FicWad

Chapter 1
Dean woke up to a blaring rendition of Lady by Styx, to which he responded with the Winchester glare. Sam patted him on the back and countered with a simple “your boyfriend is here.” Cas stood awkwardly outside the Impala where Dean and Sam where bickering. Dean turned down the radio and casually slid out.
“What have you got for us today, Cas? Angels? Demons? Ghosts? Mutant Parakeets?”
“To my knowledge, there have been no recorded incidents involving hunters and mutated avians.”
“Not the point Cas. What is it?”
“I believe someone is imprisoning or killing angels.”
“Oh. Any idea who or why?”
“I hear they make good boyfriend material” Sam butted in.
He was met by an angry look and a confused stare.

“Where do you believe the angel-napper is hiding out?” Dean asked.
“Somewhere in the vicinity of Denver. I cannot see the area from heaven, and no angel known to frequent that area has been heard from in over a week.”
“OK. We can be there in less than three hours.” Dean said, already planning out the route in his mind.
“It would be more efficient for me to fly there”
“Sorry Cas, but you are sitting this one out. Thanks for the job, but flying an angel into the angel version of the Bermuda Triangle is not a good idea.”
After contemplating triangle of Bermuda, Cas responded with righteous gusto: “An angel may be responsible for these disappearances, and if so it is my duty to protect my brothers and sisters. I have hunted with you before, and on more than one occasion, saved you life. I am coming.”
“If this is an angel, won’t they sense you zapping in? You know, angel radar and all? And more importantly, whoever is doing this is taking out angels. You are an angel. Go take a week off and work on your tan. You need it.” Dean quipped.
“I am uncertain as to how skin tone effects my performance as a hunter. However, I can minimize risk of detection by riding with you to Denver. As long as I do not use my Grace, I should not show up on ‘angel radar.’”
“I don’t know Cas. This just seems like a bad idea.”
“How many times have you entered a trap know it was a trap?”
Dean and Sam share a long, tense, look and Sam shrugged and said “He’s right, you know.”
“Hop in Cas” Dean sighed, defeated.

Two and a half hours, six Chick-O-Sticks, an argument over whether or not Redbone was from Texas or California, and a discussion over the feasibility of a killer mutant parakeet later…

“Cas, how do you know someone is responsible for this? Could it just be residual turmoil in heaven from the war?”
“You might call it a gut feeling, intuition, a hunter’s insight, a sixth sense, a hunch, healthy suspicion-“
“We get it, Cas, we get it.” sniped Sam.
Dean stopped the Impala by an older building in Aurora1 and asked “you picking up anything Cas? Any vibes, feelings, senses,-
“Not you too! Get a room!” cried Sam.
They began to explore the suburbs, splitting two teams. Dean insisted rather forcefully that he go alone, and that Castiel and Sam go together. With a knowing wink, Sam walked off after Cas, leaving Dean to not admire the view from behind.
Dean walked away from the neighborhood, toward a small forest. He wandered through the trees, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Dean was an experienced hunter, and he could tell when things were normal and when things were supernatural.
After a fruitless search, the plaid-clad hunter began to trek back to the car. He was about to call Sam’s cell when he saw a blinding flash of white light, and heard a shout. He sprinted towards the sound, and got their just in time to see Castiel, lunging away from the source of the light. Dean surged forward, trying to grasp Cas’s sleeve. Years of combat- trained instincts kicked into high gear. He watched as the ground fell away from underneath the light, and the ravine spread out, quickly engulfing the ground beneath the angel and the human. They collided as they fell, Dean still holding on to Cas’s arm. The next moment they were swallowed by the earth and thrust into darkness.

1Aurora is a suburb to the East of Denver.



Chapter Two
Castiel woke to the sound of Dean’s pacing. The rugged man with such incredible green eyes was going over the room they were in. On the walls there were Enochian sigil, which radiated light. The ground was a kind of odd, woven carpet, interspersed randomly with tufts of grass and leaves. The ceiling seemed to be made of dirt, which somehow was not crumbling down on top of them. The room was rectangular, about twelve feet by twenty feet, and about seven and a half feet high. The room was empty except for the two men.
Cas tried to stand up, but immediately knew something was wrong. He was powerless, probably thanks to the sigil on the wall.
“Dean” he cried out, startling his companion.
“Hey Cas. You were out for a while.”
“Dean, I think I’m powerless. The Enochian sigil are keeping me from contacting Sam or using my Grace.”
“Are you OK? Are the sigil hurting you?” Dean glared at the writing on the wall, becoming protective of his friend.
“No, I think my condition is stable for now, and I am not in pain. However, for all intents and purposes, I am currently human.”
“Great. I tried to scratch off the sigil already, but it grew back. The wall has got some serious voodoo.”
Dean gestured to the wall with his silver knife. It looked like compacted dirt, with the occasional root or patch of moss surfacing. The taller man cut the wall with his knife, but after a few seconds the roots seemed to heal themselves and the dirt filled back in.
Cas looked around for a door or any means of escape, but the walls were uniformly brown interspersed with roots.
“There are no hidden doors or hollow areas behind the wall. I’ve tapped every inch of the room. Twice.”
“I believe we were brought here through witchcraft. The object omitting light appeared to be a hex bag, and I did not feel the presence of an angel’s Grace.”
“Witches? Why did it have to be witches?”Dean mumbled something about bodily fluids and glared at the earthen wall.
“Aha! Fire!” Dean pulled a solid black lighter out of his pocket, flipped it open and tossed at the wall.
The wall caught fire briefly, then went out. A small, charred circle was left, but after a few seconds, that started to fade away as well.
Castiel walked up behind his human friend and said “I appreciate the idea, though we would most likely have asphyxiated had the wall truly caught fire.”
“Maybe, but we’ve been in here a while, and we both seem to be breathing fine. Air must somehow be getting in and out.”
“If you are correct, that means that whoever, or whatever, trapped us down here must want us alive. However, I am uncertain how a witch would use an angel, and we must assume that the same person who has abducted or killed the angels has kidnapped us.…. Does your phone have service?”
“Nada”
“Well, Sam saw where I was headed, so he should eventually figure out where we are.”
“We might die of thirst before he does”
“I am analyzing the situation Dean. It might behoove you to be helpful.”
“You don’t have the heavenly halo backing you. Don’t make threats you can’t follow through on.”
“I have saved your life more times than you can count. I would advise to not do something you will regret.”
“Cas, I have saved the world more times than I can remember. I can take care of myself, without a bright, white light or angel wings.”

Directly above where Dean and Castiel were bickering, Sam Winchester was dissecting a hex bag.

Yew… could mean anything… dried Oak leaves… most likely a transportation spell… yarrow… the active ingredient, power source… salt and vetvier… probably used to target the spell…
Sam walked back to the Impala and set the disemboweled hex bag on the passenger seat. He looked at his phone to see if his brother or Cas had responded to his texts or calls. No dice.
While Sam wasn’t opposed to the thought if Dean and Cas being alone… together… he was still worried about them. Where were they?

In the underground room

Dean was frustrated. He was stuck in an underground prison with a cranky angel, and it did not look like that was going to change anytime soon. Not that he hadn’t tried to escape, mind you. The wall in front of him had endured both hunters’ best attempts to harm it. Castiel had tried every incantation he could remember, and Dean had tried cutting it, burning it and urinating on it (much to Castiel’s annoyance). Three hours had passed since Dean had woken up, and they were both getting thirsty.
“ Witches. Witches that want angels. Witches that want angels alive. What could you use an angel for? Blackmail heaven?”
“More than likely, our captors use an angel’s grace before slaughtering them. A skilled witch could probably use an angel’s grace for months, if not years, before the angel died.”
“Why would a witch need an angel’s Grace? Mood lighting?”
“Dean. Whoever captured us will kill you when they find that you are not an angel. We need to escape before then. If you have something to say that might actually help us escape, please speak up. Otherwise, stop talking.”
“Cas, I don’t know what’s ruffling your feathers, and I don’t really care. But I am pretty sure that the more we fight, the less we get done. If you weren’t here, I would be out already!”
Castiel’s face twisted into that serious glare that Dean hated, the one that Castiel only used when he meant business. “I rebelled against Heaven for you. I have killed my brothers and sisters for you. I have become human for you. I would love some gratitude and respect. But instead it’s “Goodbye Cas! See you next time my ass needs saving!” I am tired, Dean. I have lived since the Beginning, but I have never met anyone as infuriating as you!”
“Castiel, Angel of the Lord, if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t even be in this mess. That hex bag would never have activated. Hell, I wouldn’t even be on this hunt if it weren’t for you!”
“You wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for me. But next time I won’t come. You can handle the angels and the demons and the witches and everyone else who wants you dead by yourself. I will not bring you back from the dead again.”
“Good. The next time your start a Holy Civil War, don’t expect me to come running again. And the next time that you lose the angel tablet, don’t expect come calling for help from me. I’m sick of helping you and getting trouble in return. I am on the angel’s hit list because I stuck my neck out for you!”
Castiel stood up. Dean leapt to his feet without realizing he had moved until after he was mere feet from his friend.
Castiel didn’t care. The eyes, the fighting stance, that look of determination that would make the most reckless fighter wary did not faze the angel in the slightest. Castiel regretted his next words the second they left his mouth.
“If I wish I had never saved you from Hell!”
Dean felt the ground beneath him squish against his foot as he lunged forward. He felt the air around him as he moved. He felt Castiel’s nose against his fist.
Castiel had just enough time to register what happened before blacking out.