Caught in the Rain (Invite Only)

[mugenginga]

(OOC: Me and Jilak only for now.)

The starting rain had lead the two Winchester brothers to quickly get under the trees. This had taken five minutes of running through rain. Of course, the trees really weren't much better than being out in the open. The rain was falling through the branches, and the ground was rather soaked. It took another fifteen minutes to actually find an outcropping of rocks that would serve as shelter for the night. Dean feigned sleep until he was sure Sam was, only going to sleep afterwards.

The following morning would find Sam covered with both jackets in a rather meticulous fashion. Until he moved, he wouldn't have any skin exposed except his face. He even had a slight pillow, care apparently being given to positioning one of the sleeves of the jacket under his head. Dean, on contrast, was at the edge of the area they'd found. He was sitting with his back to the rock. His legs were pulled up close as if he'd been trying to make himself small to preserve body heat. His face was buried in his knees. If Sam touched him to wake him up, he'd realize his older brother was rather warm for the chilled autumn morning air...

[Jilak]

Sam slept surprisingly well for someone out in the rain. Really, his simple jacket did surprisingly well as a blanket. He didn't think he felt a single drop of rain on him, sans the bit that he and Dean had been forced to run to to reach shelter. In fact, if he didn't know any better, he'd even say he had a pillow of some type underneath him! He wasn't sure how, and it didn't really seem possible with his jacket. If he'd folded the sleeves under his head it would've been nearly impossible to keep on, and would probably have been in the way of his second jacket, which-

...wait, he had two jackets. Why did he have two jackets? That would imply that someone had given him a second jacket, and that wasn't possible. The individual would have to be relatively selfless. Or, at the very least, they'd have to be willing to put their life in danger for Sam's, and-

...Dean. Sure enough, as Samuel bolted upright, he noticed his brother, sans jacket, sitting at the edge of the area they'd come across. Great. Just great. Sam pulled his coat back on, handling Dean's with care as he walked towards his older brother. No need getting the thing more dirty than it already presumably was...

As the younger Winchester shook the elder in an attempt to awaken him, he noticed something various people had discovered over the years: Dean was hot. Burning up, really, and that was a problem because with how cool it was out here he SHOULD have been cooler.

"Dean..."

[mugenginga]

Given the amount of training the Winchester brothers had underwent, the fact that Dean didn't start straight awake was probably worth note. He grumbled a bit as Sam shook him, his finger twitching as if he were going to bat the hand away and then dropping down halfway up as if it was decided it was too much effort. Dean opened one eye, reaching up with his hand again to wipe the gunk out of the other as he turned to Sam. He attempted to give a cocky smirk, it looked more like a grimace.

"Morning, sunshi-" Dean's forced sarcasm was interuppted by a dry cough.

He covered his mouth with his fist and beat his chest with his other. The cough passed fairly quickly. He looked about half-asleep afterwards though. He grimaced as he put his hands on the ground and pushed himself up. He was moving as if he'd overexterted himself, although there really hadn't been much sign of that the night before. He managed to leap to his feet before having to catch himself on the side of the rock beside him. He noted Sam very quickly before letting out a forced sigh and rubbing one of his shoulders.

"Y'know, I think that stupid castle would have been more comfortable, ghosts or no."

Even his insult sounded halfhearted.

[Jilak]

Sam was overcome with worry for Dean. The elder Winchester was obviously sick, and with Castiel gone, it wasn't like they had an angel handy to heal him. He knew Dean had only been trying to keep him safe, and that made it worse. They couldn't keep going on like this, sacrificing themselves for each other. They were going to get themselves killed, at this rate. Here they were, in the middle of a forest in a strange place, and Dean was--

Sam's thoughts were promptly cut off as he got a headache. An absolutely atrocious headache. He hadn't had one this bad in quite a while, and it only continued to worsen. He put one hand on the tree next to him as he fell to the side, in an attempt to steady himself, bringing his left hand to cup his forehead. It grew to a point where he had to shut his eyes, it was just... so horrid. When he opened them again, however, it was as if he was seeing... two realities.

Dean would probably notice that Sam seemed to space out, his eyes going misty, unfocused. To be honest, Dean would probably have noticed something was wrong the second Sam had to use the tree for support. Then again, he was sick.

A boy dropped in the middle of nowhere. He was injured, badly injured. He looked as if he'd gone through hell and back, and he collapsed into a heap. He wasn't tossed out of a portal in the traditional sense, he just sort of... materialized, as if his atoms had come together out of nothing. He laid there for a moment, breathing as if he'd been nearly suffocated. A figure loomed over him, a figure with the most atrocious face, almost demonic in nature. His eyes were red, and he let out a horrible, horrible laugh. It would have sent shivers down Samuel's spine had he not been in so much pain.

As quickly as it had come, it was gone. Sam's eyes refocused, as he finally lost his balance, falling to the side, sliding into a sitting position. He blinked for a bit, trying to pull himself together. One thing at a time. Right now, Dean was more important than a vision. The boy would just have to... just have to take care of himself right now.

[mugenginga]

Dean was in the middle of straightening up. He was about ready to suggest they try to find that town. The rain had stopped falling sometime in the night. The air was damn chilly, but at least they could see where the hell they were going. And it was daytime, which always did seem to be the time of day with the least activity. Honestly he could probably count on his fingers how many times the shit had hit hte fan in broad daylight if he'd been bothered. So he was about to suggest the get going, an excuse all prepared for if Sam tried to argue he was ill, when his younger brother kind of collapsed into leaning on a tree.

"Hey, Sammy!"

His words fell on deaf ears. Sam was wincing rather badly with his closed eyes. Dean grabbed his shoulders as the younger Winchester opened his eyes. And looked... nowhere. Dean was standing right in front of him but he didn't think Sam could even see him. When Sam came back to normalcy, he collapsed. Dean lost grip of Sam's shoulders due to the way he'd just suddenly fallen. Dean fell into a crouch, which reminded him of just how god damn sore his muscles were, and he ended up sitting on the wet ground. He winced at the pain but was far more concerned with Sam.

"Hey, Sammy, what just happened?" Dean paused. Of course, it had to be, "You didn't get another one of those damn visions again, did you?"

[Jilak]

Samuel took a moment to respond. He wasn't sure how to respond. Every part of him was screaming to investigate his vision. There had been no indication as of yet that his visions didn't have everything to do with the demon, and that meant trouble. That red-eyed face he'd seen... another demon, maybe? Dammit, yellow eyes was bad enough, but red? Or... at least a very dark pink? That was horrible. Not to mention that boy, that poor, scared, boy, alone, and in pain. Sam knew what that felt like, he knew. He'd been like that before, and he wouldn't wish it on anyone else. But... some things were more important than hunting. They... they had to be.

"It's... it's nothing. We've gotta get you somewhere safe." Sam responded, frowning. This wasn't what they needed right now. None of this. Dean was sick, Dad was still missing, and now a vision? No, they... they had to prioritize. Right now they needed to get their family together. Dammit, if only Bobby were here... he'd know what to do. Bobby Singer always knew what to do. Hell, when Dad wasn't around, Bobby was like a father to them. Even IF he threatened to shoot John once... Bobby was as good as a part of their family. Not to mention, not too long ago Paster Jim and Caleb had been killed by Meg...

All in all, the universe seemed to hate the Winchesters right now. But then again, it always had. Sam shook his head a bit, trying not to think about it. What was important right now was Dean. Samuel pushed himself to his feet, offering a hand to Dean. The effort it took to push himself up, to put forth his hand, hurt like hell. That's right, he and Dean had to deal with their intensely sore muscles on top of everything. They were used to going stints without a break, and this was no different, but... it was the fact that they were being put through the emotional ringer as well that bothered Sam.

"C'mon. If we keep walking we can probably find a town." Sam continued, looking around. Only trees, everywhere... getting out would be tricky. Where the hell was Castiel?

[mugenginga]

Dean frowned as Sam insisted he was alright. He was positive Sam had seen another vision. The older Winchester frowned up at the younger. Of the two of them, Sam was probably in better condition. He took Sam's hand and was pulled to his feet. Sam was somewhat wobbly, so Dean did as much of it as he could by himself while trying to hide how sore his own muscles were.

And then he crossed his arms, continuing his attempts to conceal his illness. His eyes widend and he turned his head, letting out another dry cough. This time it was longer. He shook his head and turned back to Sam.

"We still have no idea where dad is, right?" Dean said, "Might as well check out that vision of yours. Hell, it got us near dad last time, right?"

[Jilak]

"Dean's right, Sam. We've so far been given no reason to believe your visions are anything other than messages from the yellow eyed demon." Castiel spoke, having suddenly appeared. Right behind Dean's shoulder, at that. He'd nearly scared the dickens out of Samuel, but Cas' statement caught him off guard. Sure, his visions had always led him closer and closer to the yellow-eyed demon, but Sam assumed it was just his psychic powers at work. The implication being left by Castiel implied that his powers were related to, or, even worse, caused by the yellow eyed demon specifically.

"You can't be serious, Cas. I mean, Dean's in no position to go chasing after a vision. Can't... can't you handle it?" Samuel questioned, curiously. If the angel was so certain that the threat was demonic in nature, surely he could just work his angel mojo and fix everything.

The fact that Castiel took a moment to respond, however, worried Sam a bit.

"...Cas?" Sam asked after receiving no response. Another brief pause before Castiel finally spoke up.

"I can't. I'm... getting weaker by the second, in gradual seeps. I can't access heaven from here. It's as if something's blocking me. Teleporting alone is hard enough, it's too dangerous for me to enter possible enemy territory. Especially if they have holy oil..." Castiel trailed off, looking up. This place didn't feel... right, didn't feel... natural.

"But I trust that my father has not abandoned me." Castiel finished.

[mugenginga]

Dean's muscles locked up as Castiel spoke up from behind him. And by locking up, it put them in a lot of pain. He winced pretty heavily, his eyes flicking to Sam before he lurched back to try and make it seem like massive surprise. It had taken about three seconds from start to finish, and probably the only one actually fooled was Castiel. And well, he was Castiel, a clear sign that angels hadn't quite been getting the same training on dealing with humans since God up and vanished.

"What the hell would you expect me to do otherwise, Sammy? I don't 'chill' well, you should know that by now," Dean looked at Castiel with an annoyed look, "And I don't know about your divine menopause or whatever you want to call your damned mess, but I trust my brother more than any half-baked theories. If it's that demon, we might as well walk into his trap. Just standing... just standing..."

Dean stopped and broke off into another cough. It looked painful, and despite efforts not to he found himself holding his chest. Damn his upper chest hurt.

[Jilak]

It was around this point that Castiel decided he'd had enough. He'd stuck his neck out for these two, the Winchesters. Sure, from what he'd heard, Gabriel had done the same, but was Gabriel currently cut off from Heaven and having to put up with Dean Winchester? Castiel didn't think so. As such, by the time Dean stopped his coughing fit, Castiel would be in front of him, fixing a cold stare on him. This had to stop. They had to get their heads together because right now none of them knew what was going on, and the more they stayed at odds with each other, the farther away Castiel felt they would get from their goals. Right now, though, he couldn't begin his search for God. Not with him being so cut off from Heaven. Besides, Dean had something he would need first...

"There's something you don't seem to have realized, so allow me to point it out. I gave up EVERYTHING for you. What you call a 'divine menopause' is no different than having a part of you taken away. The codependency you have on Sam is NOTHING compared to the relationship between an angel and heaven, so don't begin to treat my problems as petty! If we are going to get through this, ALIVE, we have to work together, the three of us. I know you don't trust me. After the incident earlier, I can't really blame you, but I need you to believe, Dean. In me. In my father. Have faith. Good things do happen." Castiel kept his stare on Dean a moment before turning away.

He looked up one last time, an almost longing, remorseful look on his face, before bringing his gaze down and once more losing all hint of emotion.

[mugenginga]

Dean's head was still ringing from the coughing fit when Castiel began to talk. He more or less missed the first sentence as a result, but he was getting a rather cold glare as he listened to the continuation. Sam would probably note that Dean had actually shut up and was letting Castiel have his little (justified, but since when had Dean cared all that much about that?) rant. His expressions changed during the conversation at various points, one of the most noticable being the scowl as Castiel made his codependancy statement.

The fact was Dean might have given him an earful of a response had Castiel not had that bit of torn emotion showing there right after he ended. He let out a shallow sigh, one that looked like it might have been much deeper had Dean not seemed short of breath. He looked very annoyed.

"Then you've gotta stop treating us like 'lesser beings'," Dean said, his scowl one of resignation, "You know what, you're right. I don't get all this angelic mumbo jumbo. I've dealt with the things that make people not want to turn their lights off at night, not the things they run around chasing for light. Few times I have dealt with that, just turned out to be more of that bumpity bullshit."

"Glass is half empty, Cas, but at least it's in one piece," Dean lifted his hand and had a slight cough before he continued, "Not gonna turn away help, but don't hold it over us, got it?"

[Jilak]

"...you're right. Apologies. I've spent most of my existence as a multi-dimensional wavelength of celestial intent. My... people skills are a bit rusty." Castiel responded. It was at this point that he turned to face Sam. While this bonding moment was all well and good, they still had no idea where to go.

"Sam, can you remember any indication of where your vision took place? Any defining landmark, a river of some type, a statue, anything?" Castiel asked. In a normal situation he could've just looked into Sam's mind for the information, but... no need to waste energy. Not in his current predicament.

Sam thought for a moment, remembering every aspect of his vision. Those eyes, those horrible reddish eyes. The boy, the way he'd landed, everything... and yet he could only vaguely remember one vaguely descriptive landmark.

"I guess they were down some sort of... alley." Sam responded, looking up with a frown on his face.

[mugenginga]

Dean gave a sympathetic frown at Sam's explanation. Alley, that could be anywhere. Dean leaned against a tree, finding it too tiring to just stand there without at least walking. Then again, all the other times Samuel had gotten visions it had been of places nearby. If they couldn't get in time to stop it, it was always damn close. Dean looked to the side, through the trees.

"My guess would be there's a city nearby then. You don't really get 'alleys' in most spot on the map small towns," he lifted a thumb and pointed it, "In lack of decent transportation, I say we hoof it. Anyone want to pick a direction?"