her human soul.

“Not going to try and kill me?” Chastity raised an eyebrow. “Most of Heaven want to.”

“I’m not most of Heaven.” He hardly needed to ask who her father was. They both had the same smirk, the same way of speaking, similar mannerisms. “Gabriel sired you, I assume?”

“Nothing gets past you, does it, sweetheart?” She nodded. “When he was doing the whole pagan god routine a few years back, he got distracted in the midst of a job, and I was what he ended up with. I’m about as good a trickster as he is, so until a few months ago, I was on the road dishing out just desserts ‘til he asked me to stay here. Heaven are far better now at hunting people like me down and it wasn’t safe. Besides, it all worked out in the end. If a guy gets too pissy with the other girls, I take him aside and teach him some manners.”

“So, that first night I came here…”

“I wanted information. It isn’t often Dean brings a friend by, so Dad asked me to check you out. He doesn’t know who I am, by the way, and I suggest you don’t ever plan on telling him, if you know what’s good for you. The less people who know what I am, the better.”

“Your secret is safe with me, I promise.” Castiel looked thoughtful, trying to work out the best way to explain his situation to her. “Zachariah has given me one more chance to redeem myself, or I am to be sent off to Naomi’s office. I’m to shoot Dean and make him fall in love with someone suitable. They feel that he’s begun to lose his way, make unsuitable connections.”

“I bet they do.” Chastity took his hand in hers. “Castiel, I might not know much about what Heaven’s got planned if you rebel, but trust me when I say that you can’t hurt someone you love like this. Dad left my mom behind to try and keep her safe from Heaven and he’s always regretted it. Doing this isn’t going to protect Dean. It’ll just make you both heartbroken in the end.”

“But I-”

“No need to lie to me, sweetheart. I’ve seen the way you look at him.”

……………………

Dean was beginning to get nervous. Cas had said he was going to join them in a few minutes, and he’d been gone for at least an hour. If it hadn’t been Cas, he’d have said he’d been stood up. Not like they were going on a date, but yeah (Dean had totally intended it as a date).

So when a shadow finally fell over his table, he figured Cas had finally decided to show. “I thought they must’ve dragged you back to Heaven or something, you were gone so long…” Dean slowly tailed off and looked up to see the stripper Cas had managed to piss off so many weeks ago.

“Yeah, well that’s exactly what they’ve gone and done.” Her mouth was set in a thin line.

“Lady, I don’t know what the hell you’re-”

She cut him off. “I know what you are, Michael. And if you want to save Castiel, you’d better move fast. They’ve summoned him before the archangels’ council and let me tell you, it doesn’t look good. Now strap on your angel wings and get on up there to save him, okay?”

He didn’t even think to wonder how she could’ve found out what was going on in Heaven in the first place. Dean quickly winged his way to Heaven. No way was he gonna stand by while Naomi turned Cas into her own personal punch bag. Not on his watch.

………………………

“So, Castiel, you’ve been summoned back here to report on your progress with Michael’s case.” Zachariah sat at the head of the archangels’ council. Unlike the last session, there were no idle spectators. Castiel assumed that was to ensure the scandal of a cupid targeting an angel never got out.

“No.”

Zachariah stared back at him, stunned. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me. I refuse to take this case.” Cas held his gaze. “I won’t shoot Dean. There’s nothing you can say or do to change my mind about that.”

“I see.” Zachariah pursed his lips. “You leave me with no choice then, Castiel. Not that I’m surprised, but I had hoped you might want to at least try and do better. Still, some time with Naomi should help you come to realise the error of your ways for yourself.”

“Believe what you want. I know my own mind.”

One or two of the archangels shook their heads despairingly as Zachariah and Metatron came forward with sigilled handcuffs. As they were fixing the handcuffs to his wrists, someone came crashing into the room and breathlessly shouted, “Wait!”

That voice was all too familiar.

Cas turned around slowly to see Dean, bent double and out of breath, but looking determined.

“Michael, the council have already voted on this matter. You aren’t even supposed to be present at meetings until your sentence is over. You needn’t concern yourself with-”

“Shut the hell up,” Dean snapped at Metatron.

He gripped Cas’s shoulder, his face full of righteous fury. “You’re a damn fool. I thought you said everything got cleared about Bobby Singer’s case. What the fuck did you do this time to make them want to pack you off to Naomi?”

Cas looked away. “It is not of import. Please, Dean, leave. You shouldn’t be here, and it’ll only make things worse.”

“Like hell it will. You’re not going to be disciplined, you hear me? Whatever happened, you need to at least try and fix this.”

“I’m afraid that’s outside of your control. Castiel refused to even attempt his latest assignment and couldn’t give any good reason for his actions. We might have been prepared to overlook it had it not been for the situation with Mr Singer.” Zachariah could barely conceal his smirk. Given his long-running vendetta against Castiel, finally managing to send him to be disciplined was an all-too eagerly awaited victory for him.

Dean stared at Cas, “Cas, what the hell is he talking about?”

Cas couldn’t look him in the eye. “I said leave it, Dean.”

“Castiel made the mistake of becoming too attached to his latest assignment and fell in love with them himself.” Raphael laughed mirthlessly. “We’ve tried everything to dissuade him, but he won’t see reason.”

Immediately, all the passion and fury vanished from Dean’s face to be replaced with pure shock. Castiel focused even more intently on the floor. Dean had to have realised that Raphael was talking about him. It was obvious, really. He hadn’t been particularly subtle about his feelings. Dean should never have found out, especially not like this. He should have known that he’d only meet with rejection. That hurt far more than anything Naomi could ever dream of doing to him.

“You talk a load of crap, don’t you?” It took a moment for Cas to realise that Dean was speaking to the whole council; he was too wrapped up in his own thoughts. “Don’t think I can’t see exactly what you’re trying to do here. Cas loves someone else, so what? That doesn’t mean I’m gonna be any less pissed when you’re basically sending him off to be brainwashed into being a good little soldier. And you know what? I’m done. Dad wouldn’t have wanted this: forcing humans to fall in love just so we have more vessels available to choose from, our not even bothering to try and save the humans that we could help. Oh I’ve learnt my lesson from my time on earth alright, just not the one you wanted to teach.”

With every word, Zachariah became more apoplectic until he eventually exploded, “You ungrateful little… You’re going to pay for this.”

“No, he’s not.” Cas’s voice was quiet, yet full of purpose. “We’re leaving, Zachariah. Dean’s right. Heaven isn’t following our Father’s wishes any more. Don’t even think about attempting to follow us or forcing us to return. If you do, we won’t hesitate to resort to violence.”

“I’m leaving too,” Samael stood up from his seat on the council. “This isn’t what Dad had planned, and I didn’t fight in the war against Lucifer for this kind of dystopian bullshit. And we’re not going to be the last to go. Don’t think others won’t follow.”

“If you leave now, you will all fall.” Raphael said quietly. “Heaven can manage perfectly well without you. Do you really love the hairless apes that much that you’re prepared to join them?”

“Well, being human is a damn sight better than being a dick with wings,” Dean quipped. “C’mon, guys. Let’s go.”

.............................

It took a while before Castiel was able to get some time alone with Dean after they’d skipped out on Heaven. They’d had to put warding sigils on their ribs so Heaven couldn’t find them, not to mention start getting the word out amongst the general rank and file of the Host about everything that had been going on. Eventually, though, they wound up at Gabriel’s. Before joining the rest of the group, Castiel pulled Dean aside for a few moments. “Dean, we need to talk.”

“Um, sure thing.” Dean looked a little confused. “What’s up, Cas?”

“Thank you,” Castiel said quietly. “If you hadn’t showed up, I wouldn’t have had the courage to walk out like that.”

Dean shrugged, “It was nothing. That girl back at the club told me. Chastity, right? One thing I don’t get, though: you could’ve walked out of there any time. You could’ve just agreed to do whatever assignment they gave you, then jumped ship. Why didn’t you?”

“They had leverage.”

“Oh, right, that assignment of yours. Who’s the lucky girl? We’ll need to get her some place safe now, of course. Heaven’ll be gunning for her now we’ve jumped ship.”

“There is no lucky girl.” Castiel squinted in confusion. “Dean, you honestly don’t know what he was speaking of?”

“’Course I don’t. I mean, I know Zachariah was just saying all that crap to screw with me, but I guessed there was at least some truth in it.”

“Why would any romantic entanglement of mine concern you?”

Dean said nothing, just looked at the floor.

Castiel remembered all the nights they’d spent together talking, Dean’s anger when he thought Castiel might have to leave again. He remembered how emotionless Dean had looked at Raphael’s words. Zachariah’s barely suppressed glee when he’d told Castiel that Dean was his next target. Maybe, just maybe, his previous assumptions of the archangel’s indifference were false?

Cupping Dean’s face in his hands, Castiel kissed him tenderly. Damn the consequences. This was Dean. If anyone was worth taking a risk for, it was Dean. At first, Dean was unresponsive. Then, slowly, tenderly, he kissed Castiel back, combing a hand through the other man’s hair.

After what seemed like an eternity, they pulled away, staring at each other.

Dean looked stunned. “I didn’t think you cared.”

"Neither did I.”

“We’re such dumbasses,” Dean said with a laugh.

“Yes, we might be, but you’re my dumbass and I love you.”

There was a companionable silence, the pair just enjoying each other’s company.

“What happens now?” Castiel asked eventually.

“I dunno, make things up as we go along, I guess.” Dean shrugged. “Gabe’s managed to escape Heaven’s clutches for the last thousand years or so. I suppose we could hang out with him for a bit then figure out what we’re gonna do.”

“So long as we’re together, I’ll be content.” Castiel sighed happily, resting his head on Dean’s shoulder.

“That goes without saying.”